Source: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/2008/cite/303/full
Timestamp: 2020-02-26 08:40:57
Document Index: 380802621

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 3', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 4', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 4', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 3', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 4']

﻿ Ch. 303 MN Statutes
CHAPTER 303. FOREIGN CORPORATIONS
303.01 CITATION.
303.02 DEFINITIONS.
303.03 FOREIGN CORPORATIONS MUST HAVE CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORITY.
303.04 ENGAGING IN BANKING; LIMITATION.
303.07 LICENSE FEES.
303.08 ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORITY.
303.09 POWERS SAME AS DOMESTIC CORPORATION.
303.115 FOREIGN PROFESSIONAL FIRM FILINGS.
303.12 [Repealed, 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 75]
303.13 SERVICE OF PROCESS.
303.14 ANNUAL REPORT.
303.15 [Repealed, 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 75]
303.16 WITHDRAWAL FROM STATE.
303.17 LICENSE REVOCATION.
303.19 REINSTATEMENT.
303.20 FOREIGN CORPORATION MAY NOT MAINTAIN ACTION UNLESS LICENSED.
303.21 FEES.
303.22 APPLICABLE TO PRESENT CORPORATIONS.
303.23 CERTIFICATE ISSUED BY SECRETARY OF STATE.
303.24 RIGHTS SUBJECT TO AMENDMENT.
Sections 303.01 to 303.24 may be cited as the Minnesota Foreign Corporation Act.
(7495-25) 1935 c 200 s 25
For the purposes of this chapter the terms defined in this section have the meanings ascribed to them.
"Corporation" means a corporation formed for profit and includes a cooperative.
Subd. 3.Foreign trust association.
"Foreign trust association" includes every banking and trust association or corporation organized under the laws of any state other than this state having the power to act as executor, administrator, trustee, guardian, or conservator, and every national banking association maintaining its principal office in any state other than this state which is granted permission by the comptroller of the currency to act in a fiduciary capacity under the provisions of United States Code, title 12, chapter 92a, as amended.
Subd. 4.Foreign corporation.
"Foreign corporation" does not include any corporation which, under the Constitution and statutes of the United States, may transact business in this state without first obtaining a certificate of authority so to do, insurance companies as defined by section 60A.02, and any banking or trust association or corporation or national banking association acting in this state as an executor, administrator, trustee, guardian, or conservator under section 303.25.
Subd. 5.Address.
"Address" means mailing address, including a zip code. In the case of a registered office, the term means the mailing address and the actual office location which may not be a post office box.
"Process" means any statutory notice or demand required or permitted to be served on a natural person or a corporation, and includes the summons in a civil action, and any process which may be issued in any action or proceeding in any court.
Subd. 7.Articles of incorporation.
"Articles of incorporation" means the original articles of incorporation, all articles or certificates of amendment thereof, articles of consolidation or merger, and certificates filed or issued in connection with reduction of stated capital.
(7495-1) 1935 c 200 s 1; 1953 c 368 s 1; 1969 c 6 s 38; 1989 c 236 s 6; 1996 c 414 art 1 s 37; 1997 c 157 s 58; 2005 c 69 art 3 s 21
No foreign corporation shall transact business in this state unless it holds a certificate of authority so to do; and no foreign corporation whose certificate of authority has been revoked or canceled pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be entitled to obtain a certificate of authority except in accordance with the provisions of section 303.19. This section does not establish standards for those activities that may subject a foreign corporation to taxation under section 290.015 and to the reporting requirements of section 290.371. Without excluding other activities which may not constitute transacting business in this state, and subject to the provisions of sections 5.25 and 543.19, a foreign corporation shall not be considered to be transacting business in this state for the purposes of this chapter solely by reason of carrying on in this state any one or more of the following activities:
(a) maintaining or defending any action or suit or any administrative or arbitration proceeding, or effecting the settlement thereof or the settlement of claims or disputes;
(b) holding meetings of its directors or shareholders or carrying on other activities concerning its internal affairs;
(d) maintaining offices or agencies for the transfer, exchange, and registration of its securities, or appointing and maintaining trustees or depositaries with relation to its securities;
(e) holding title to and managing real or personal property, or any interest therein, situated in this state, as executor of the will or administrator of the estate of any decedent, as trustee of any trust, or as guardian of any person or conservator of any person's estate;
(f) making, participating in, or investing in loans or creating, as borrower or lender, or otherwise acquiring indebtedness or mortgages or other security interests in real or personal property;
(g) securing or collecting its debts or enforcing any rights in property securing them; or
(h) conducting an isolated transaction completed within a period of 30 days and not in the course of a number of repeated transactions of like nature.
