How do you set upa company in New Hampshire.
In New Hampshire you file with the Secretary of State, appoint a registered agent, and register for state taxes, or Teamed hires your team without any of it.
At a glance
New Hampshire entity setup snapshot
New Hampshire charges a formation and registration fee of $100 through the Secretary of State's office, then taxes the entity's profits at 7.5% under the state's corporate income tax, plus an additional surcharge of 0.55%. There's no sales tax to layer on top, which is one reason the state reads simpler on paper than it is in practice once payroll and compliance enter the picture.
- Corporate income tax
- 7.5%
- Additional surcharge
- 0.55%
- Formation / registration fee
- $100
Formation basics
How the entity actually comes together
You start by choosing a structure, usually an LLC or a corporation, and filing formation documents with the New Hampshire Secretary of State. That filing carries a registration fee of $100, payable at the point of submission.
You'll also need a registered agent with a physical New Hampshire address, someone who can accept legal and state correspondence on the entity's behalf during regular business hours. Skipping this step, or letting the agent lapse, puts the entity's good standing at risk fast.
Tax exposure
What the entity owes once it's running
Once the entity is active and earning, New Hampshire applies a corporate income tax of 7.5% to business profits, administered by the Department of Revenue Administration. On top of that sits an additional surcharge of 0.55%, so the effective state-level bite is higher than the headline rate alone suggests.
Beyond the entity-level tax, you're also on the hook for payroll registrations, unemployment insurance, and workers' compensation coverage before you can legally put someone on the books. None of that is optional, and none of it moves fast if you're doing it for the first time.
Compliance rhythm
Staying in good standing after you file
Formation is the easy part. Keeping the entity current means renewing your registered agent, filing required reports with the state, and keeping your tax registrations active even in a quiet quarter.
Most founders underestimate how much of this is ongoing rather than one-time. A lapsed filing or an expired agent address can quietly put the entity out of good standing, which then has to be fixed before payroll or contracts can move.
Timing and effort
What the timeline actually looks like
Filing the formation paperwork itself is quick once you know what you're submitting. The slower parts are the pieces that come after, opening a business bank account, registering for state tax accounts, and setting up payroll and insurance correctly the first time.
None of this is impossible to do alone. It's just slower and more detail-heavy than most people expect when they're trying to hire one or two people quickly in a state they don't have a presence in yet.
Before you commit
Sometimes an employer of record is the better fit
An employer of record is sometimes the better answer, not a lesser one, when you're hiring one or two people in New Hampshire and don't yet know if you'll stay. Talk to a member of the team about your specific situation, or run the numbers yourself with the crossover calculator, since the right call depends on salary levels and how long you plan to keep people there.
Contractors, employer of record and your own entity all run on one platform at Teamed, so moving between them later does not mean changing provider or re-onboarding anybody. Real HR and legal experts handle the work rather than a ticket queue.
Talk to a member of the team and we will tell you plainly which one suits where you are. If you would rather look at the numbers yourself first, the crossover calculator models it on local salaries and employer costs rather than on a headcount rule of thumb.
Who carries it
Your own entity, when it's time. We set it up, migrate you in, and hand it back intact.
Global Entity and Employment Operations, which we call GEMO, is how Teamed forms your company, registers it for tax and payroll, runs it month to month and keeps its filings current, across 100+ countries. You stay the employer. We do the work behind it.
In New Hampshire that means we handle the Secretary of State filing, the registered agent arrangement, and the tax registrations, then hand you a fully compliant entity with your people already employed inside it. You keep the team, the history, and the relationships, we just do the paperwork once instead of you doing it under pressure.
They set up our EU entity and moved hires across without missing a payroll.
Questions
New Hampshire entity setup questions
What does it cost to register a company in New Hampshire?
The Secretary of State charges a formation and registration fee of $100 to file your entity. Beyond that, budget for a registered agent service, tax registrations, and the usual setup costs like a business bank account.
How is a New Hampshire entity taxed?
New Hampshire applies a corporate income tax of 7.5% to business profits, plus an additional surcharge of 0.55% on top of that. The Department of Revenue Administration handles both.
Do I need a registered agent in New Hampshire?
Yes, every registered entity needs a registered agent with a physical address in the state. This is the party that receives legal and state correspondence on your behalf, and it has to stay current.
Can I hire someone in New Hampshire without forming an entity?
Yes, an employer of record lets you employ someone in New Hampshire legally without filing anything with the Secretary of State yourself. Teamed becomes the legal employer while you manage the day-to-day work.
When does it make sense to set up my own entity instead of using an EOR?
It usually makes sense once you have a larger, stable team in the state and know you're staying. The crossover calculator can help you weigh salary levels and timeline against the cost of running your own entity.
Where these figures come from
Sources
Figures on this page come from the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration and the New Hampshire Secretary of State.
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