Arizona registers businesses through an agency most people never expect. You want to check a name or verify a company, so you look for the Secretary of State tool. For entities, it does not exist. Arizona runs entity registration and the public search through the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC), not the Secretary of State.
This guide shows where to search, what each status means, and how to verify an Arizona LLC. Every number here is sourced to the ACC or Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.).
What Is the Arizona Business Entity Search?
The Arizona Business Entity Search is the ACC’s free public lookup of registered businesses in the state. It covers limited liability companies (LLCs), corporations, partnerships, and nonprofits. Use it to check name availability, run due diligence, or verify a company before you sign a contract. The tool is operated by the Arizona Corporation Commission, confirmed by the portal header.
The search now runs through the Arizona Business Center portal. The ACC’s Arizona Business Center went live on January 12, 2026, replacing the legacy eCorp system, according to the ACC’s portal launch announcement. eCorp was decommissioned on January 2, 2026, and the old ecorp.azcc.gov address now redirects to the new portal, per the same ACC announcement.
Why Isn’t It the Arizona Secretary of State Business Entity Search?
Because Arizona is one of the few states where a Corporation Commission, not the Secretary of State, registers entities. The ACC handles LLC and corporation formation, the entity search, and corporate annual reports. The Arizona Secretary of State handles trade names (DBAs, meaning “doing business as”) and trademarks. Search terms mentioning the Secretary of State are common, but the entity tool belongs to the ACC.
| Task | Handling agency | Source |
|---|---|---|
| LLC and corporation formation | Arizona Corporation Commission | ACC Corporations home |
| Business entity search | Arizona Corporation Commission | ACC / Arizona Business Center portal |
| Corporate annual reports | Arizona Corporation Commission | A.R.S. § 10-1622 |
| Trade names / DBAs | Arizona Secretary of State | ACC Corporations home |
| Trademarks | Arizona Secretary of State | ACC Corporations home |
Arizona corporations and LLCs are governed by A.R.S. Title 10 and Title 29, the statutory basis for the ACC’s authority. If you want to protect a brand name or logo, that trademark filing goes to the Secretary of State, not the ACC.
How Do You Perform an Arizona Corporation Commission Entity Search?
Open the Arizona Business Center entity search, enter your criteria, clear the “I’m not a robot” verification step, then pick a result to open its entity card. The card shows basic business information, ownership details, statutory agent contact information, and a document history of recent filings. You can search several ways, and the free search doubles as your name-availability check.
| Search field | What you enter | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Entity name | Full or partial name | Arizona Business Center portal |
| Business ID / file number | The entity’s ACC ID number | Arizona Business Center portal |
| Statutory agent name | The agent’s name | Arizona Business Center portal |
| Principal name | An officer, member, or manager | Arizona Business Center portal |
| Domicile address | The registered address | Arizona Business Center portal |
You can search by file number when you already have the Business ID, and by statutory agent name to find every entity tied to one agent. In the US, only the certificate of formation is filed with the state, so bylaws and shareholder records will not appear in the search.
How Do You Check If a Business Name Is Taken in Arizona?
Run the free ACC entity search. If no active entity matches your name, it is likely available. Arizona names must include the correct designator (LLCs use “LLC” or “Limited Liability Company”; corporations use a corporate designator) and must be distinguishable from existing entities. To hold a name before filing, reserve it with the ACC.
| Item | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Availability check | Free via the ACC entity search | Arizona Business Center portal |
| Name reservation hold | 120 days, non-renewable | A.R.S. § 29-3113 |
| Reservation fee | $10 by mail or $45 online | ACC LLC/corporation name reservation instructions |
Search partial names and drop the designators to surface more potential conflicts. The $45 online reservation fee bundles a mandatory $35 expedite charge, per the ACC’s name reservation instructions. A name that clears the automated check can still be rejected by a human registrar, so reserve early rather than assume approval.
What Do Arizona Entity Statuses Mean?
The status field tells you whether the entity can legally operate. Active or In Good Standing means it is compliant. Pending means formation is still in process. Revoked or Administratively Dissolved means it lost good standing for missed corporate annual reports, no statutory agent, or unpaid fees. A revoked entity may conduct only wind-up business until it reinstates.
| Status | Meaning | Can it operate? | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active / In Good Standing | Compliant and current | Yes | ACC Business Services FAQ |
| Pending | Formation or change in process | Not yet | ACC Business Services FAQ |
| Pending Inactive | Missed an annual report; in delinquency window | Yes, temporarily | ACC Business Services FAQ |
| Revoked / Administratively Dissolved | Lost standing for non-compliance | Wind-up business only | A.R.S. § 10-1420 |
| Dissolved | Formally closed | No | ACC Business Services FAQ |
A corporation that misses its annual report moves to Pending Inactive, and the ACC administratively dissolves it roughly 60 days plus 60 days later if still unfiled, per the ACC Business Services FAQ. An administratively dissolved entity can reinstate for up to six years after dissolution for a $100 fee plus past-due amounts, per the same FAQ. After six years, it must form as a new entity.
