Golan & Christie acts as Registered Agent with the Illinois Secretary of State for many of our corporate clients, receiving and preparing their entity’s annual reports each year. We recently received correspondence from a firm called Corporate Records Service targeting Illinois corporations in a scam to collect a fee for preparation of “Annual Minutes Record Form.”

Corporate Records Service sends a form resembling the Illinois Annual Reports and attempts to collect a $125 fee for preparation of an Annual Minutes Record. For those with a corporation, it is important to know the Illinois Business Corporation Act does not require corporations to file Annual Minutes or a “Minute Record Form.” The Annual Report fee is normally the only fee a corporation is responsible for in Illinois.

In an October 2012 news release, Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White warned of the scam attempting to swindle businesses. “The problem is that the form this bogus firm is sending out looks similar to our Secretary of State’s annual report form,” White said.

We ask that our clients maintaining corporations be alert for the false notices, mailed in a green envelope. Should you receive correspondence from Corporate Records Service, we recommend disregarding any request seeking fees.

The Illinois Secretary of State is urging those who have fallen victim to the scam to contact the Secretary of State’s Business Service Office at (312) 793-3380 or (217) 782-6961. The information provided will be important in attempting to recover funds and prosecute offenders.