Updated September 6, 2026. Quick answer: In West Virginia, this role is called an agent for service of process, governed by W. Va. Code Section 31B-1-108 (designated office and agent for service of process; maintenance is written as permissive, not mandatory), Section 31B-1-109 (statement of change of office/agent), Section 31B-1-111 (Secretary of State becomes default agent when none exists or the agent cannot be found). West Virginia is one of the only states where appointing an agent is framed as optional rather than mandatory (‘may… maintain,’ Section 31B-1-108); commercial registered-agent guides commonly cite West Virginia (with New York) as not strictly requiring one, since the Secretary of State automatically serves as statutory back-up agent (Section 31B-1-111) and lack-of-agent is not a dissolution ground at all.
What the address rule requires
The statute only requires an address for the agent and an office; the office itself ‘need not be a place of its business in this state,’ and the Uniform LLC Act does not spell out a street-address/no-P.O.-box rule the way many other states’ acts do.
Who can serve as your registered agent
An individual resident of West Virginia, a domestic corporation, another (i.e., a different) limited liability company, or a foreign corporation/LLC authorized to do business in the state; the LLC cannot designate itself, as an entity, as its own agent.
What happens if you don’t have one
If the LLC has no agent, or the agent cannot with reasonable diligence be found at the agent’s address, the Secretary of State becomes the LLC’s agent for service of process: process is filed with the Secretary of State, who mails a copy by registered/certified mail to the company’s principal office on file (Section 31B-1-111). West Virginia’s LLC Act does not list ‘no agent’ among its five statutory grounds for administrative dissolution (Section 31B-8-809: unpaid fees/taxes, no annual/biennial report, license revocation, Bureau of Employment Programs default, or material misrepresentation). Because maintaining an agent is framed as permissive (‘may… continuously maintain’) and the Secretary of State automatically stands in as default agent when none exists, going without a named agent does not by itself trigger dissolution; the practical risk is losing control over where service actually reaches the company.
How to change your registered agent
The West Virginia Secretary of State’s official fee schedule lists a flat $15.00 fee for ‘Change of Agent, Address & Officers (AAO)’ (all business types), and separately $15.00 for ‘Change of Agent of Process’ under Service of Process fees; optional expedite fees of $25 (24-hour), $250 (2-hour), or $500 (1-hour) apply on top. (source: West Virginia Secretary of State, ‘Fee Schedule for Services and Registration’ (sos.wv.gov))
This page covers what West Virginia’s own law requires. For the general question of whether you should pay a commercial service or serve as your own agent, see registered agent: do you actually need to pay for one.
Every citation on this page was read directly from the state’s own statute, Secretary of State site, or official filing form this session (or, where that site could not be reached, from an independently cross-checked legal-database mirror of the same codified text, disclosed below). General information, not legal advice; fees and specific procedures can change, and your state’s Secretary of State has the final say for any individual filing.
Related: West Virginia’s LLC Certificate of Good Standing cost, including who issues it and how fast you can get one.