How does the CTA address service work in detail?
We are subletting a shared office space to your company where it can do business, hold meetings or meet customers.
But I don’t need a real office in the US. Why should I book this service?
The CTA requires you to give a place of business in the US. Even if you do not have any plans at the moment to actually work there, you will need to provide an address.
Why can’t I use the address of my registered agent or rent a mailbox?
The requirement of the CTA is, that this address has to be either your principal place of business or at least a place where your company regularly does business or makes management decisions. Since it is impossible to do this in a mailbox and most registered agent companies do not allow you to visit their site and work on their premises, these addresses cannot be used in your CTA filing.
The CTA starts January 2024. Why should I get an address now?
If you sign up before December 2023 you will receive a discount for your CTA filing with us and you have more time to prepare your CTA filing.
When will I receive my CTA business address?
If you book our service before January 2024, you will receive your address in December 2023. If you book in January 2024 or later, you will receive your address within 5 business days after signing up.
Do I have to visit this address and actually do business there?
The CTA asks for your primary place of business or where you regularly do business or management decisions for your company. If your primary place of business is somewhere else (or nowhere if your business is fully online or you are a remote or transient worker), you can still designate this address to be the place where you will regularly do business or management decisions for your company.
“Regularly”, according to the Oxford dictionary, is defined as:
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with a constant or definite pattern(…)
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at uniform intervals of time.
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on a habitual basis; usually.
Since the definition does not quantify how small or large patterns, intervals or habits should be to be considered “regularly”, even a visiting that location once a year would be covered by the definition of regularly. Designating our address as your place to make business decisions regularly is a reason to report it with your CTA filing. With many business decisions they can be modified later to adapt to changing requirements. Once you decide you will not use our address for this purpose, you should change it accordingly, e.g. to one of our other locations.
Will I share the same address with others?
Yes, we use the same office space for several clients.
When and how often can I use the office space at my business address?
When you pay in advance for an entire year, your package includes one visit of 3 hours every calendar year. Unused visits do not roll over to a new subscription period and expire when you cancel your package. Additional visits or hours can be purchased separately according to our current price list.
When you pay on a monthly basis, your package includes one visit of 2 hours every calendar year, limiting the date of your first visit in that year to after at least 4 months after the start date of your subscription. Unused visits do not roll over to a new subscription period and expire when you cancel your package. Additional visits or hours can be purchased separately according to our current price list.
Can I receive mail at my business address?
Currently it is not supported to receive correspondence at your business address with the exception of written communication by FinCEN or other federal agencies. Receiving, scanning or forwarding mail incurs a fee according to our current price list.
All other mail will either be destroyed or returned to sender at our discretion.
Can I get a phone number that matches my business address?
We can offer phone numbers for some of our addresses and forward these numbers to your phone number. Setup, monthly and per call fees will apply according to our current price list.
Can I use the business address on my website, letterhead, domain name, promotional material, invoices, banks, credit card applications, etc.?
Your address can only be used with your CTA filing. Other use of our addresses is not permitted and, if detected, may lead to immediate cancellation of our address service contract.
Can I use the business address with the IRS, another federal agency or in the business register of a state?
Your address can only be used with your CTA filing. The use with other federal agencies, or state, local or tribal government entities is not permitted, and, if detected, may lead to immediate cancellation of our address service contract.
In which states are your business addresses and can I select a specific address?
The availability of addresses in different states varies according to supply and demand. In most cases it is not possible to select a specific state or city for your CTA business address.
Does using your office space create nexus or ETBUS for my company in the US?
We currently only offer business addresses in states where their nexus law does not consider solely renting a shared office space without actually doing business there relevant for nexus. ETBUS or ECI would only apply if you own and operate your business in the US. As long as you only own (rent) the office space and do not operate your business out of it, ETBUS/ECI will not be relevant. There are some exceptions from this rule for certain visa holders or certain types of income. For details about tax implications we recommend to ask a CPA.
I don’t have a visa to work in the US. Will renting an office address cause problems for me at immigration?
Simply renting an office space is not considered working under USCIS visa rules. However, if you visit your office space address, you should only engage in activities that are covered by the type of visa you have used to enter the United States. Business visa (B1) or entering under the visa waiver program (VWP, often referred to as ESTA), are e.g. allowed to enter to negotiate a business contract. These negotiations could happen at your rented office space.
How can I cancel my service?
When you don’t need your business address anymore, you can always cancel effectively the next business day. There will be no money returned for unused parts of your package. Please remember that you will have to make an updated filing with FinCEN to inform them about your new business address.
Do you offer a discount if I have multiple companies?
If you have more than ten companies and want to use our CTA business address service for all of them, please contact us for an individual offer.
