You can increase your anonymity as the owner of a Utah LLC by keeping your personal information off of state LLC formation documents. In Utah, listing the names and addresses of your LLC members (owners) and managers on your Certificate of Organization is optional. However, you’ll still need to provide the name of your organizer and a principal office address. To increase your privacy, you can hire a registered agent and list your registered agent’s name and address instead of your own on these sections of your Certificate of Organization.
Anonymous LLC
An anonymous limited liability company is an LLC whose ownership information is not available through the public record. Anonymous LLCs can be formed in states where providing LLC members’ names and addresses on public documents is not required or where it’s possible for an LLC to be owned by another anonymous LLC, thus shielding owners’ information from the public.
Anonymous Utah LLC
It’s possible to form a Utah LLC that functions as an anonymous LLC. According to state law (UT Code § 48-3a-201), LLCs are not required to list members’ names or addresses on the Utah Certificate of Formation. The Certificate of Formation provides a space for members and managers to list their names and addresses if they wish, but this information is identified as “optional.”
Utah LLCs are not required to provide any information about owners on the Utah Annual Report/Renewal Form, either.
Your Certificate of Formation will need to be signed by an LLC organizer. To keep your name and the names of your fellow owners off of formation documents entirely, you’ll need to get someone to serve as your organizer.
A common choice is to hire registered agent service and have your registered agent act as your organizer. Organizers are not involved with your LLC once the formation process is complete, so this is an easy way to protect your privacy.
Can I remove member information from my Certificate of Formation?
If you have already filed your Certificate of Formation and you included member information on that document, you can file an Amendment to Certificate of Organization that removes your member information or replaces it (with your registered agent’s information, for example).
Your amendment will require the name, title, and signature of a person with management authority. To avoid providing owner information, you can have a non-owning manager perform this task. Or, you can authorize a lawyer, registered agent, or other individual to take care of it for you. If do the latter, you’ll need to grant that individual management authority according to your Operating Agreement. You can revoke this authority (also according to your operating agreement) once the filing is complete.
Keep Your Business Address Private
Utah LLCs are required to provide a principal office address on formation documents, and this address must be a street address. For some LLCs, this isn’t a problem. However, for others, like owners of single-member LLCs who work from home, it can present a challenge.
To keep your business address private, you’ll need to get another business address you can list on your formation documents.
You can do this with:
- A virtual business address (Northwest offers a free virtual business address with LLC formation)
- A virtual office service that provides addresses in your state
- A mail forwarding service that operates in your state
- A coworking space address (you’ll typically need to rent a space)