Is it possible to register a company name and not do anything with it until 2 years later?

Sure, you just have to pay for it, which although is not a lot of $$, it's enough to make you think twice.

-Dan

The only thing that came to mind when I read this is minimum quarterly taxes. I'd consult a CPA in your area about the requirements of the state you INC'ed in.

Yep. That's mostly what I was referring to. A friend of mine was just complaining yesterday about his LLC that is not being used, and the fact that the state he has it in raised the tax.

-Dan

Right, when you form a corporation you've created a legal entity which has tax obligations. Besides income tax most states assess a "franchise tax" on corporations. You'd also have requirements for annual shareholder meetings, etc.

One option -- though it wouldn't work for as long as two years -- might be to simply reserve the name, which you can do in most states. In New York you can reserve a corporation (or LLC) name for 60 days, and then get two 60-day extensions. So you could delay for six months anyway.

Then how does a 1 man company work? I mean with me holding all the shares and paying my employees.

Originally posted by Synergy
Then how does a 1 man company work? I mean with me holding all the shares and paying my employees. It works the same no matter how many shareholders there are, assuming you do incorporate. For a one-person operation, though, you could just choose to operate as a sole proprietor -- which is just as it sounds, you're the proprietor. In that case you don't formally organize, so you create no new legal entity. You might still choose to operate under an assumed name, which you'd register locally, usually with your county clerk.

But you could certainly incorporate, or form an LLC, and hold a 100% share of the company.

In any case if you're paying employees you'll need an EIN (employer identification number) from the IRS. If you incorporate you need that even if the corporation never has any employees, because it's what identifies that new legal entity to the government for tax purposes. You use it on your corporate tax return the same way you use your social security number on your individual return.