(7495-2) 1935 c 200 s 2; 1981 c 162 s 2; 1988 c 719 art 2 s 55; 1995 c 128 art 1 s 7; 2005 c 10 art 4 s 18
No foreign corporation shall transact in this state the business which only a bank, trust company, or savings association may transact in this state except as provided in section 303.25.
(7495-3) 1935 c 200 s 3; 1941 c 164 s 1; 1949 c 427 s 1; 1951 c 219 s 1; 1981 c 162 s 3; 1995 c 202 art 1 s 25
No certificate of authority shall be issued to a foreign corporation if the name of that foreign corporation would be prohibited to a corporation under the provisions of chapter 302A. The name of that corporation may contain the word "cooperative" if it is a cooperative corporation generally similar to the kind which may be organized under the laws of this state. If that corporation is a corporation obtaining a certificate of authority pursuant to the provisions of section 303.04, the name of that corporation may contain the words "bank," "trust," "building and loan," or "savings" and such corporation shall not be required to add the word "incorporated" or the abbreviation "Inc." to its corporate name. If its real name is unavailable, a foreign corporation may use an alternate name to transact business in this state if it delivers to the secretary of state a certified copy of the resolution of its board of directors adopting the alternate name. The alternate name must meet the requirements of section 302A.115, and need not be filed under sections 333.001 to 333.06.
(7495-4) 1935 c 200 s 4; 1951 c 550 s 77; 1965 c 97 s 1; 1981 c 270 s 129; 1982 c 496 s 3; 1989 c 292 s 7
(5) a statement that the officers executing the application have been duly authorized so to do by the board of directors of the corporation.
(7495-5) 1935 c 200 s 5; 1965 c 97 s 2; 1984 c 618 s 20; 1988 c 682 s 13; 1995 c 128 art 1 s 8
Subdivision 1.Initial fee.
At the time of making application for a certificate of authority the foreign corporation making the application shall pay to the commissioner of finance the sum of $150 as an initial license fee.
(7495-6) 1935 c 200 s 6; 1955 c 820 s 29; 1969 c 1148 s 46; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 36; 1987 c 404 s 165; 1991 c 205 s 8; 1994 c 438 s 5; 2003 c 112 art 2 s 50
Subdivision 1.By secretary of state.
If the application be according to law, the secretary of state, when all fees and charges have been paid as required by law, shall file the application and the certificate of existence, and shall issue and record a certificate of authority to transact business in this state.
The certificate of authority shall contain the name of the corporation, the state or country of organization, the address of its registered office in this state, and a statement that it is authorized to transact business in this state.
[Repealed, 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 75]
(7495-7) 1935 c 200 s 7; 1969 c 995 s 3; 1976 c 181 s 2; 1986 c 444; 1991 c 205 s 9
After the issuance of a certificate of authority by the secretary of state and until cancellation or revocation thereof or issuance of a certificate of withdrawal, the corporation shall possess within this state the same rights and privileges that a domestic corporation would possess if organized for the purposes set forth in the articles of incorporation of such foreign corporation pursuant to which its certificate of authority is issued, and shall be subject to the laws of this state.
(7495-8) 1935 c 200 s 8
Subdivision 1.Maintenance.
Subd. 2.Change of location and address; revocation of agent's appointment; new agent.
Subd. 3.Resignation of agent.
