LLC Registered-Agent and Registered-Office Requirements in Mississippi

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Governing law and terminology

Mississippi divides the subject between the Revised Mississippi Limited Liability Company Act, Mississippi Code § 79-29-101 et seq., and the Mississippi Registered Agents Act in §§ 79-35-1 to 79-35-19. The current formation statute uses registered agent and incorporates the Chapter 35 appointment filing. It does not impose a separate current LLC registered-office duty; former § 79-29-113 and § 79-29-125 are repealed.

Continuous designation duty

Section 79-29-201 requires the certificate of formation to include the appointment information in § 79-35-5(a). Mississippi expresses the continuing requirement through its lapse rules: § 79-29-821 permits administrative- dissolution proceedings after 60 days without a registered agent or 60 days without notifying the Secretary of State that the agent changed or resigned.

Eligible individual

Chapter 35 allows an individual to serve as either a commercial or noncommercial registered agent. The address provision requires an actual Mississippi street address, and the Secretary of State describes the operative requirement as a Mississippi physical address. The cited provisions do not add a minimum age, Mississippi-residency, citizenship, or daily-hours condition.

Eligible entity and self-service

Sections 79-35-2 and 79-35-6 allow a domestic or foreign entity to serve. Commercial status is elective: an individual or entity becomes listed by filing a commercial listing statement, and the statute states no represented-client threshold that automatically triggers registration.

Chapter 35 defines “person” to include an LLC and does not expressly exclude the represented LLC from serving as its own noncommercial agent. The Secretary of State likewise says any corporation or LLC with a Mississippi physical address may act as registered agent for a Mississippi company. A member or manager may instead be named personally when that individual independently satisfies the address and filing requirements.

Registered office, address, and hours

Section 79-35-4 requires an actual Mississippi street address and a Mississippi mailing address when different. The 2021 amendment also requires the agent's email in the applicable filings. The commercial-agent listing uses the email and Mississippi place-of-business address where process and other documents may be delivered.

The cited provisions state no numbered hours window or daily staffing schedule. A mailing-only P.O. box does not replace the required actual street location.

Consent and initial filing

The certificate of formation incorporates § 79-35-5(a): it names the commercial agent or supplies the noncommercial agent's name, address, and email. Under § 79-35-5(b), filing the appointment affirms that the LLC notified the agent, provided the forwarding address used for the agent's duties, and obtained the agent's consent. The agent does not separately sign the certificate under that provision.

Consent still needs a record behind the filing. Section 79-35-19 makes it an offense to file a false statement naming someone without that person's written consent and authorizes entity-status and added reinstatement consequences.

Change, resignation, and replacement

An LLC changes the registered-agent information through a signed statement under § 79-35-8. The new appointment again affirms notice and consent, no separate interest-holder or governor approval is required, and the change takes effect on filing. A noncommercial agent files name, street-address, or email changes by represented entity; a commercial agent's filing updates all represented entities. Both kinds of agent must promptly notify affected entities.

Mississippi Code §§ 79-35-7 to -11 govern commercial termination, entity and agent changes, and resignation. Mississippi's resignation timing has two stages. Section 79-35-11 requires the agent to send written notice to the LLC's last known principal office at least 30 days before filing the resignation. The filing then takes effect on the earlier of a replacement appointment or the 31st day after filing. Commercial- listing termination separately takes effect on day 31 and requires prompt notice to every represented entity.

Agent duties and service

Mississippi Code §§ 79-35-13 to -14 authorize the registered agent to receive process, notices, and demands and require a compliant agent to forward them to the latest address supplied by the LLC, give Chapter 35 notices there, and keep the applicable noncommercial filing or commercial listing current. The statute states no numbered forwarding deadline.

Notice or demand ordinarily arrives as a written document. A commercial agent may state in its listing that it accepts another form of record and the conditions for doing so.

Lapse consequences and fallback service

Under § 79-29-821, 60 days without a registered agent is a ground for the Secretary of State to begin administrative dissolution. The same is true when the LLC does not notify the Secretary within 60 days that the agent changed or resigned. Section 79-29-823 then requires a written determination notice by agent email or first-class mail as the LLC indicated and gives the company a further 60 days after service to cure or disprove the ground before dissolution.

Loss of the agent does not stop service. Section 79-35-13 first treats the LLC's governors as service agents under the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure. If they also cannot be served with reasonable diligence, service proceeds through the Secretary of State. A notice or demand may instead be handed to the manager or other person in charge of a regular company business place when the agent and governor routes are unavailable.

What trips people up

The resignation clock starts before the filing. The agent must give at least 30 days' written advance notice, then the filed resignation can remain pending until day 31 afterward. An LLC should not treat the first notice as an already-effective resignation or wait for day 31 to begin finding a replacement.

Consent and agent signature are different questions. The formation filing affirms consent without requiring the agent to sign it, but § 79-35-19 separately penalizes a false appointment made without written consent.

An unauthorized appointee can still create a service risk. Section 79-35-14 removes the unauthorized person's forwarding duty and liability, but if that person accepts service by mistake, the statute says service is deemed made on the entity even if the document is not forwarded.

Common questions

Can a Mississippi LLC be its own registered agent? Chapter 35 allows a domestic entity to serve and does not expressly exclude the represented LLC. The company must still provide the required Mississippi physical address, email, consent record, and accurate filing information.

Does the registered agent have to sign the certificate of formation? No separate agent signature is stated in §§ 79-29-201 or 79-35-5. The filing affirms that the agent was notified and consented, and the filer must have the written consent required by § 79-35-19.

Can service go straight to the Secretary of State when the agent is gone? Not under Chapter 35's ordinary sequence. The statute first treats the LLC's governors as service agents; Secretary-of-State service follows when the governors also cannot be served with reasonable diligence.

How long does an LLC have to cure an agent lapse? A 60-day lapse creates the administrative-dissolution ground. After the Secretary serves its written determination, § 79-29-823 supplies another 60 days to cure or show that the ground does not exist.

Statutes and sources

• Miss. Code §§ 79-29-101, -113, and -125. Act name and the repealed former registered-office, agent, and service sections. Official Code of Mississippi Annotated, release 78 (accessed August 16, 2026).
• Miss. Code §§ 79-29-201 and 79-29-821; §§ 79-35-1 to -19. Formation, agent types, addresses, changes, resignation, service, duties, consent, and lapse consequences. Official Code of Mississippi Annotated, release 78 (accessed July 27, 2026).
• Miss. Code §§ 79-35-5, -6, -9, and -10. Current email requirements and agent-change text. Official 2021 SB 2204 as sent to the Governor (accessed July 27, 2026).
• Miss. Code § 79-29-823. Current dissolution notice method and 60-day cure. Official 2023 HB 1101 as sent to the Governor (accessed July 27, 2026).
• Mississippi Secretary of State, Registered Agents. Commercial status, physical-address guidance, agent types, and permission. Official guidance (accessed July 27, 2026).