BizFilings Foreign Qualification Review

Right Company For You?

BizFilings Foreign Qualification Review

Are you in the process of starting a new business outside of the state you’re currently based in?

Maybe you’re expanding your existing company beyond the borders of your formation state? Whatever the reason for pursuing a foreign qualification, there are quite a few services like BizFilings that can assist you.

As a supplement to your own research, my team and I have spent many hours going over the ins and outs of each major foreign qualification provider. Our goal with these reviews is to give you the information you need in a convenient manner, allowing you to make a fully informed decision.

This BizFilings foreign qualification service review is structured in a way that highlights their pros and cons, pricing and features, customer feedback and more. Are they the right choice for your company?

Pros & Cons of BizFilings

Pros of BizFilings

  • They’re the only major provider of foreign qualification services that offers volume discounts. If you need qualifications in more than one state, you get a discount on each one. Some of their competitors do this for registered agent services, but BizFilings is the only company I know of that provides volume discounts on foreign qualifications.
  • BizFilings has an experience edge that few competitors can touch. They opened in 1996, and they’ve served hundreds of thousands of businesses since then, making them one of the most highly experienced foreign qualification services available.
  • Each foreign qualification from BizFilings includes 6 months of registered agent service at no extra charge. Some other providers include up to a full year, but some of them don’t offer any registered agent with foreign qualification.

Cons of BizFilings

  • While their $219 price point for foreign qualification isn’t bad, it’s pretty easy to beat. Most providers price this service at $199, and with some of them it’s even cheaper — like Incfile at just $149.
  • If you’re looking for customer feedback, you won’t find much. Despite their high volume of customers served, there are only a select few reviews available online, and the most-recent positive review was written in April 2011.

BizFilings Foreign Qualification Alternative

Incfile's foreign qualification service pricing is the best in the industry, and their inclusion of a full year of registered agent service is an incredibly valuable feature. Read Review

Incfile

BizFilings Foreign Qualification Pricing & Features

BizFilings offers foreign qualification service at the flat rate of $219 (plus state fee) for one state. If you need service in multiple states, make sure to contact them to inquire about your eligibility for volume discounts.

Take a look at how they position foreign qualification service in their own words on their website, then we’ll dive into some further details.

BizFilings Foreign Qualification Pricing

BizFilings makes this process pretty easy for entrepreneurs. Even in states where you need a certified copy of your formation documents, or a Certificate of Good Standing, BizFilings handles every step for you.

All that’s required of you is giving them some essential info about your company, such as your physical address, nature of business, etc.

Customer Reviews

Customer feedback is not a strength for BizFilings. First off, most of their online reviews are quite old — from 5 years ago and longer. Secondly, every recent review is negative. In fact, the last time anyone wrote a positive review of BizFilings (that I can find) was back in April 2011.

Customer Reviews Section Last Updated 10-20-17
  • Legal Spring: 3.4/5 out of 20 reviews
  • Yelp: 2.5/5 out of 3 reviews
  • BBB: A+ out of 1 review

Conclusion: It would be nice to see more positive reviews or even a larger volume of feedback in general. On the other hand, BizFilings opened in 1996 and only a couple dozen customers have been unhappy enough to write critical online customer reviews. While their feedback certainly isn’t a point in their favor, it’s not a red flag either.

How BizFilings Compares

In this industry, I’ve noticed some commonalities and differences between the top foreign qualification services and that some of them are better deals than others. Still, my goal isn’t to talk you into using any one specific provider, but rather to help you decide if BizFilings is the right choice for your company.

BizFilings is a strong provider of foreign qualifications, but with so many other options in this industry, let’s see how they stack up compared to one of their top competitors, Incfile.

Pricing: With their price point of $149 (plus state fee), Incfile can save you a significant amount of money over the BizFilings rate of $219.

Features: After combing through the details of each company’s foreign qualification offering, I can’t find any noteworthy differences between their feature sets. To be honest, this makes the difference in pricing stand out even more.

Customer Support: Again, there just isn’t much to say here. On occasion, Incfile can take a while to get back to you, as I’ve personally waited over 24 hours to get a response from them. Other than that, the customer service departments for both BizFilings and Incfile are staffed by helpful and friendly representatives. I haven’t had any negative experiences while doing responsiveness tests.

Experience: Incfile formed in 2004, and they have quite a bit of experience with 150,000+ businesses served. BizFilings has handled hundreds of thousands of formations over the years, since they opened back in 1996.

Here's a Quick Breakdown

Incfile

Pricing Starts at $149

150,000+ customers served

Perfect for: Anyone needing a foreign qualification service while sticking to a tight budget

BizFilings

Pricing Starts at $219

300,000+ customers served

Perfect for: Anyone looking for a service that offers multi-state discounts

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Handle My Own Foreign Qualification?

The DIY route is certainly an option, but it’s not one that I recommend for foreign qualifications. Each state has its own set of compliance requirements for foreign qualification obtainment, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution.

What’s Their Refund Policy?

No matter what service you purchase from BizFilings, from foreign qualifications to business formations, that service is covered by their comprehensive warranty. If they make any errors in your filing, or if there are any other avoidable defects, they will refund your money. This guarantee lasts for the entire lifecycle of your company.

Is My Information Secure?

BizFilings uses Norton Web Security to protect their website, which defends their site from malware while also encrypting all data transfers. You’re as safe or moreso on their site as you are on any competitor’s website.

Does BizFilings Offer Ongoing Support?

It doesn’t matter if you purchased your foreign qualification last week or last year, BizFilings is here to help. They’re available from 9am to 8pm ET on weekdays to answer whatever questions you might have.

Should You Use BizFilings?

I’ll give BizFilings a score of 4.4/5. As the only major foreign qualification provider that offers volume discounts on this service, they’re a great choice if you need to qualify in multiple states. That being said, if this doesn’t sound like you perfect fit, check out our Best Foreign Qualification Services. Cheers!