Tennessee registered agent

Last verified October 15, 2026

Every Tennessee LLC has to keep a registered agent and a registered office in Tennessee. The Secretary of State describes the agent as a person or company that agrees to accept legal mail. The office has to be a physical Tennessee address. A post office box, route number, or box number alone is a reason a filing gets rejected. If you live in Tennessee and have a business address that isn't your home, serve yourself. Everyone else should hire one. A commercial agent usually costs $50 to $300 a year. Changing the agent is $20.

Our recommendation

Be your own agent if you can. Otherwise, use Northwest.

If you have a non-home Tennessee street address, be your own agent. If you work from home or live outside Tennessee, use Northwest at $125 a year. Switching later is $20 on Form SS-4534.

Get a Tennessee agent from Northwest Check if you can be your own

Affiliate link — LLCAtlas may earn a commission.

Tennessee registered agent rules

What the state requires, from the statute and the Secretary of State.

What Tennessee calls it: Registered agent, at a registered office. Required for every entity except a general partnership.
Who can serve: A person or company that agrees to accept legal mail for the LLC.
Address rule: A physical Tennessee address. The Secretary of State rejects a registered office that is only a post office box, a route number, or a box number.
Change of agent: $20. On the domestic LLC forms list, that filing is SS-4534, Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office by Entity or Agent.
If the agent resigns: $20, on Form SS-4420, Statement of Resignation of Registered Agent.
Office-only change by the agent: Form SS-4535, Statement of Change of Registered Office by Registered Agent, is also $20.
With no agent: The Secretary of State lists being without a registered agent as a reason for administrative dissolution, along with a missed annual report.
Reinstatement: Application for Reinstatement Following Administrative Dissolution, Form SS-9410, is $70.

Do you need a registered agent in Tennessee?

Yes. Tennessee requires the registered agent and the registered office the whole time the LLC exists. The Secretary of State lists being without a registered agent as a reason for administrative dissolution, in the same list as failing to file the annual report. Reinstatement after that is Form SS-9410 and costs $70. Keep a person at a physical Tennessee address who will actually open the legal mail.

Can you be your own registered agent?

Serve yourself if you have a physical Tennessee address that isn't your home and you will accept legal mail there. A post office box, route number, or box number alone will get the filing rejected. The address is public.

What a paid registered agent costs in Tennessee

Hire one if you work from home or live outside Tennessee. A professional agent usually costs $50 to $300 a year. Northwest charges $125 a year, which sits in the cheap half of that range. The $20 change form is cheap. The $300 annual report is not, so don't let a missing agent become one more reason the LLC goes inactive.

How to change your Tennessee registered agent

File Form SS-4534, Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office by Entity or Agent. The fee is $20. The Secretary of State's FAQ also says a change of registered agent or principal address can be done as Articles of Amendment for the same $20. Use SS-4534 when the only change is the agent or the registered office. A resignation is the separate $20 Form SS-4420.

FAQ

Does Tennessee require a registered agent?

Yes. Every Tennessee LLC has to maintain a registered agent and a registered office in Tennessee at all times. General partnerships are the exception, not LLCs.

Can I be my own registered agent in Tennessee?

Yes, if you will accept legal mail at a physical Tennessee address. A post office box, route number, or box number alone is rejected. If that address is your home, hire an agent.

How much does it cost to change a registered agent in Tennessee?

Twenty dollars. Form SS-4534 covers a change of registered agent or registered office by the entity or by the agent. A resignation, Form SS-4420, is also $20.

What happens if my Tennessee LLC has no registered agent?

The Secretary of State lists being without a registered agent as a reason for administrative dissolution. Reinstatement after an administrative dissolution is Form SS-9410 and costs $70.

How much is a registered agent in Tennessee?

Free if you serve yourself at a physical Tennessee address. A professional agent usually costs $50 to $300 a year. Northwest charges $125 a year.