How long does it take to change a registered agent in Tennessee?

Tennessee publishes no standard processing time for a change of registered agent, so file well before the date you need it. You'll submit Form SS-4534 (Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office) through the Secretary of State's online filing system or by mail to the Division of Business and Charitable Organizations in Nashville. The change becomes effective when the Secretary of State files it, not the date you submit it. This matters because your old registered agent remains your agent of record until the change is filed, a critical gap if you need immediate protection. To avoid service delays, file online rather than by mail, and confirm the change has posted on the Secretary of State's website.

What is the cost to change a registered agent in Tennessee?

The filing fee to change your registered agent in Tennessee is $20, payable to the Tennessee Secretary of State. You'll submit this fee alongside Form SS-4534 (Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office) through the Secretary of State's online filing system or by mail to their Nashville office. This $20 fee is a one-time cost regardless of how many registered agent changes you make in a single filing. If you're changing both your registered agent and registered office address simultaneously, the fee remains $20. You don't pay separately for each change. For LLC owners, this relatively low cost makes it practical to update your registered agent promptly if your current agent becomes unavailable or you need to switch to a professional service. To proceed, visit the Tennessee Secretary of State website, complete Form SS-4534 with your new agent's information, and submit it with your $20 fee online or by mail.

Can I be my own registered agent in Tennessee?

Yes, you can serve as your own registered agent in Tennessee if you meet two requirements: you must be a Tennessee resident and maintain a street address (not a P.O. box) where you can receive legal documents during normal business hours. This means your registered agent address on file with the Tennessee Secretary of State must be a physical location accessible for service of process. However, this creates a practical liability. As your own registered agent, you personally receive all lawsuits, regulatory notices, and legal documents. Missing a deadline because you were unavailable could result in a default judgment against your LLC. Additionally, your registered agent address becomes public record, exposing your personal address to potential solicitation. To change your registered agent in Tennessee, file Form SS-4534 with the Secretary of State and pay the $20 filing fee. If you decide a professional registered agent service suits you better, you can update this information immediately.

Will changing my registered agent affect my LLC's good standing?

No, changing your registered agent won't affect your LLC's good standing in Tennessee, provided you file the change correctly with the Tennessee Secretary of State. However, going two months without a registered agent or registered office, or failing for two months to report a change of agent or office, is a ground on which the Secretary of State may administratively dissolve your LLC. To change your registered agent, file Form SS-4534 (Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office) with the Tennessee Secretary of State. The filing fee is $20. You must have a registered agent in place continuously, so file before your current agent's appointment ends. Next step: File Form SS-4534 promptly so your new agent's information is recorded before your current agent's appointment ends.

Can I file the registered agent change online in Tennessee?

Yes, Tennessee allows you to file registered agent changes online through the Tennessee Secretary of State's website at https://sos.tn.gov. You'll submit Form SS-4534, the Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office, through the online filing system, and the fee is $20. Online filing eliminates mail delays and gives you a record of submission without visiting an office or waiting for postal delivery. This is particularly valuable if your current agent is resigning or relocating. To proceed, gather your LLC's control number, your current and new agent's complete addresses, and complete Form SS-4534 on the Secretary of State's online portal.

How to Change Your Registered Agent in Tennessee

Step-by-step guide to updating your LLC's registered agent with the Tennessee Secretary of State

By Edmond Hui · Last updated: October 2026

Affiliate disclosure: We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Get registered agent service from NorthwestRegistered agent service is $125/yr. The included first year applies only when you form a new LLC with them ($39 plus your state's filing fee), so it does not apply to an LLC you already have. Registered agent customers are enrolled by default in annual report filing at $100 plus state fees, charged automatically to your saved payment method and cancellable any time.

Not sure which service is right? Compare formation services →

Step diagram for changing an LLC's registered agent in Tennessee, showing the 5 filing steps required by the Tennessee Secretary of State. — The 5 steps to change your registered agent in Tennessee. Source: Tennessee Secretary of State.

