Who sits Florida’s 10-to-noon and 2-to-4 windows?

What Florida actually requires

Fla. Stat. § 605.0113 is the LLC statute. Each limited liability company and each authorized foreign LLC shall designate and continuously maintain in this state a registered office and a registered agent. Under § 605.0113(1)(b), the agent must be (1) a Florida resident individual whose business address is identical to the registered office, (2) a domestic authorized entity, or (3) a foreign entity authorized to transact business in this state, in each case with a business address identical to the registered office.

The filing rule is the one Texas does not share. Each initial registered agent, and each successor, shall file a written statement of acceptance with the department. The statement must say the agent is familiar with and accepts the obligations of that position. Texas Form 401-A is generally retained by the entity and is not required to be filed. California uses Corp. Code § 1505 as a commercial-agent registry. Florida does not keep a 1505-style list. The acceptance lives on the Division of Corporations record.

The agent’s duties in § 605.0113(3) are to forward process, notice, or demand to the company, and, if resigning, to give the notice required under § 605.0115(2). Failure to maintain an agent has a court-side consequence: the company may not prosecute or maintain an action in a Florida court until it complies, and a court may order a penalty of $5 per day or $500, whichever is less. Fla. Stat. § 607.0501 writes the same registered-office, registered-agent, and filed-acceptance pattern for corporations, with the same $5-a-day / $500 cap in § 607.0501(6).

Fla. Stat. § 48.091(3) is the hours rule — the unique Florida clock. The designated registered agent shall keep the registered office open from at least 10 a.m. to 12 noon and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. each day except Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, and shall keep one or more individuals who are, or are representatives of, the designated registered agent on whom process may be served at the office during these hours. Subsection (5) says the agent shall promptly forward copies of process; failure to comply does not invalidate service. We do not invent California clock hours. We do not print a vendor 9-to-5 line as if it were § 48.091.

The Division of Corporations annual-report instructions and the Florida LLC articles instructions state the street and identity rules in the same plain words. The registered agent “must have a physical street address in Florida. Do not list a P.O. Box address.” “A business entity cannot serve as its own registered agent,” but “an individual or principal associated with the business may.” The Division FAQs repeat that an entity cannot serve as its own agent. The Statement of Change of Registered Office/Agent form for corporations still prints “P.O. Box NOT acceptable.” When the annual report names a new agent, the instructions say the new agent types a name in the signature block; under s. 15.16, that typed name is the electronic signature. The same typed-name rule appears on the LLC articles instructions.

Fla. Stat. § 605.0114 is the LLC change filing. If the registered agent is changed, the written acceptance of the successor registered agent described in § 605.0113(2) must be included in or attached to the statement of change. The same section says the change may also be made on the annual report, on a reinstatement, on an amendment or restatement of articles, or on an amendment to a foreign LLC’s certificate of authority.

The annual-report statutes close the loop. Fla. Stat. § 605.0212(5) says that if an LLC annual report contains a registered-agent name or address that differs from the department’s record immediately before the report becomes effective, that differing information is considered a statement of change under § 605.0114. Fla. Stat. § 607.1622(2) writes the same rule for corporations. File at the annual-report landing page or the e-file start. The window is January 1 to May 1. Fla. Stat. § 607.193 imposes an annual supplemental corporate fee of $88.75 on entities that must file under § 605.0212, § 607.1622, or § 620.1210, and a $400 late charge if that fee is remitted after May 1. The Division of Corporations says the old waiver language was repealed in 2010. The official LLC fee table lists the LLC annual report (with supplemental fee) at $138.75, or $538.75 if received after May 1. The official corporate fee table lists the profit annual report (with supplemental fee) at $150.00, or $550.00 if received after May 1; the not-for-profit annual report is $61.25. Not-for-profit corporations are not subject to the $400 late charge. Failure to file by the 3rd Friday of September leads to administrative dissolution or revocation at close of business on the 4th Friday of September. California’s Statement of Information is yearly for stock corporations and biennial for LLCs. Texas has no Secretary of State annual report.

