Registered right the first time.

The state does not care that you are busy building a product. One wrong checkbox and the filing is rejected; one missed annual report and you are administratively dissolved. Alpha Momin runs formation and compliance so those risks stop being yours.

The problem, in plain English

Forming a business is a set of one-way doors. You pick the wrong entity and you either pay too much in tax for years or you restructure later at real legal cost. You file to the wrong state and your operating agreement is under the wrong body of law. You use your home address as the registered agent and it lives on the public record forever. You miss the annual report and the state marks you dissolved right when a vendor is running a background check.

None of this is hard. All of it is hostile the first time.

How we do it

Discovery and entity choice.
A 30-minute call. We map your revenue expectation, ownership plan, and hiring plan onto the real tax math and pick LLC, S corp, C corp, or nonprofit. You leave the call with the answer and the reason, not a brochure.
State filing.
We prepare the articles, run the name check, file with the Illinois Secretary of State (or the state of your choice for remote clients), and hand you the filed certificate.
EIN and tax registrations.
Federal EIN, Illinois Department of Revenue registration, and any use-tax or withholding registrations that fit the business. Same day where possible.
Registered agent and mail routing.
You get a registered agent at a real address, and government mail gets scanned and forwarded to you the same business day. Your home address stays out of the public record.
Compliance calendar.
Annual reports, franchise tax deadlines, license renewals, and state-specific one-offs go into a calendar you own. We remind you 15 and 3 days out. Nothing slips.

Why us, specifically

We do the entity math, not just the filing. The form-filler services online will happily file whatever you click. They will not tell you why an S corp election is a tax mistake at your current revenue.
One owner per file. The person who takes your discovery call is the same person who signs your compliance emails twelve months later. No handoff to an offshore back office.
Chicago-specific know-how. BACP license nuances, City Clerk quirks, Cook County idiosyncrasies. We know what makes the filing bounce because we have seen it bounce.
Compliance calendar is included, not upsold. You do not pay us more after year one just to be reminded that your annual report is due.
Plain-language explanations, in writing. Every decision comes with a one-paragraph why so you can explain it to your bank, your spouse, and your CPA without calling us back.

What you get

Entity filed and certificate of good standing on file
Federal EIN issued
State tax registrations completed
Operating agreement or bylaws drafted for your ownership structure
Registered agent service (year one included)
City and state licenses filed as required
Compliance calendar with reminders for the next 12 months

Timeline and pricing

Timeline: 1 to 3 weeks depending on state processing (Illinois is usually 5 to 10 business days for LLC filings; expedited options exist and we quote them if it matters).

Pricing: quoted before we start, once we know the state and the license list. No hourly billing, no surprise line items. You approve the number in writing before any work begins.

Frequently asked

LLC or S corp: which should I choose in Illinois?

Most first-time founders in Illinois should start as an LLC. It is cheaper to set up, less paperwork to maintain, and you can elect S corp taxation later once revenue is high enough for the payroll overhead to be worth it. S corp elections make sense when you can pay yourself a reasonable W-2 salary and take additional distributions that avoid self-employment tax. We map the math in our discovery call.

Do I need an operating agreement for a single-member LLC?

Yes. Illinois does not require it, but banks, investors, and courts often do. A single-member operating agreement documents that the LLC is a real, separate entity, which is what protects your personal assets if the business is ever sued.

What is a registered agent and why do I need one?

Your registered agent is the official recipient of government notices and lawsuits for your business. The state requires one at a physical address in the state of formation, available during business hours. Using your home address puts your address in the public record. We include registered agent service and mail routing so you never miss a filing and never publish your home address.

Do I need a business license in Chicago?

Almost every business operating in the city of Chicago needs at least one BACP license, and often more depending on activity (limited business, retail food, home occupation, etc.). We identify every license required for your specific business and file them together.

Ready to be registered right the first time?

Tell us the business idea and the state you want to form in. You will get a straight answer within one business day.

Start formation