(7495-9, 7495-10) 1935 c 200 s 9,10; 1953 c 221 s 1; 1986 c 331 s 1; 1988 c 682 s 14; 1989 c 236 s 7
Each foreign corporation authorized to transact business in this state, shall, whenever it changes its name, dissolves, or merges, certify to the secretary of state that it has obtained and possesses a certificate to that effect authenticated by the proper officer of the state or country under the laws of which the corporation is organized.
(7495-11) 1935 c 200 s 11; 1988 c 682 s 15; 2002 c 311 art 4 s 1; 2008 c 203 s 4
When a foreign corporation uses chapter 319B to elect professional firm status, rescind that status, or change the specification of professional services required under section 319B.04, the foreign corporation must file with the secretary of state a notice which:
(1) states the election, rescission, or change in specification;
(2) had been approved in accordance with the foreign corporation's generally applicable governing law, as that term is defined in section 319B.02, subdivision 8; and
(3) has been signed on behalf of the foreign corporation.
1997 c 22 art 2 s 3
Subdivision 1.Foreign corporation.
A foreign corporation shall be subject to service of process, as follows:
(1) by service on its registered agent; or
(2) as provided in section 5.25.
[Repealed, 1995 c 128 art 1 s 20]
(7495-13) 1935 c 200 s 13; 1955 c 820 s 30; 1957 c 538 s 1; 1969 c 1148 s 47; 1978 c 674 s 60; 1980 c 541 s 4; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 37; 1984 c 618 s 21,22; 1986 c 444; 1987 c 404 s 166; 1989 c 236 s 8; 1989 c 335 art 1 s 197; 1991 c 205 s 10; 1993 c 48 s 2,3; 1993 c 369 s 113; 1995 c 128 art 1 s 9
Subdivision 1.Filed with secretary of state; contents.
Each calendar year beginning in the calendar year following the calendar year in which a corporation receives a certificate of authority to do business in Minnesota, the secretary of state must mail by first class mail an annual registration form to the registered office of each corporation as shown on the records of the secretary of state. The form must include the following notice:
"NOTICE: Failure to file this form by December 31 of this year will result in the revocation of the authority of this corporation to transact business in Minnesota without further notice from the secretary of state, pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 303.17."
The corporation will submit a $115 fee with the annual registration and will set forth on the form:
(1) the name of the corporation, and, if the corporation has designated an alternate name pursuant to section 303.05, subdivision 1, that alternate name;
(2) the name of the registered agent of the corporation in Minnesota;
(3) the address of its registered office;
(4) the state of incorporation; and
(5) the name and business address of the officer or other person exercising the principal functions of the chief executive officer of the corporation.
(7495-14) 1935 c 200 s 14; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 38-40; 1982 c 496 s 4; 1986 c 444; 1988 c 682 s 16,17; 1989 c 236 s 9; 1995 c 128 art 3 s 4; 1997 c 137 s 8; 2000 c 395 s 6
Subdivision 1.Application for withdrawal, filing.
If a foreign corporation holding a certificate of authority desires to withdraw, it shall file with the secretary of state an application for withdrawal.
The application for withdrawal shall set forth:
(2) that it has no property located in this state and has ceased to transact business therein;
(3) that its board of directors has duly determined to surrender its authority to transact business in this state;
(4) that it revokes the authority of its registered agent in this state to accept service of process;
(5) the address to which the secretary of state shall mail a copy of any process against the corporation that may be served upon the secretary of state;
(6) that it will pay to the commissioner of finance the amount of any additional license fees properly found by the secretary of state to be then due from such corporation; and
(7) additional information required or demanded to enable the secretary of state to determine the additional license fees, if any, payable by the corporation, the determination thereof to be made in the manner provided by section 303.07, subdivision 2.
Subd. 3.Execution of application.
The application for withdrawal shall be executed on behalf of the corporation by its president, vice-president, secretary, or assistant secretary, or, if the corporation is in the hands of a receiver or trustee, by such receiver or trustee.
Subd. 4.Approval; filing.
