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

The Washington Secretary of State does not publish a standard processing time for a statement of change of registered agent. Expedited service is available for $100 and, according to the Secretary of State, is generally processed within three working days. Until the change is filed, your current agent remains your agent of record, so file before your old agent's service ends. If your old agent resigns instead, the resignation takes effect on the 31st day after the Secretary of State files it, or earlier if you designate a new agent first.

What does it cost to change a registered agent in Washington?

Washington charges no filing fee to change your registered agent with a statement of change. Expedited service costs an extra $100. If you make the change on an amended annual report instead, the amended annual report fee is $10. A registered agent service charges its own annual fee on top of that, which varies by provider.

Can I be my own registered agent in Washington?

Yes. You can serve as your own registered agent in Washington if you have a physical street address in Washington (not a PO box or private mailbox) where you can accept legal papers. Your address then appears on the public record. To name yourself, file a Statement of Change/Designation of Registered Agent with the Washington Secretary of State. There is no filing fee (expedited service is an extra $100), you can file it online through the Corporations and Charities Filing System (CCFS), and the new agent must sign a consent to serve; as the new agent, you sign the consent yourself.

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

No. Changing your registered agent properly does not affect your LLC's standing. What matters is never going without one: if your LLC has no registered agent in Washington for 30 consecutive days, the Secretary of State may start administrative dissolution, and the LLC is dissolved if the problem is not fixed within 60 days after the notice is served. To avoid a gap, file the statement of change, with your new agent's signed consent, before your current agent stops serving.

Can I file the registered agent change online or must I mail it?

You can file online. The Secretary of State's statement of change form says you can file it online through CCFS (ccfs.sos.wa.gov), and the form can also be mailed to the address printed on it. There is no filing fee, and expedited service is $100 extra. If your annual report is due within 180 days, the Secretary of State says you can update your agent on the annual report instead.

How to Change Your Registered Agent in Washington

Update your LLC's registered agent with the Washington Secretary of State to maintain compliance and ensure reliable service of process.

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 Washington, showing the 6 filing steps required by the Washington Secretary of State. — The 6 steps to change your registered agent in Washington. Source: Washington Secretary of State.

How to File

1
Prepare the statement of change
Use the Statement of Change/Designation of Registered Agent from the Washington Secretary of State, or start the change online in the Corporations and Charities Filing System (CCFS).
2
Obtain consent from your new registered agent
Washington law requires the new agent's consent in writing, either on the statement or attached to it, and the Secretary of State's form says the consent must be signed whatever the type of agent. A noncommercial agent needs a physical Washington street address; PO boxes and private mailboxes are not allowed.
3
Complete the form with accurate information
Fill out the Statement of Change form with your LLC's exact legal name, UBI number, current registered agent information, and new registered agent details including name and Washington address.
4
Check the fee
There is no filing fee to change your registered agent. Expedited service costs an extra $100.
5
File the form with the Secretary of State
File online through CCFS at ccfs.sos.wa.gov, or mail the form to the Washington Secretary of State at the address printed on it.
6
Receive confirmation and update records
Once processed, you'll receive confirmation from the Secretary of State. Update your internal company records and notify relevant parties like banks and vendors of the registered agent change.

Need the Washington Secretary of State?

Go directly to the Washington Secretary of State website.

File with the Washington Secretary of State →

When Should You Change Your Registered Agent?

Your current registered agent is no longer available or has moved out of Washington
You want to switch to a professional registered agent service for better reliability
Your registered agent's contact information has changed and they can't fulfill their duties
You need to replace a registered agent who has resigned or is no longer responsive

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

Registered agent services for Washington 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

: The Washington Secretary of State does not publish a standard processing time for a statement of change of registered agent. Expedited service is available for $100 and, according to the Secretary of State, is generally processed within three working days. Until the change is filed, your current agent remains your agent of record, so file before your old agent's service ends. If your old agent resigns instead, the resignation takes effect on the 31st day after the Secretary of State files it, or earlier if you designate a new agent first.
: Washington charges no filing fee to change your registered agent with a statement of change. Expedited service costs an extra $100. If you make the change on an amended annual report instead, the amended annual report fee is $10. A registered agent service charges its own annual fee on top of that, which varies by provider.
: Yes. You can serve as your own registered agent in Washington if you have a physical street address in Washington (not a PO box or private mailbox) where you can accept legal papers. Your address then appears on the public record. To name yourself, file a Statement of Change/Designation of Registered Agent with the Washington Secretary of State. There is no filing fee (expedited service is an extra $100), you can file it online through the Corporations and Charities Filing System (CCFS), and the new agent must sign a consent to serve; as the new agent, you sign the consent yourself.
: No. Changing your registered agent properly does not affect your LLC's standing. What matters is never going without one: if your LLC has no registered agent in Washington for 30 consecutive days, the Secretary of State may start administrative dissolution, and the LLC is dissolved if the problem is not fixed within 60 days after the notice is served. To avoid a gap, file the statement of change, with your new agent's signed consent, before your current agent stops serving.
: You can file online. The Secretary of State's statement of change form says you can file it online through CCFS (ccfs.sos.wa.gov), and the form can also be mailed to the address printed on it. There is no filing fee, and expedited service is $100 extra. If your annual report is due within 180 days, the Secretary of State says you can update your agent on the annual report instead.

Sources

12 documents

Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified Washington 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.

app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=25.15.021RCW 25.15.021, LLC must continuously maintain a registered agent
app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=23.95.415RCW 23.95.415, appointment of registered agent and prior consent
app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=23.95.430RCW 23.95.430, statement of change of registered agent
app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=23.95.445RCW 23.95.445, resignation of registered agent
app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=23.95.605RCW 23.95.605 and 23.95.610, grounds and procedure for administrative dissolution
sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/business-entities/maintain-business-compliance/registered-agentsWashington Secretary of State, Registered Agents
sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/frequently-asked-questions-faqs/fee-schedules-priority-servicesWashington Secretary of State, fee schedules and priority services
sos.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2025-12/6.2025%20-%20Statement%20of%20Change%20or%20Designation%20of%20Agent%20-%20Non-Commercial%20Registered%20Agent%20%28Fillable%20Form%29.pdfWashington Secretary of State, Statement of Change or Designation of Agent (Non-Commercial Registered Agent) form
sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/business-entities/limited-liability-company-llc-professional-llc-pllc-filing-resource-pageWashington Secretary of State: business entity filings
app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=23.95.255Washington statute: Annual Report
sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/frequently-asked-questions-faqs/annual-reportsWashington agency guidance: Annual Report
sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/business-entities/maintain-business-compliance/annual-reportsWashington Secretary of State: file the Annual Report

More for Washington LLCs

Start and set up

Taxes, money and growth

Stay compliant

Operate in other states

Compare structures

By owner type

Forming an LLC in Washington?

See how Northwest Registered Agent, Bizee, ZenBusiness and LegalZoom, the formation services we partner with, compare on 3-year cost, BBB rating and Trustpilot score before you choose.

Compare Services →

Need a Registered Agent in Washington?

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

Not sure which service is right? Compare formation services →

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

Prepare the statement of change

Obtain consent from your new registered agent

Complete the form with accurate information

Check the fee

File the form with the Secretary of State

Receive confirmation and update records