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Mississippi's business register is run by the Mississippi Secretary of State through its Business Services and External Affairs office. The online services directory lists three ways in: Search for a Business Entity, Business ID Search and Business Search by Officer name. All three open the same business search portal. Looking a company up is free, and so is the separate reports tool described below.
Getting results from a Mississippi LLC and corporation search
For most lookups, start with the business name. If you already have the Business ID, use it instead: it is the number the state asks for when anyone files an annual report, an amendment or a reinstatement, so it is the surest way to land on the right record.
The officer search is the one to use when you know a person but not the company. The directory lists no registered agent search. Still, the system can list every company that names a given registered agent, a feature the state built so agents can update their address in one go. Our registered agent lookup guide explains how agents fit into a search.
Some data is held back. The FAQ says a company's FEIN and telephone number are redacted from forms shown on the website, and Social Security numbers are never requested. If you are tracing owners, see our business owner lookup guide.
Statuses and dissolution
Read the status on the record itself. The one outcome the state spells out is administrative dissolution. Its annual reports page says corporations that fail to file a corporate annual report will be administratively dissolved, and that missing the report may lead to dissolution for any organization.
A Mississippi LLC can be reinstated for $50, and a foreign LLC for $100. Corporations and certain LLCs must first get a tax clearance letter from the Mississippi Department of Revenue and attach it to the reinstatement request. Our business entity status guide covers what a dissolved status means for anyone dealing with the company.
LLC names and reservations
The Mississippi LLC Act sets the naming rules in section 79-29-109. An LLC name must contain "limited liability company", "L.L.C." or "LLC". It must be distinguishable upon the records of the Secretary of State from other registered corporations, nonprofits, partnerships and LLCs that have not dissolved, and from unexpired reserved names. It also may not contain words such as bank, banking, trust, trust company, insurance, corporation, incorporated or partnership.
A name reservation costs $25. Under section 79-29-111 the state holds an LLC name for the applicant's exclusive use for 180 days. See our name reservation guide for when a hold makes sense.
Annual reports, fees and certificates
Corporations, LLCs and nonprofits all file an annual report, and every report must be filed online. For corporations and LLCs the window opens on January 1 and closes on April 15. Nonprofits have until May 15. The fees are unusual: a Mississippi LLC pays nothing, a foreign LLC pays $250, and a corporation pays $25. No late fee appears in the fee schedules.
Other costs from the fee schedule are $50 for an LLC certificate of formation, $50 for articles of incorporation (profit or nonprofit) and $250 to register a foreign LLC. A fictitious business name registration costs $25. Online filings are usually reviewed within 24 hours, and the state warns that paper filings take significantly longer. Every filing also triggers an email to the company's addresses, which helps owners catch filings made without authority.
Certificates of Good Standing/Existence, Certificates of Fact and certified copies are ordered online through the document order page. Most are available immediately after payment. Our certificate of good standing guide covers when you need one.
Bulk data
For bulk records, use the free Mississippi Business Reports tool. You filter the corporations database by fields such as business name, Business ID, status, NAICS code, county and formation date, then export up to 300,000 results to Excel. For a full export, the state asks you to contact Business Services.
Starting a company here? Read our guide on how to start an LLC in Mississippi and the Mississippi registered agent rules.
Also see our guides to the Mississippi business license.