The application for withdrawal shall be delivered to the secretary of state. Upon receiving and examining the same, and upon finding that it conforms to the provisions of this chapter, the secretary of state shall, when all license fees, filing fees, and other charges have been paid as required by law, file the same and shall issue and record a certificate of withdrawal. Upon the issuance of the certificate, the authority of the corporation to transact business in this state shall cease.
Subd. 5.Withdrawal through merger or dissolution.
The filing with the secretary of state by the corporation of a certificate of dissolution, or a certificate of merger if the corporation is not the surviving corporation from the proper officer of the state or country under the laws of which the corporation is organized constitutes a valid application of withdrawal and the authority of the corporation to transact business in this state shall cease upon filing of the certificate.
(7495-16) 1935 c 200 s 16; 1976 c 181 s 2; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 41,42; 1986 c 444; 1988 c 682 s 18,19; 2003 c 112 art 2 s 50
The certificate of authority of a foreign corporation to transact business in this state shall be revoked by the secretary of state if it fails:
(2) to designate a registered agent when a vacancy occurs in that office, or when the appointed registered agent becomes disqualified or incapacitated;
(3) to file certificates of merger or name change, as required in section 303.11;
(4) to file an annual report; or
(5) to comply with the provisions of Minnesota Statutes 1949, section 303.04, and acts amendatory thereof and supplementary thereto, insofar as it relates to the limits of territory in which a savings association organized under the laws of another state may carry on the business of making real estate mortgages.
Subd. 2.Notice to corporation.
On finding that a default has occurred under subdivision 1, clauses (1) to (3) or (5), the secretary of state shall give notice by mail to the corporation, at its registered office in this state, that the default exists and that its certificate of authority will be revoked unless the default shall be cured within 30 days after the mailing of the notice.
(a) The secretary of state shall revoke the certificate of authority of a corporation that is in default under subdivision 1, clause (4), for failure to file an annual registration form under section 303.14.
(b) The secretary of state shall revoke the certificate of authority of a corporation that is in default under subdivision 1, clauses (1) to (3) or (5), if the default is not cured within 30 days after mailing the notice under subdivision 2; provided that for good cause shown the secretary of state may extend the 30-day period from time to time, but in no event may the aggregate of all extensions granted exceed 180 days or the period of time of any applicable extension granted by the Department of Revenue for filing the income tax return of the corporation, whichever is greater.
Subd. 4. Certificate of revocation.
(c) The secretary of state shall also make the names of the revoked corporations available in an electronic format.
Subd. 5.Cessation of authority.
Upon the issuance of such certificate of revocation, the authority of the corporation to transact business in this state shall cease.
(7495-17) 1935 c 200 s 17; 1951 c 220 s 1; 1976 c 181 s 2; 1978 c 674 s 60; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 43; 1984 c 618 s 23; 1986 c 444; 1989 c 236 s 10; 1991 c 205 s 11; 1994 c 438 s 6,7; 1995 c 202 art 1 s 25; 2001 c 64 s 1-3; 2008 c 203 s 5
Any foreign corporation whose certificate of authority to do business in this state shall have been revoked or canceled may file with the secretary of state an application for reinstatement. Such application shall be on forms prescribed by the secretary of state, shall contain all the matters required to be set forth in an original application for a certificate of authority, and such other pertinent information as may be required by the secretary of state.
If the certificate of authority was revoked by the secretary of state pursuant to section 303.17, the corporation shall pay to the commissioner of finance $250 before it may be reinstated.
If the certificate of authority was canceled by a judgment pursuant to section 303.18, the corporation shall pay to the commissioner of finance $500 before it may be reinstated.
Subd. 3.Certificate of reinstatement.
Upon the filing of the application and upon payment of all penalties, fees and charges required by law, not including an initial license fee or additional license fees to the extent that they have previously been paid by the corporation, the secretary of state shall reinstate the license of the corporation.