A foreign LLC does not get a lighter agent line. Fla. Stat. § 605.0902(1)(d) says the certificate of authority must contain the name and street address in this state of, and the written acceptance by, the foreign limited liability company’s initial registered agent in this state.

Service starts at the registered agent. Fla. Stat. § 48.062 (LLCs) and Fla. Stat. § 48.081 (corporations) say serve the registered agent first. If the company has no agent, or one good-faith attempt to serve the agent fails, process may be served on a manager or member (LLC), on a chair, president, vice president, secretary, or treasurer (corporation), or on any person listed on the latest annual report. After due diligence, substituted service may be made on the Secretary of State under Fla. Stat. § 48.161. The corporate fee table prices that substitute service of process at $8.75.

Chapter 48 also writes mailbox language Texas and California do not. If the listed address is a residence, a private mailbox, a virtual office, or an executive office or mini suite, § 48.062(5) and § 48.081(5) allow service to follow Fla. Stat. § 48.031 — including leaving papers with the person in charge of a private mailbox, virtual office, or mini suite. That extra service path is why a CMRA street is not a pass on this scorecard. Extra rules are not the registered-agent job we grade.

One FAQ pitfall, not a vendor grade: if the Chief Financial Officer is the statutory agent, the annual-report instructions say the registered-agent line cannot be changed on that report. Authorized insurers designate the Chief Financial Officer under Fla. Stat. § 48.151. Type “NOT REQUIRED” in the signature field. That is an insurance-company rule, not a Northwest or ZenBusiness score.

The Division of Corporations series-LLC page states that the Uniform Protected Series Provisions of chapter 605 are effective July 1, 2026. We do not invent how commercial agents handle series LLCs. § 48.062 already writes service-notice rules among a series limited liability company and its protected series. That is the statute, not a vendor product card.

Sunbiz search is a free public lookup of the live agent line. Texas SOSDirect charges a statutory search fee; the Texas scorecard said we did not pay it. Confirm the name and street on Sunbiz before you treat a vendor city as current.

Cited prices, retrieved August 31, 2026

We print what the vendor’s official registered-agent page said on the retrieval date. No vendor publishes a different Florida registered-agent price. The national sticker is the Florida sticker. We do not invent a renewal.

• Northwest Registered Agent — official page: “$125 Per Year” and the same sticker in year two. Five or more states is $100 a year per state. Retrieved August 31, 2026 from northwestregisteredagent.com/registered-agent and the Florida product page. First year free only if you form through them; we do not treat that bundle as the standalone sticker.
• Bizee — official page: free year one with formation; standalone $149/year; year two $149/year. Retrieved August 31, 2026 from bizee.com/business-management/registered-agent. We print the official $149 figure and tell you to read checkout.
• LegalZoom — official overview: “Get registered agent services for $249/year.” Product card: $249/year. Footnote: auto-renews at the purchase rate; “The renewal rate is subject to change.” Retrieved August 31, 2026 from legalzoom.com/…/registered-agent-overview.html. We do not invent a year-two number LegalZoom did not publish.
• ZenBusiness — official product page: “$99 + state fees for the first year. Renews at $199/yr.” The Florida page says “Starts at $99 + FL state fees for the first year. Renews at $199/yr, subject to change.” The same national page says they currently do not offer registered-agent service to PLLCs or nonprofits. That is their national exclusion, not a Florida statute. Retrieved August 31, 2026 from zenbusiness.com/registered-agent and zenbusiness.com/florida-registered-agent.

A change of agent outside the annual-report window is a separate Sunbiz filing. We cite the Division of Corporations fee tables, retrieved August 31, 2026 — not vendor blogs. The LLC fees page lists Change of Registered Agent at $25.00. The same table prices a new Florida or foreign LLC at $100 filing plus a $25 registered-agent fee, $125.00 total, and registered-agent resignation (active) at $85.00. The corporate fees page lists change of registered agent at $35.00. The same table prices a new corporation at $35 filing plus $35 registered-agent designation; a certified copy is optional at $8.75, and the printed total with that option is $78.75. Substitute service of process under Chapter 48 is $8.75. The fees index links both tables.

