This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

(1) Domestic filings:

(a) for articles of incorporation:

(i) profit                                                                                                             $ 35.00

(ii) nonprofit                                                                                                         20.00

(b) reinstatement:

(i) for profit corporations, the $30.00 filing fee, plus an additional

fee of $35.00 per year for each year of delinquent annual reports

(ii) for nonprofit corporations                                                                             10.00

(c) articles of correction                                                                                     15.00

(d) articles of amendment                                                                                  15.00

(e) restated articles                                                                                             15.00

(f) articles of merger                                                                                           20.00

(g) articles of dissolution                                                                            no charge

(h) domestic business trust                                                                               70.00

(i) articles of revocation of voluntary dissolution                                            15.00

(2) Foreign filings:

(a) certificate of authority:

(i) profit                                                                                                                 70.00

(ii) nonprofit                                                                                                          20.00

(b) amended certificate of authority                                                                 15.00

(c) withdrawal                                                                                              no charge

(d) registration of name (per year)                                                                   10.00

(e) renewal of name registration (per year)                                                    10.00

(f) foreign business trust                                                                                    70.00

(3) Both domestic and foreign filings:

(a) name reservation                                                                                          10.00

(b) transfer/cancellation of reserved name                                             no charge

(c) cancellation of foreign name registration                                                  15.00

(d) statement of change of:

(i) registered office                                                                                      no charge

(ii) registered agent                                                                                    no charge

(e) annual report filed prior to April 15th                                                         20.00

(f) annual report filed after April 15th                                                               35.00

(g) certificate of existence (domestic)                                                                5.00

(h) certificate of authority (foreign)                                                                     5.00

(i) certificate of fact                                                                                             15.00

(j) any other statement or report                                                                       15.00

(4) Electronically filed documents returned because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee.

(1) Domestic filings:

(a) articles of organization                                                                            $ 35.00

plus $50.00 for each series member named in the series LLC

(b) articles of correction                                                                                     15.00

(c) articles of amendment                                                                                  15.00

plus $50.00 for each series member named in the series LLC

(d) restated articles                                                                                             15.00

(e) articles of merger                                                                                          20.00

(f) application for reviver                                                                                    15.00

(g) articles of termination                                                                           no charge

(h) reinstatement of involuntarily dissolved limited liability company         35.00

plus an additional fee of $35.00 per year for each year of delinquent

annual reports

(2) Foreign filings:

(a) certificate of authority                                                                                   70.00

plus $50.00 for each series member named in the series LLC

(b) amended certificate of authority                                                                 15.00

plus $50.00 for each series member named in the series LLC

(c) withdrawal                                                                                              no charge

(d) registration of name (per year)                                                                   10.00

(e) renewal of name registration (per year)                                                    10.00

(3) Both domestic and foreign filings:

(a) name reservation                                                                                          10.00

(b) transfer/cancellation of name reservation                                         no charge

(c) statement of change of:

(i) registered office                                                                                      no charge

(ii) registered agent                                                                                    no charge

(d) annual report filed prior to April 15th                                                         20.00

(e) annual report filed after April 15th                                                              35.00

(f) any other statement or report                                                                      15.00

(g) certificate of existence (domestic)                                                                5.00

(h) certificate of authority (foreign)                                                                     5.00

(4) Electronically filed documents returned because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee.

(1) Registration of limited liability partnership                                            $ 10.00

(2) Partnership agreement or statement of partnership authority               20.00

(3) Renewal of registration                                                                                20.00

(4) Amendment to registration                                                                          20.00

(5) Reservation of name                                                                                    10.00

(6) Cancellation of registration                                                                  no charge

(7) Filing of any other statement                                                                      15.00

(8) Electronically filed documents returned because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee. 

(1) Both domestic and foreign filings: 

(a) certificate of limited partnership                                                             $ 10.00

(b) certificate of renewal of limited partnership                                              15.00

(c) amendment of limited partnership                                                              15.00

(d) reservation of limited partnership name                                                    10.00

(e) transfer of name reservation                                                               no charge

(f) statement of change of:

(i) registered office                                                                                      no charge

(ii) registered agent                                                                                    no charge

(g) correction or cancellation of limited partnership                              no charge

(h) any filing not listed above                                                                            15.00

(2) Electronically filed documents returned because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee.

(1) Cooperative association: 

(a) articles of incorporation                                                                           $ 20.00

(b) any other articles                                                                                          10.00

(2) Agricultural association:

(a) articles of incorporation                                                                                20.00

(b) any other articles                                                                                          10.00

(3) Agricultural marketing association:

(a) articles of incorporation                                                                                40.00

(b) any other articles                                                                                          10.00

(4) Rural cooperative utilities:

(a) articles of incorporation                                                                                40.00

(b) any other articles                                                                                          10.00

(5) Electronically filed documents returned because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee. 

