Operating a California corporation from Washington state?

[furrygirl]

I'm saying goodbye to the land of pornography and sky-high property values for the rainy northwest in just 3 weeks. The one big matter I haven't wrapped up yet is what I'm supposed to do with the business end of my business.

I have a California S-Corp (which is all me), and I don't really want to reincorporate and start all over in Washington. I also don't know if this is a permanent move or not, so I'd rather not put down business roots in Seattle.

So, short of telling me to talk to a lawyer, does anyone else have their business "located" in a different state from where you live? And in regards to lawyers, is this something I could hire a regular local business attorney to advise me on, or are there porn implications I'm not thinking of?

[Toby]

I was partner in a hosting company in Maryland and was living in Oregon at the time. The lawyer that did the incorporation papers knew we were doing adult stuff and didn't mention any additional concerns. Taxes on the other hand are another issue. Your taxes are going to be messy this year since you'll have to file in both states. You can't avoid that for this year even if you move it now, but I'd suggest getting some advice from your accountant prior to the end of the year in case moving, or not moving, your corp. to WA has significant tax advantages for next year. You may actually be better off incorporating in Nevada. I know that we incorporated in Delaware, even though none of us lived there.

[cd34]

About the only issue is that your local jurisdiction might have some requirements for you to file as a foreign corporation and might need a certificate of good standing from California (in your case). People run corporations from other states all the time. I would advise you to check with your accountant though.

I had a Maryland Corp when I moved to Florida, and the paperwork Florida wanted was actually more difficult to obtain than dissolving the Maryland Corp and creating a Florida Corporation. Of course, it did take a few rounds of notarized paperwork to dissolve the Maryland Corporation.

[furrygirl]

I don't have an accountant, the first and only time I hired one, she screwed up my business taxes badly enough that I was hit with fines by the government and ended up paying over a thousand dollars because of her mistakes.

So, is the general advice here to talk to an accountant, not a lawyer? Is there a specialized sort of accountant I'd be best talking to?

[docholly]

check the tax laws in washington but i think there is no state income tax. with telecommuting more and more acceptable, i think you'd be ok.. i mean people work off site all the time.

i know since nv has like really the best tax advantages, many companies inc here and base in other states. they just have an office open but nobody is home.