How to File

1
Choose Your New Registered Agent
Select a new registered agent who is either a Tennessee resident with a street address in the state, or a business entity authorized to do business in Tennessee. The agent must be available during normal business hours to receive legal documents.
2
Obtain Written Consent
Get written consent from your new registered agent before filing the change. This ensures they agree to serve as your agent and understand their responsibilities for receiving official documents and legal notices.
3
Complete the Statement of Change
Fill out the Statement of Change of Registered Agent form. Include your LLC's name, the name and address of your current registered agent, and the name and address of your new registered agent.
4
File with Tennessee Secretary of State
Submit the completed Statement of Change (Form SS-4534) to the Tennessee Secretary of State. You can file online at https://sos.tn.gov or mail the form to the Division of Business and Charitable Organizations. The filing fee is $20.
5
Update Your Records
Once the change is processed, update your LLC's internal records and notify your bank, insurance companies, and other business partners of the new registered agent information.

Need the Tennessee Secretary of State?

Go directly to the Tennessee Secretary of State website.

File with the Tennessee Secretary of State →

When Should You Change Your Registered Agent?

Your current registered agent is no longer available or has moved out of Tennessee
You want to switch from being your own registered agent to a professional service
Your registered agent's business has closed or they're no longer providing the service
You want a commercial registered agent's reliability, or no longer want your home address listed as the registered agent address

Hiring a service is optional. You can name yourself or another individual with a street address in Tennessee, and the FAQ below gives Tennessee's own rule.

Registered agent services for Tennessee LLCs, by renewal price

Affiliate disclosure: Northwest Registered Agent, Bizee, ZenBusiness and LegalZoom pay us a commission if you sign up through our link, at no extra cost to you. We list only the registered agent services we have an affiliate relationship with, so this is not a survey of the whole market.

This table is not scored. The four are listed cheapest annual renewal first, and the rows below it say which one fits which situation. The scored ranking, and the formula behind it, is on the formation services review, which orders them on three-year cost, BBB rating and Trustpilot score.

Service	With formation, year 1	Annual renewal	BBB	Trustpilot	Privacy
Northwest Registered Agent	Included with $39 formation	$125/yr	A	4.1/5 (297)	Says it does not sell your information; runs its own servers
Bizee	Free year one (some visitors are being shown shorter free periods, so confirm at checkout)	$149/yr	C (unaccredited)	4.8/5 (26,100+)	No data-sharing commitment
ZenBusiness	$99, not included in any plan	$199/yr	A	4.8/5 (32,500+)	Partial
LegalZoom	Not included, $249 extra	$249/yr	A+	4.6/5 (32,900+)	Partial

Note: Bizee holds a C rating from the BBB and is not accredited. BBB's profile carries a live alert describing a pattern of complaints about unexpected charges, difficulty canceling and filing delays, and Bizee has posted a response to it. We flag this so you can make an informed choice.

Prices are each provider's standard published rates; year-one pricing applies when you form your LLC through the same service. BBB and Trustpilot figures as recorded September 15, 2026, not re-checked since, and both sources update continuously. These are the dates the figures were last written to our dataset, which is the most we can show: they are not verification dates. See how we evaluate these companies in our full formation services review →

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It reports what each state publishes about filing deadlines, fees, and the consequences of missing them, with the sources this page cites. It cannot tell you what your own company owes: the date turns on when and where you formed, states change these rules between our reviews, and in several states an entity-level tax falls due in a year when no report does. Confirm your own dates with the filing office named on this page before you rely on one here, because missing a deadline can cost the company its good standing or, in many states, its existence.