(1) Registration of assumed business name $ 20.00

(2) Partnership agreement or statement of partnership authority 20.00

(3) Renewal of registration 20.00

(4) Amendment to registration 20.00

(5) Reservation of name 10.00

(6) Cancellation of registration no charge

(7) Filing of any other statement 15.00 

(8) If a paper-filed document is rejected because of deficiencies in the filing, a reprocessing fee of 50 percent of the initial filing fee will be assessed each time the document is resubmitted.

(9) Electronically filed documents rejected because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee.

(10) Documents filed with inadequate funds will be rejected and when refiled must be accompanied by a dollar amount that satisfies the initial filing fee and includes the 50 percent reprocessing fee.

(1) Registration of mark $ 20.00, plus $20.00 per each additional class

(2) Renewal of mark 20.00

(3) Assignment of mark 20.00

(4) Cancellation of mark 20.00

(5) Filing any other statement 20.00

(6) If a paper-filed document is rejected because of deficiencies in the filing, a reprocessing fee of 50 percent of the initial filing fee will be assessed each time the document is resubmitted.

(7) Electronically filed documents rejected because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee.

(8) Documents filed with inadequate funds will be rejected and when refiled must be accompanied by a dollar amount that satisfies the initial filing fee and includes the 50 percent reprocessing fee.

(1) Certificate of fact $ 15.00

(a) on-line certificate of fact 15.00

(2) Copy per name for any business entity related document with or without certification 10.00

(3) Documents or copies returned by fax 5.00

(a) 24-hour priority handling per document or request 20.00

(b) one-hour expedited filing for all documents 100.00

(c) furnishing any certificate not otherwise provided for 15.00

(d) resignation of registered agent no charge

(e) registering a commercial registered agent 150.00

(f) registering a nonqualified foreign entity 70.00

(4) Copy of all filed trademarks per month 100.00

(5) Miscellaneous business entity reports 80.00

(6) Bulk data for corporation records vary according to data type and number of documents. Please see the Secretary of State's web site.

(7) Designation of registered agent for pesticide license 5.00

(8) Amendment of designation of registered agent for pesticide license 5.00

(9) Surety bond, cashier's check, or certificate of deposit 15.00

(10) Amendment of surety bond, cashier's check, or certificate of

deposit 5.00

(11) Business alert (watch list)—online user will be notified when a document or notice is recorded against a business they want to track $50.00 per year

(12) If a paper-filed document is rejected because of deficiencies in the filing, a reprocessing fee of 50 percent of the initial filing fee will be assessed each time the document is resubmitted.

(13) Electronically filed documents rejected because of deficiencies in the filing will not be assessed a reprocessing fee.

(14) Documents filed with inadequate funds will be rejected and when refiled must be accompanied by a dollar amount that satisfies the initial filing fee and includes the 50 percent reprocessing fee.

(1) Principal search: 2.00 per search

(2) Individual name search: 4.00 per search

(3) There is no charge for a member of the legislature or a public officer for any search relative to matters pertaining to the member's office.

(1) The Secretary of State's role with regard to the registration of business/mark names is ministerial. If a business/mark name is distinguishable from another business/mark name, the Secretary of State is required to file it.

(2) Pursuant to Title 30, chapter 13, MCA, and Title 35, chapters 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 10, 12, and 18, MCA, "distinguish," "distinguishable," "distinguishable on the record," and "distinguishable in the records" means that a registered business/mark name must be sufficiently distinctive from another registered business/mark name so that it does not cause confusion in an absolute or linguistic sense.

(3) The following items make a registered business/mark name distinguishable from another registered business/mark name:

(a) key words are different and do not copy a business/mark name already on record. A "key word" means any word other than articles, prepositions, conjunctions, or business name identifiers as defined in 30-13-201, MCA. For example: "Bill's Carpentry" is distinguishable from "Bill's Builders."

(b) key words are the same, but are in a different order. For example: "Yellowstone Hotel" is distinguishable from "Hotel Yellowstone."

(c) the use of geographic designations. For example: "Helena Auto Painting" is distinguishable from "Boulder Auto Painting."

(d) phonetic similarities. For example: "Maid in Montana" is distinguishable from "Made in Montana."

(e) abbreviations. For example: "Montana Ave Salon" is distinguishable from "Montana Avenue Salon."

(f) different spellings of proper names. For example: "Jayne's Boutique" is distinguishable from "Jane's Boutique."

(g) unique or improper spelling. For example: "Black Cat Designs" is distinguishable from "Black Kat Designs."

