There is no law that says you have to incorporate in the state in which you plan to do business. Up until a few years ago, incorporating in Delaware had significant tax and other advantages. As a result, over half of the New York Stock Exchange incorporated in the state of Delaware. But this is changing. Nevada is also attracting new companies with favorable privacy and liability laws and simple procedures for setting up a corporation.

If you choose to incorporate outside of your home state, you will have to qualify as a foreign corporation in your own state. If you plan on setting up offices or engaging in business in more than one state, you should consult an attorney familiar with the foreign corporation rules. It can be wallet-wrenching, especially since your corporation will be subject to the corporation laws of the foreign state, to its taxes, and annual reporting and various fees.

Use our Step-by-Step Guide to Incorporating a Business to walk through the other decisions and documentation in the process.