Read this guide for another state:

Frequently Asked Questions

: Tennessee publishes no standard processing time for a change of registered agent, so file well before the date you need it. You'll submit Form SS-4534 (Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office) through the Secretary of State's online filing system or by mail to the Division of Business and Charitable Organizations in Nashville. The change becomes effective when the Secretary of State files it, not the date you submit it. This matters because your old registered agent remains your agent of record until the change is filed, a critical gap if you need immediate protection. To avoid service delays, file online rather than by mail, and confirm the change has posted on the Secretary of State's website.
: The filing fee to change your registered agent in Tennessee is $20, payable to the Tennessee Secretary of State. You'll submit this fee alongside Form SS-4534 (Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office) through the Secretary of State's online filing system or by mail to their Nashville office. This $20 fee is a one-time cost regardless of how many registered agent changes you make in a single filing. If you're changing both your registered agent and registered office address simultaneously, the fee remains $20. You don't pay separately for each change. For LLC owners, this relatively low cost makes it practical to update your registered agent promptly if your current agent becomes unavailable or you need to switch to a professional service. To proceed, visit the Tennessee Secretary of State website, complete Form SS-4534 with your new agent's information, and submit it with your $20 fee online or by mail.
: Yes, you can serve as your own registered agent in Tennessee if you meet two requirements: you must be a Tennessee resident and maintain a street address (not a P.O. box) where you can receive legal documents during normal business hours. This means your registered agent address on file with the Tennessee Secretary of State must be a physical location accessible for service of process. However, this creates a practical liability. As your own registered agent, you personally receive all lawsuits, regulatory notices, and legal documents. Missing a deadline because you were unavailable could result in a default judgment against your LLC. Additionally, your registered agent address becomes public record, exposing your personal address to potential solicitation. To change your registered agent in Tennessee, file Form SS-4534 with the Secretary of State and pay the $20 filing fee. If you decide a professional registered agent service suits you better, you can update this information immediately.
: No, changing your registered agent won't affect your LLC's good standing in Tennessee, provided you file the change correctly with the Tennessee Secretary of State. However, going two months without a registered agent or registered office, or failing for two months to report a change of agent or office, is a ground on which the Secretary of State may administratively dissolve your LLC. To change your registered agent, file Form SS-4534 (Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office) with the Tennessee Secretary of State. The filing fee is $20. You must have a registered agent in place continuously, so file before your current agent's appointment ends. Next step: File Form SS-4534 promptly so your new agent's information is recorded before your current agent's appointment ends.
: Yes, Tennessee allows you to file registered agent changes online through the Tennessee Secretary of State's website at https://sos.tn.gov. You'll submit Form SS-4534, the Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office, through the online filing system, and the fee is $20. Online filing eliminates mail delays and gives you a record of submission without visiting an office or waiting for postal delivery. This is particularly valuable if your current agent is resigning or relocating. To proceed, gather your LLC's control number, your current and new agent's complete addresses, and complete Form SS-4534 on the Secretary of State's online portal.

Sources

7 documents

Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified Tennessee sources, and each entry says what the document is. Some statutory text is read from an accurate mirror rather than from the state's own host, and those say so. Where we hold the citation but no stable public link, the citation is printed on its own rather than pointed at a guessed address.

Tennessee Secretary of State, business forms and fees (Form SS-4534)
sos.tn.gov/businessesTennessee Secretary of State: business entity filings
law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/title-48/chapter-249/part-10/section-48-249-1017/Tennessee statutory text, unofficial mirror: Annual Report
sos-prod.tnsosgovfiles.com/s3fs-public/document/SS-4270%20LLC_0.pdfTennessee agency guidance: Annual Report
tn.gov/content/dam/tn/revenue/documents/tax_manuals/june-2025/Frachise-Excise-Tax-Manual.pdfTennessee agency guidance: Franchise and Excise Tax
tn.gov/content/dam/tn/revenue/documents/forms/fae/fae170instructions2022.pdfTennessee agency guidance: Franchise and Excise Tax
tn.gov/revenue/taxes/franchise---excise-tax.htmlTennessee Department of Revenue: file the Franchise and Excise Tax

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Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC

Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.

How we check facts

How to File

Choose Your New Registered Agent

Obtain Written Consent

Complete the Statement of Change

File with Tennessee Secretary of State

Update Your Records