(7495-19) 1935 c 200 s 19; 1955 c 820 s 51; 1976 c 181 s 2; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 45,46; 2003 c 112 art 2 s 50
No foreign corporation transacting business in this state without a certificate of authority shall be permitted to maintain an action in any court in this state until such corporation shall have obtained a certificate of authority; nor shall an action be maintained in any court by any successor or assignee of such corporation on any right, claim, or demand arising out of the transaction of business by such corporation in this state until a certificate of authority to transact business in this state shall have been obtained by such corporation or by a corporation which has acquired all, or substantially all, of its assets. If such assignee shall be a purchaser without actual notice of such violation by the corporation, recovery may be had to an amount not greater than the purchase price. This section shall not be construed to alter the rules applicable to a holder in due course of a negotiable instrument.
The failure of a foreign corporation to obtain a certificate of authority to transact business in this state does not impair the validity of any contract or act of such corporation, and shall not prevent such corporation from defending any action in any court of this state.
Any foreign corporation which transacts business in this state without a certificate of authority shall forfeit and pay to this state a penalty, not exceeding $1,000, and an additional penalty, not exceeding $100, for each month or fraction thereof during which it shall continue to transact business in this state without a certificate of authority therefor. Such penalties may be recovered in the district court of any county in which such foreign corporation has done business or has property or has a place of business, by an action, in the name of the state, brought by the attorney general.
(7495-20) 1935 c 200 s 20
Subd. 3.Other instruments.
A fee of $50 shall be paid to the secretary of state for filing any instrument, other than the annual report required by section 303.14, required or permitted to be filed under the provisions of this chapter. The fees shall be paid at the time of the filing of the instrument.
(7495-21) 1935 c 200 s 21; 1955 c 820 s 31; 1969 c 1148 s 48,49; 1976 c 181 s 2; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 47; 1987 c 404 s 167; 1989 c 335 art 1 s 198; 1993 c 369 s 114; 2000 c 395 s 7
Except as in this section otherwise provided, this chapter shall be applicable to all foreign corporations heretofore or hereafter transacting business in this state.
Any foreign corporation licensed to transact business in this state when this chapter became effective, which thereafter obtains a certificate of authority, pursuant to the provisions of this section, may continue to transact business in this state pursuant to the certificate of authority, using the name under which it was, on April 21, 1935, licensed to transact business in this state, whether or not the use of the name is in violation of the provisions of section 303.05.
Nothing herein contained shall be construed to exempt the foreign corporation from the obligation of making annual reports and paying license fees in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
(7495-22) 1935 c 200 s 22; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 48
Subdivision 1.Prima facie evidence; recording.
Copies of the certificates certified, and any certificate issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, by the secretary of state shall be prima facie evidence of the matters stated therein.
Subd. 2.Certificate that corporation has no certificate of authority.
A certificate of the secretary of state to the effect that a foreign corporation is not authorized to transact business in this state shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein stated.
(7495-23) 1935 c 200 s 23; 1976 c 181 s 2; 3Sp1981 c 2 art 1 s 49; 1986 c 444
The state hereby fully reserves the right to alter, amend, or repeal the several provisions of this chapter, and all rights and privileges granted or extended hereunder shall be subject to such reserved right.
(7495-26) 1935 c 200 s 26
Before accepting appointment or acting as executor, administrator, trustee, guardian, or conservator, every foreign trust association shall file a bond with a court of competent jurisdiction in an amount as the court directs, with sufficient sureties, conditioned upon the faithful discharge of its duties as executor, administrator, trustee, guardian, or conservator, or, in lieu of the bond, shall deposit securities with the commissioner of finance in the same manner and in the same amount as would be required under section 48A.03, subdivision 2, of a trust company organized under the laws of this state. This deposit shall be maintained until the foreign trust association shall cease to act as an executor, administrator, trustee, guardian, or conservator under this section. However, except as otherwise ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction, the requirements of this subdivision do not apply to a trustee with respect to a trust created otherwise than by will if the trust instrument requests or directs that a bond need not be required of the trustee.
1953 c 368 s 2; 1957 c 21 s 1; 1978 c 674 s 60; 1981 c 162 s 4; 1986 c 444; 1997 c 157 s 59; 1998 c 331 s 38; 1999 c 151 s 42; 2003 c 112 art 2 s 50; 2005 c 10 art 4 s 19