Nebraska Certificate of Authority / Do it yourself
Filing a Nebraska certificate of authority yourself, step by step
You can file a Nebraska certificate of authority on your own: choose the application for your entity, attach the right home paper and pay $100 online if you are an LLC or a corporation, or $25 if you are a nonprofit.
Where the work is
The forms are short and the fees are public. The parts that need attention are the home certificate, the Nebraska agent and the name inquiry.
The filing, in order
Find the application
Each version has its own PDF on the Secretary of State's fee and form listing.
Test the name
Send a written name inquiry; the answer is a courtesy.
Pick the agent
A Nebraska resident, or a company with Nebraska authority, working from a real office.
Order the paper from home
The right document for your entity type.
Fill in the form
Check each answer against the record.
Sign
The right person for the entity.
Pay and submit
Online, in person or by mail.
Online filing today
eDelivery is the current online route. For an LLC it accepts the certificate of authority, an amendment, a change of agent or office, a correction and a cancellation. A corporation's list adds a certificate of withdrawal in place of the cancellation. The signed form goes up as a document and the fee is paid at submission.
Online filing after the switch
On December 7, 2026 the office changes to a new system. You create a login, the screens lead you through the filing, you pay by card, ACH or a frequent payor account, and the "My Work Queue" page shows status, filed copy and receipt. The old subscription is no longer needed. If your filing falls near the date, confirm which system is taking submissions.
Sending a paper package
Put the signed application, the home paper and a signed check made out to the Secretary of State in an envelope addressed to P.O. Box 94608, Lincoln, NE 68509-4608. Place a cover letter with a phone number on top, and keep personal contact details out of the application itself.
Fees you may meet later
An amended certificate and a statement of change are $25 online or $30 at the counter. A notice of cancellation or certificate of withdrawal costs the same, and holding a name for 120 days is $30.
Common mistakes
People use a copy of the LLC's certificate of organization where an original certificate of existence is required, hand a corporation certificate that has aged past 60 days, leave out the officer list, give a mailbox as the agent's address, or forget to sign. Where a name sits too close to one already on file, written consent from that owner can be an option.
The nine entries on the LLC form
The nine entries cover who the LLC is (name, alternate name, state of organization), where it can be reached (Nebraska agent, principal office, home-law office) and what it will do here (nature of the business), plus an optional effective date and the signature.
Home paper by entity
An LLC attaches the original certificate of existence. A corporation attaches a certificate of existence no more than 60 days old, and a nonprofit a certificate of good standing under the same limit.
A refused name
A written review, decided by the division's legal counsel, is open to the filer, and an LLC can use the alternate name line instead. A corporation can adopt a fictitious name by board resolution.
Special structures
A foreign protected series appears on the schedule with its own certificate, and professional entities go through the ordinary eDelivery route. A foreign limited partnership uses the registration form, which asks for name, state of organization, date of formation, principal office, registered agent and office, and the names and mailing addresses of each general partner, signed by one general partner.
Costs besides the state fee
The home state charges for its certificate, and an agent charges if you hire one. For instance, Delaware charges $50 for its short form, while Wyoming gives its certificate away online.
Once approved
Enter the first report year in your calendar, odd-numbered for an LLC or nonprofit and even-numbered for a corporation. Put the approval and the certificate in the minute book and ask the agent how papers will reach you.
Which form is yours
LLCs want the foreign LLC application, business corporations the corporation application, nonprofit corporations the nonprofit version, and limited partnerships the registration of a foreign limited partnership. The forms page lists each by title and none carries a number.
A paper trail worth keeping
Put the formation record, the draft form, the home paper, the agent's letter and the payment record in one folder named for the company and the filing date. The signer should review the folder, not just the form.
If the filing is returned
Read the explanation and fix only what it names. When the name was the problem, choose among a review request, the alternate name line and a fictitious name. When the home paper was the problem, order a new one instead of reusing the old.
Scanning and uploading
If you use eDelivery, scan the signed form on a flatbed and confirm that both the signature and the printed name can be read. Label the file with the company name. The new system will not need a separate upload.
Several entities at once
Prepare each package on its own and label each folder with its company. Never share one home paper between two companies or send two applications under one cover letter. Mixed packages are the surest way to get a return.
Handing it over
Filing alone saves our fee and costs your time. Nebraska's fee is the same either way.
Choosing between online, counter and mail
Online costs least and leaves a record of what you sent, but it needs a scan and a payment method. The counter pays the in-office amount, and for a mailed filing we settle the amount before sending.
A worked LLC example, beginning to end
Picture an Iowa-formed LLC that plans to rent out a house in Omaha. It sends a name inquiry, names an Omaha agent and asks Iowa for an original certificate of existence. When the certificate arrives, the manager signs the nine-entry form, the LLC pays $100 online with the $10 certificate line, and the filing is complete.
A worked example: a corporation from start to finish
A corporation formed in South Dakota is opening a regional office. It lists four officers and three directors with street addresses, orders a certificate issued inside 60 days, names an Omaha agent and has its president sign. It pays $100 online and puts the first even-year report on the calendar.
Where the money goes
For the LLC the state's money is the filing fee and the certificate line. For the corporation it is the filing fee alone. Both then spend the home state's price for the certificate, and perhaps an agent's annual fee.
Questions about filing yourself
Do I need a lawyer?
No.
Which route costs least?
Online, on every line.
What is a common mistake?
Using the wrong home paper for the entity.
How is it filed?
Online through eDelivery, at the counter, or by mail.
The cost in two parts
Get my Nebraska authority
Nebraska
$199
+ the Nebraska fee for your entity
- The Nebraska application for your entity type, built from what you tell us
- A check of your home paper against what that application requires
- Your agent and office in Nebraska, from us or chosen by you
- The completed record, returned to you
- Renewal: after the first year, the agent service renews at $149 a year
Filed online, Nebraska's charge is $100 for an LLC, $100 for a corporation or $25 for a nonprofit, shown on its own line. $199 plus the state fee, including your first year of registered agent service; after that the agent service renews at $149 a year.
Sources
- Nebraska Secretary of State, forms and fee information
- Nebraska Secretary of State, corporate and business document eDelivery
- Nebraska Secretary of State, new online business filing system
- Nebraska Secretary of State, new business information
- Nebraska Secretary of State, name procedures
- Nebraska Amended Certificate of Authority, foreign LLC
- Nebraska Application for Certificate of Authority to Transact Business, foreign corporation
- Nebraska Application for Certificate of Authority, foreign LLC
- Nebraska Application for Certificate of Authority, foreign nonprofit corporation
- Nebraska Registration of Foreign Limited Partnership
- Delaware Division of Corporations fee schedule (PDF)
Need a Nebraska certificate of authority?
Give us the entity type and we arrange the form, the home paper and the agent.