Who publishes a Florida street

A city is not a registered office. We print only the streets and hours the companies publish for registered-agent use. We do not invent the rest. Confirm the live name and street on Sunbiz search before you file. Headquarters is not the registered office.

• Northwest. St. Petersburg, FL on the Florida product page: “We provide a commercial registered office location in St. Petersburg, FL.” No street published. We will not invent one. The honesty here is the same as Texas Austin-without-a-street: city only, until they print a suite we can cite.
• Bizee. Claims owned offices in all 50 states. The Florida LLC registered-agent article names no Florida street. The contact page lists 17350 State Highway 249, Suite 220, Houston, TX 77064 as headquarters. That address is not a Florida registered office.
• LegalZoom. Jacksonville as the registered office on their Florida registered-agent article (updated April 30, 2026). No street. The article says the office is “open during normal business hours.” That is vendor copy, not § 48.091.
• ZenBusiness. 336 E. College Ave., Suite 301, Tallahassee, FL 32301, Leon County. Hours they publish: Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–5 p.m. EST. Closed Saturday and Sunday. Those are ZenBusiness hours, not Division of Corporations hours. The published weekday window covers the statutory 10 a.m.–12 noon and 2 p.m.–4 p.m. slots. “0.4 miles from the Florida State Capitol” is vendor copy. We have not walked the lobby. Florida registered agent office (updated July 27, 2026).

If you are your own agent, the street on the public record is often your home. If you hire an organization authorized to transact business in Florida, the agent line is that organization’s name and its registered-office street. ZenBusiness is the only vendor of these four that publishes a Florida suite. We have not walked that lobby. Sunbiz search is free; use it.

In-state office and the statutory clock

Florida wants a physical Florida street and a person who can take papers during the posted 10-to-noon and 2-to-4 windows. ZenBusiness is the only company of these four that publishes a Florida registered-agent street and weekday hours. Those hours cover the statutory slots. Northwest names St. Petersburg and claims a 9 AM to 5 PM vendor clock — we label that vendor-claimed and check it against § 48.091. LegalZoom names Jacksonville and “normal business hours.” Bizee names no Florida RA street. Process Score has not sat in any of those lobbies.

Service of process — not marketing mail

We grade scan-and-forward of service of process and official notices:

• Bizee: notifications by text and email; SOP mailed via FedEx with tracking; portal upload by employees.
• Northwest: “We scan every document you receive right where you receive it—in our office.” The Florida page adds same-day scans. Their mail-forwarding extras are a different product. We do not grade those extras as a mailbox.
• LegalZoom: upload, email, and a postcard for urgent legal mail; they say they shred junk mail. Junk-mail shredding is not the job we score.
• ZenBusiness: scan and upload to a dashboard; email; overnight the original for urgent legal notices. Their own FAQ says you cannot use the agent address as your business address. Their national product currently excludes PLLCs and nonprofits; that is their exclusion, not a Florida statute.

Home-address privacy

A commercial organizational agent is how most Florida founders keep a home off the agent line. Sunbiz still publishes whatever other addresses you put on articles or an annual report. Privacy of the agent line is not privacy of every field on the instrument. Confirm the live line on Sunbiz search.

Scorecards

What this page does not do

• It does not rank mailbox networks, CMRAs, or virtual offices — chapter 48’s private-mailbox path is extra service language, not a pass.
• It does not publish aggregate star ratings or a fake 4.8.
• It does not treat a vendor 9-to-5 line as Fla. Stat. § 48.091.
• It does not treat the filed written acceptance as optional. Florida files that writing with the department.
• It does not treat a Houston headquarters as a Florida street.
• It does not invent how commercial agents handle protected series after July 1, 2026.

Choosing among sitting the hours, asking counsel, or hiring a commercial agent: DIY vs lawyer vs commercial. California’s scorecard is a different statute: California scorecard. Texas leaves Form 401-A with the entity: Texas scorecard.