What Is a Statutory Agent in Arizona?
A statutory agent is Arizona’s term for what most states call a registered agent. The agent receives service of process and official notices for the business. Arizona law requires every LLC and corporation to designate and maintain a statutory agent in the state, per A.R.S. § 29-3115. The agent’s information is public and searchable by name.
The statutory agent must provide a physical Arizona street address, not just a P.O. box, per the ACC’s filing instructions. Under A.R.S. § 10-504, if a corporation fails to maintain an agent, the Commission itself becomes the agent for service, and the corporation gets an extra 30 days to respond after the Commission mails the documents. A statutory agent must be an Arizona resident individual, a domestic corporation or LLC, or a foreign corporation or LLC authorized to do business in Arizona, per A.R.S. § 10-501. Registered addresses go stale after office moves, so confirm the agent details are current before you rely on them.
How Do You Verify an Arizona LLC?
Search the LLC by name or Business ID, confirm the status reads Active or In Good Standing, check that the statutory agent is current, and open the document history for filings. For formal proof, order a Certificate of Good Standing. One Arizona nuance matters: LLCs do not file annual reports, so a missing annual report is not a red flag for an LLC.
Due-diligence teams use this workflow before contracts, financing, or partnerships. For a certified snapshot of officers or directors, some banks require a separate certificate of incumbency, which is not part of the basic entity search.
How Do You Get a Certificate of Good Standing or Certified Copies in Arizona?
Order both from the entity page in the Arizona Business Center portal for a fee. A Certificate of Good Standing proves the entity exists and is compliant, and you need it for banking, financing, and foreign qualification in other states. Be precise on formation documents: corporations file Articles of Incorporation, while LLCs file Articles of Organization.
| Document | Fee | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Certificate of Good Standing | $10 standard / $45 expedited | 7-10 business days or instant | ACC Business Services FAQ |
| Certified copy of Articles | Per-document fee (verify current) | Ordered from the entity page | ACC fee schedule |
| Reinstatement of dissolved entity | $100 plus past-due fees | Up to 6 years after dissolution | ACC Business Services FAQ |
How Do You Register a Foreign LLC in Arizona?
A foreign entity is a business formed in another state or country that wants to operate in Arizona, and foreign qualification is the process of registering it with the ACC. A foreign LLC files an Application for Registration, and a foreign corporation files an Application for Authority. Both require a recent Certificate of Good Standing from the home state and an Arizona statutory agent.
Once registered, the foreign entity appears in the Arizona Business Center search like any domestic one. A registered foreign LLC must designate and maintain an Arizona statutory agent, per A.R.S. § 29-3115. Verify the current forms, fees, and the home-state certificate recency window with the ACC before filing.
What Compliance Obligations Do Arizona Businesses Have?
The Arizona-specific answer up front: LLCs file no annual reports, and only corporations do. Every entity must keep a statutory agent and current addresses on file. Corporations file an annual report in their anniversary month, per A.R.S. § 10-1622. Lapses trigger penalties and, eventually, administrative dissolution.
| Entity type | Annual report? | Fee | Consequence of lapse | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LLC | No | None | Dissolution for no statutory agent | ACC Business Services FAQ; A.R.S. § 29-3115 |
| For-profit corporation | Yes, anniversary month | $45 | 20% per month penalty; dissolution after 60 days | A.R.S. § 10-1622; ACC fee schedule |
| Nonprofit corporation | Yes | $10 | Administrative dissolution | ACC fee schedule |
A late corporate annual report draws a 20% per-month penalty until paid, per A.R.S. § 10-1622. A corporation that cannot meet its anniversary-month due date may request an extension of up to six months, per A.R.S. § 10-1622(C). The ACC may begin administrative dissolution once a corporation is 60 days past due, per A.R.S. § 10-1420. For an LLC, missed filings do not cause inactive status, because the LLC has no annual report to miss.
How Commenda Helps With Arizona Entity Management
Arizona’s rules reward precision: the right agency, a current statutory agent, and no missed corporate annual report. Commenda’s entity management platform handles formation filings, statutory agent service, and compliance-deadline tracking across every entity you own, in Arizona and beyond. For a new Arizona company, Commenda’s incorporation service files the formation documents for you.
Confirm a name is open with the Commenda company name checker, then keep every filing on schedule with the Commenda compliance calendar. Commenda centralizes your state and country business IDs on one dashboard, so you stop looking up each registry by hand.
Book a demo for a walkthrough of getting every Arizona and multi-state filing tracked in one place.
