Moving my LLC to a new state - do I need a new EIN when dissolving and restarting?

Thanks for the answer! I'm in a similar situation but moving from Nevada to Texas. Would it make any difference if I didn't formally dissolve the old LLC but just let it fall into bad standing in the original state? Could I keep my EIN that way?

You would still need a new EIN even if you let the old LLC fall into bad standing. Allowing an LLC to administratively dissolve by not maintaining it can create other complications - including potential personal liability issues and penalties in the original state. It's always cleaner to properly dissolve the original entity. For your move from Nevada to Texas, I would recommend formally dissolving the Nevada LLC and creating a new Texas LLC with a new EIN. This creates a clear separation and helps avoid confusion with tax filings, banking relationships, and state compliance requirements.

Did it help with the timing of when to dissolve vs form the new one? I'm concerned about a gap where I don't have a business entity but still have active clients.

I've seen ads for that site but was skeptical. Does it actually give you specific advice tailored to your situation or just general info you could find elsewhere?

It actually did help with the timing! The analysis recommended forming the new LLC about a month before dissolving the old one to avoid any gap in business operations. This was crucial because it allowed me to get all my banking and client agreements transferred over without interruption. Regarding your question about the advice quality, it was definitely personalized. It looked at my specific business structure, income sources, and state requirements to give targeted recommendations. Much more detailed than the general advice I found on random websites. For example, it flagged that Florida has specific filing requirements that differ from Michigan, which saved me from missing an important deadline.

Wait, so how does this actually work? Does this service somehow hack the IRS phone system or something? Sounds too good to be true.

Yeah right. No way this actually works. The IRS phone system is deliberately designed to be impenetrable - that's why tax pros charge so much for representing you. I'll believe it when I see it.

It's not hacking the system at all. They use an automated system that continuously calls the IRS and navigates the phone tree until it reaches a real human. When an agent answers, they connect that call to your phone. It's basically like having someone sit there and redial for you instead of you having to do it yourself. I was skeptical too initially. I had spent three separate afternoons trying to get through to the IRS myself with no success. The service called me back in about 45 minutes with an IRS agent on the line. Saved me from wasting another day on hold and potentially missing important deadlines for my business registration.

Thanks for mentioning this! I hadn't even heard about statutory conversions. Do you know if Colorado allows this for incoming businesses? And would this affect any of my existing contracts or agreements?

Colorado does allow statutory conversions for incoming businesses. You'd file what's called a Statement of Conversion with the Colorado Secretary of State along with Articles of Organization for your new Colorado LLC. For your existing contracts and agreements, one of the big advantages of a statutory conversion is that technically the business entity continues to exist, just in a different form. This means your contracts should remain valid without needing to be reassigned or renegotiated. That said, it's always good practice to notify your clients and vendors of the change. Some contracts might have clauses specifically addressing business structure changes, so you'd want to review those.

I just went through this with Chase. They made me open a new business account in the new state because they considered it a new business entity with the new EIN. Had to close the old account and transfer everything. It was annoying but only took about a week to get everything switched over.

This is really helpful advice! I'm actually in the early stages of planning a similar move from Florida to North Carolina for my consulting LLC. The timing aspect you mentioned is crucial - I hadn't considered forming the new LLC first before dissolving the old one. Quick question: when you say it took 6 weeks to transition all business relationships, was that mainly due to client procurement systems or were there other unexpected delays? I'm trying to plan my timeline and want to make sure I'm not being too optimistic about how quickly I can make the switch. Also, did you run into any issues with professional licenses or certifications that were tied to your original state? I have a few industry certifications that list my current business address.

The 6 weeks was a combination of factors beyond just client procurement systems. Banking transitions took about 2 weeks (opening new accounts, transferring funds, updating automatic payments). Several of my clients had vendor onboarding processes that required new W-9s, insurance certificates, and business registration verification - that was probably the biggest time sink at 3-4 weeks. I also had to update my business registration with various professional associations, change my address with the IRS, update business licenses, and notify existing vendors. Each of these seemed small individually but added up quickly. Regarding professional certifications, yes - this was actually one of my bigger headaches! Two of my industry certifications required formal address change notifications and one required me to verify that my new state didn't have additional licensing requirements. I'd recommend starting this process early since some certification bodies can take 30+ days to process address changes. For your Florida to North Carolina move, I'd definitely build in extra buffer time. North Carolina has some specific LLC publication requirements that differ from Florida, so make sure you research those ahead of time.

This is incredibly comprehensive advice, thank you! The sales tax registration point is something I hadn't even considered yet. Since I do collect sales tax on some of my services, this could definitely create complications if I don't time it right. Quick question about the statutory conversion option - do you know roughly how long that process typically takes compared to the dissolve/reform approach? I'm trying to weigh the time savings against any potential complications. My business is pretty straightforward (just consulting services), so I'm wondering if the simpler dissolution route might actually be easier even if it takes a bit longer. Also, regarding the Arizona publication requirements you mentioned - is that something that applies to all LLCs or only in certain counties? I'm currently registered in Maricopa County if that makes a difference.

Great question about the timing comparison! In my experience, statutory conversions typically take 4-6 weeks from start to finish, while the dissolve/reform approach usually takes 6-10 weeks total. The conversion process has fewer moving parts since you're essentially just changing the LLC's domicile rather than creating an entirely new entity. However, for straightforward consulting businesses like yours, the dissolve/reform route often provides a cleaner separation and can be easier to explain to clients and vendors. You also get a fresh start with all your registrations and filings. Regarding Arizona's publication requirements - good news for you! Maricopa County does NOT require dissolution publication. Only a few Arizona counties (like Cochise and Yuma) have publication requirements for LLC dissolutions. So you'll just need to file the Articles of Dissolution with the Arizona Corporation Commission and handle the final tax filings. Since you're in consulting and collect sales tax on some services, I'd definitely recommend the dissolve/reform approach. It gives you a clear break between the old and new entities, which makes the sales tax registration transition much cleaner. Just make sure to coordinate the timing so you don't have any gap in your ability to collect sales tax in Colorado.

This is such valuable insight about the vendor re-registration process! I hadn't considered that clients might treat this as essentially onboarding a new vendor even though it's the same person providing the same services. That's definitely something I need to factor into my timeline and potentially discuss with my key clients beforehand. The point about business software subscriptions is also really helpful. I use several SaaS platforms for project management and invoicing that are tied to my current EIN, so I'll need to make a list of all those accounts and plan for potential data migration issues. Losing historical data would be a real pain, especially for accounting and client relationship tracking. Thanks for mentioning the Colorado registered agent requirement too - I was planning to use my new home address, but since I won't be physically there until after the LLC formation, I'll need to arrange for a registered agent service initially. Do you remember roughly what that cost you during your transition, or did you find any particularly reliable services for that?