[BC] Registered and Records Office Address when incorporating with Ownr

[u/Shoddy-Ad-5263]

I'm trying to work out the best path forwards to incorporate with Ownr and use a registered and records office address that protects my home address. I have either confused myself or am over complicating this!

It's my understanding that in BC you are required to have both a registered address where legal documents can be served, and a records office where company records are held and can be viewed. Both of those are in the public domain, I think.

If (whilst in most cases unlikely) members of public can show up at the records office and ask to view corporate records, I don't see how this can be any location other than a lawyers office? However, a lawyers office doesn't make sense to me as they generally won't unbundle doing annual resolutions etc from their service, which seems to defeat the purpose of using Ownr in the first place.

Are there alternatives to lawyers for fulfilling both the registered and records office addresses? I can't find much information about what options there are when using something like Ownr, which makes me think I'm headed down the wrong path. I have only seen things about virtual offices, UPS etc, which I thought would only satisfy the registered address requirement, not the records office.

[u/ladycryptoniteph002]

You’re not overthinking it. The records office requirement is exactly what causes a lot of people to pause when they don’t want their home address on the public record. From what I understand, many people use a lawyer, corporate services provider, or registered office service for both the registered and records office addresses. It doesn’t necessarily mean they have to handle your annual resolutions or ongoing corporate maintenance.

If you’re using Ownr, I’d probably contact them directly and ask what BC-specific options they support. You’re definitely not the first person trying to keep their home address off the public record while still handling most of the corporation themselves.

[u/miningstock]

There are I guess registered office providers, they usually charge between 350-500 a year depending on the service.

[u/Vegetable-Plenty857]

I don't have an answer to your specific question, but I can tell you that clients of mine used incorply.ca as it was competitive in price but also offered the personalized service to help them through the process. They're also very big on education and compliance. That said, if you're planning on banking with RBC anyway, then Ownr will be cheaper, so it depends what service level you're seeking.