(4) The following conditions will not make a registered business/mark name distinguishable from another registered business/mark name:

(a) the use of punctuation marks. For example: "R/D Construction" and "R D Construction" are not distinguishable.

(b) the use of special characters. Special characters are non-alphabetical and non-numeric characters such as @, #, $, %, &, *, and + that can represent a word. For example: 25 % Better, Inc. and 25 Percent Better, Inc. are not distinguishable.

(c) the use of articles "a," "an," or "the." For example: "The Painted Pony" and "Painted Pony" are not distinguishable.

(d) the use of business name identifiers or their abbreviations. For example: "ABC Inc.," ''ABC Co.," and "ABC Corp." are not distinguishable.

(e) the substitution of an arabic or roman numeral for a spelled out number. For example: "3 Kings," "III Kings," and "Three Kings," are not distinguishable.

(f) the substitution of a lower case letter for a capital letter. For example: "d" and "D" are not distinguishable.

(g) the use of internet domain suffixes. For example: .com, .org, .gov, and .net are not distinguishable.

(h) contractions. For example: "Do Not Stop, Inc." is not distinguishable from "Don't Stop, Inc."

(i) variations in word endings. For example: "Betsy's Cleaners" is not distinguishable from "Betsy's Cleaning" and "ABC Transport, Inc." is not distinguishable from "ABC Transportation, Co."

(j) adding the letter "s" to make a word, including an alphabetism, plural or possessive. For example: "Jay's Market" and "Jays Market" and "RM's Co." and "RMS Co." are not distinguishable.

(k) different spacing. For example: "Cross Roads Ranch" and "Crossroads Ranch" are not distinguishable.

(5) The Secretary of State reserves the right to not register business names that are vulgar or grossly offensive.

(a) submission of the completed application for registration of mark (trademark - service mark) form  available at sos.mt.gov or upon request from the secretary of state's office; or

(b) submission of a document that includes all information required on the application for registration of mark (trademark - service mark) form; and

(c) the information provided must include the class or classes that best describe the goods or services selected from the classes of goods and services available at sos.mt.gov or at www.uspto.gov or from the secretary of state's office.

(2) The classes of goods and services used by the Montana secretary of state's office shall conform with the United States patent and trademark office.

(3) The requirements for filing a renewal of a registered trademark are as follows:

(a) submission of the completed application for renewal of mark form available at sos.mt.gov or upon request from the secretary of state's office; or

(b) submission of a document that includes all information required on the application for renewal of mark form; and

(i) the information provided must list a class selected from the classes of goods and services available at sos.mt.gov or at www.uspto.gov or from the secretary of state's office, if the renewal for a trademark is for a trademark registered before July 1, 2003; or

(ii) the information provided must list the same class used to describe the goods or services that was used on the original application if the original application was filed after July 1, 2003.

(4) The requirements for filing an assignment or statement of change of ownership or other instruments related to the mark are as follows:

(a) submission of the completed statement of change of ownership for trademark or service mark form available at sos.mt.gov or upon request from the secretary of state's office; or

(b) submission of a document that includes all information required on the application for renewal of mark form.

This rule has been repealed.

(1) A certificate of existence for foreign entities must be dated within six months of the receipt of the application by the secretary of state for authority to transact business in this state.

(1) Annual reports filed through the use of Internet technology are considered to be annual reports filed online.

(2) An annual report may be filed online without the signature of the authorized agent.

(3) Online filing is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

(4) Except for dissolved entities applying for reinstatement, online filing is not available for domestic corporations or domestic limited liability companies after the first business day in December until the first business day in January. Except for revoked entities applying for recertification, online filing is not available for foreign corporations and foreign limited liability companies after the first business day in November until the first business day in January.

(5) Submitters will be notified through the online system when the site is unavailable due to technology problems or system maintenance.

(6) An annual report document that is successfully completed and submitted online will be considered filed upon receipt by the Secretary of State's office. The online technology application will ensure the document is properly completed prior to acceptance. The submitter will be notified by an online message if required fields are not properly completed. A message confirming successful completion and acceptance will appear online when the filing is accepted.

(7) Submitters should retain their acknowledgement message as proof that the online filing was received by the Secretary of State's office. The acknowledgement message will contain a unique filing number, filing date, and time.

(8) The online annual reports will be rejected if information is omitted.

(9) The submitter will be notified through the online site if the electronically filed annual report is rejected. If a filing is later determined to be improper the Secretary of State's office will notify the submitter via phone, fax, or e-mail notification.

(10) The date and time a successfully submitted online filing is considered to be effective is the date and time the document was accepted by the Secretary of State's office.

(1) An annual report filed pursuant to 35-1-1104, 35-2-904, and 35-8-208, MCA, must be filed online in accordance with ARM 44.5.301.