Your Hawaii Professional Corporation name can identify the type of products and services your business will provide; or it may be the name of the founder; or it can be a combination of the two or something else.

In any case, the Hawaii Professional Corporation name that you choose must be distinguishable from the name of any other registered Hawaii Professional Corporation or other business entity and the name must also be different from any reserved names on record with the state of Hawaii.  Your Hawaii Professional Corporation name must not imply that it was formed for a purpose other than that stated in your Articles of Incorporation; and your Hawaii Professional Corporation name must not be a name that is likely to mislead the public.

The name of a Hawaii Professional Corporation must include the word "Corporation" or "Incorporated" or an abbreviation of one of these words.

It's important to choose a good name for your Hawaii Professional Corporation because if you want to change it after you incorporate you will have to file amended Articles of Incorporation with the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (and pay a fee).

Every Hawaii Professional Corporation must have an address that is physically located in the state of Hawaii.  This address is "registered" with the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.  The Registered Address is where official and legal correspondence can be delivered.

The individual or company that is registered with the state of Hawaii to receive all correspondence on behalf of the Hawaii Corporation is called a "Registered Agent".  You may act as your own Registered Agent, however, many Hawaii Professional Corporations hire a Registered Agent because they don't have a physical address within the state of Hawaii or to provide a distinct level of privacy.

All Hawaii Professional Corporations are required to have a Board of Directors.  Directors are the people who will set policies for your Hawaii Professional Corporation and manage the business and its resources.  In the majority of small corporations directors are the owners. The Articles of Incorporation or Corporate Bylaws may define specific qualifications for Directors. 

The Board of Directors is responsible for creating rules, approving budgets and distributing profits to shareholders. One of the most important duties of the Board of Directors is electing Officers for your Hawaii Professional Corporation.  The same person may be a Director and an Officer at the same time.  Directors need not be residents of the state of Hawaii or shareholders of the Hawaii Professional Corporation unless the Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws require it.

Normally Directors for your Hawaii Professional Corporation are elected for a term of one year.  Elections are held at the annual meeting of Shareholders.  The Directors serve until the next annual Shareholders meeting.

The Board of Directors elects Officers for your Hawaii Professional Corporation in accordance with the Corporate Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation.  Officers serve at the pleasure of the Board of Directors of the Hawaii Professional Corporation.  Officers handle the day to day operation of the Hawaii Professional Corporation.

Unless specifically prohibited by the Corporate Bylaws or Articles of Incorporation, in a Hawaii Professional Corporation the same person may hold more than one Corporate Office at the same time.  However, there are certain legal affairs in which the same person cannot act in more than one capacity.

One Officer - usually the Secretary - is given responsibility for preparing Minutes of Directors and Shareholders meetings and for authenticating records for the Hawaii Professional Corporation.

The Hawaii Corporate Income Tax Rate is %.  You may form an S Corporation in Hawaii.  S Corporations may "pass through" all corporate profits to the shareholders (owners) who then pay tax at their applicable personal rate.  S Corporations do not pay any Hawaii Corporate Income Tax.

In order to form a Corporation in Hawaii you must file Articles of Incorporation with the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.  The Articles of Incorporation must include certain specific information about your Hawaii business. If the Articles do not conform exactly to state of Hawaii requirements they will be rejected.  You may subsequently amend the Articles of Incorporation for your Hawaii Professional Corporation but you will have to pay a fee to the state of Hawaii in order to make the changes official.

A Federal Employer Identification Number, also known as a Federal Tax Identification Number, is used by the IRS to identify a business entity.  An FEIN is like a Social Security Number for your Hawaii Professional Corporation.  All Hawaii Professional Corporations are required to have an FEIN.

Corporate stock is evidence of ownership of a Hawaii Professional Corporation.  When you form your Hawaii Professional Corporation, you will need to determine what type of stock and the number of shares of each type that you want to authorize.  You do not have to sell the number of shares that are authorized.  Many small Hawaii Professional Corporations hold 100% of the shares.

Stockholders in a Hawaii Professional Corporation are entitled to voting rights or dividends of the Corporate profits or both.  Whoever owns over 50% of the stock of the Hawaii Professional Corporation is able to make all Corporate business decisions.  Hawaii Professional Corporations usually hold at least 51% of the corporate stock in order to retain control of the Hawaii Professional Corporation.

The Board of Directors holds an initial meeting to elect Officers, authorize issuance of stock and adopt the Corporate Bylaws.  Bylaws are the internal rules of your Hawaii Professional Corporation.  They are adopted by the Board of Directors and vary widely from Corporation to Corporation.  Commonly bylaws include the number of seats on the board of directors; how Directors are elected; how meetings of Directors and Shareholders are to be conducted; what Officers the Hawaii Professional Corporation will have and a description of each of their duties. 

As your company grows over time, you may amend your bylaws as necessary.  Bylaws generally cannot be amended by the Board of Directors unilaterally.  A vote by the majority of Stockholders of the Hawaii Professional Corporation is usually required to amend the Corporate Bylaws.  Bylaws may include any rules for managing the business and conducting corporate affairs.  Almost anything may be written into the Bylaws, however, the Bylaws must not be in violation of any federal or Hawaii law or the Hawaii Professional Corporation's Articles of Incorporation.  A copy of the Corporate Bylaws should be maintained at the Corporation's principal Hawaii office.

It's very important that you have a separate business bank account for your Hawaii Professional Corporation.  Mixing personal and business funds can get you in a lot of trouble with the tax man down the line.  It's a good idea to contact the bank before you open a business bank account.  Specific requirements vary from bank to bank.

Note that forming a Hawaii Professional Corporation doesn't take the place of obtaining a business license, tax registration certificate, or other required business permits.  A Hawaii Professional Corporation merely creates an ownership structure that limits the owners' personal liability.  You may still need to take care of getting set up to do business with your local government.

Depending on the nature of the business and the location of your Hawaii Professional Corporation you may need to get one or more city business licenses or permits.  The business licenses or permits that are required for your Hawaii Professional Corporation vary depending on your business activities and the specific locations within the state of Hawaii in which you want to conduct business.

If your Hawaii Professional Corporation will be selling products in Hawaii you may be required to obtain a Reseller's Permit from the appropriate Hawaii state agency.  If your Hawaii Professional Corporation will be selling products in Hawaii you will also be responsible for all applicable local and state of Hawaii sales taxes if there are any.

Every Hawaii Professional Corporation must hold corporate and shareholder meetings, at least annually, and must keep minutes of each meeting on file.  A copy of the minutes is evidence that the meetings took place and includes all resolutions that were adopted.  The minutes of each meetings must be open for inspection by any Shareholder or Director.  This meeting requirement is often overlooked and comes into play when the Hawaii Professional Corporation is challenged for any reason.  Keeping proper meeting minutes and documenting resolutions made and approved by the Directors is a formality that could save your Hawaii Professional Corporation a lot of potential trouble.

The Hawaii Secretary of State does not have any Initial Corporation Annual Report requirements for new Hawaii Corporations.

Every Hawaii Corporation must file an Annual Report EACH year with the Hawaii Secretary of State.

The Hawaii Corporation Annual Report is due at the Hawaii Secretary of State EACH year by the end of the quarter (March, June, September, December) in which the HI Corporation was initially approved by the Hawaii Secretary of State.

If a Hawaii Corporation does not file its Corporation Annual Report with the HI Secretary of State by the due date then that Hawaii Corporation will be subject to late fees which increase each month that the Hawaii Corporation is late in filing its Annual Report with the Hawaii Secretary of State.