R1
Entity filing
The state-law filing process that creates a domestic entity or registers an out-of-state entity and maintains the public filing record.
Who decides: The state filing authority.
Public routing model v2
Choose the business identity role before you choose a provider.
Find who decides, which source controls, what evidence is missing, and the smallest truthful next step.
R2
Registered agent
The person or organization designated to receive service of process and other communications assigned by applicable state law.
Who decides: The state, court, or sending authority.
R3
Registered-agent address
The in-jurisdiction address designated for the registered-agent or registered-office function under that state's requirements.
Who decides: The state, court, or sending authority.
R4
Mail receiving and CMRA
A commercial mail receiving service receives postal mail under the USPS CMRA framework; PS Form 1583 supplies customer application and authorization information.
Who decides: USPS, the CMRA, and each downstream recipient for its own use.
R5
Employer Identification Number
A nine-digit number assigned by the IRS for tax filing and reporting and other permitted business purposes.
Who decides: The Internal Revenue Service.
R6
Individual Taxpayer Identification Number
An IRS tax-processing number for an individual who needs a U.S. taxpayer identification number for an authorized tax purpose and is not eligible for an SSN.
Who decides: The Internal Revenue Service.
R7
Actual operating presence
The factual locations and activities through which a business is directed, staffed, equipped, managed, or commercially operated.
Who decides: The authority, bank, platform, or counterparty asking the question.
R8
Bank and KYC recipient decision
A named institution's case-specific decision about an applicant, product, evidence set, geography, and risk requirements at that time.
Who decides: The named bank, fintech or program provider.
R9
Platform verification
A case-specific platform review connecting an account to the entity, people, contact channels, or operational facts required in that workflow.
Who decides: The named platform.
R10
Website, domain, email, and telephone
The controlled online and communications assets through which a business presents itself and receives communications.
Who decides: The business and any recipient reviewing channel control.
R11
Document, notary, apostille, and authentication
The route through any required notarization, certification, apostille, authentication, legalization, delivery, and final-recipient review.
Who decides: Each stage owner and the final recipient.
Build a complete answer
For any role, record the goal, primary and supporting roles, jurisdiction, recipient, exact requirement, primary authority, available evidence, gap, decision owner, next action, any genuine handoff, confidence, and current outcome.
The core rule
Choose the role and the decision owner before choosing a provider. Completion or acceptance in one role does not prove completion or acceptance in another.
The model does not teach people to claim U.S. residence or operations they do not have. It separates the U.S. entity, foreign person, actual activity, mailing address, registered agent, tax identity, recipient review, communications assets, and document route.