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C.F.S.

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C.F.S. Reports & Reviews (10)

This is a bad actor posing as a humanly possible to a government agency. C.F.S. is an agent with a malicious intent to create an illusion that the state is requiring both a fee and a yearly renewal of their business license. This is not true and nor is there a fee to do so. Whilst the document does state, in fine print, that C.F.S. is not a government agent and a filing can be made for free with the state it is clear that with those statements that the need for this business should not exist, therefore they are fully aware that they are tricking people out of their money. A second document from C.F.S. titled 'Health and Safety certificate' is also circulating, same intent, same cheap trick.

+1

Week of 11/17/22 I received an LLC renewal for my business in MN. It is a scam po box and company, called C.F.S. PO Box 4265 St. Paul, MN 55101 phone # 651-666-1128. They claim numbers would be routed to their Michigan office. We in MN renew our LLCs for free online, they are charging $120 to 'do it for you', add $50 if changes to the registered agent. What?! Total scam and am filing claim with MN Atty General office as well. They are obviously scrubbing the Secty of State's LLC site for names, addresses, agents, etc.

+4

This nasty little company accesses public records and sends LLC officers a form that implies your LLC will be dissolved if you don't give C.F.S. $95 dollars to file your renewal. In MN LLCs can go online and file for free - it literally takes less time than it would to fill out this fake form from C.F.S. Oh, and by the way, our LLCs aren't even due for renewal for another year. Why don't these people just get a real job and leave hardworking business people alone?
Scare Tactics To Make Businesses Pay $95 for Filing You Can Do For Free

Hope this helps,

I hate to see the honest/ignorant taken advantage of! I get one every year and THROW IT INTO RECYCLING…but this year I got 2 (different scammers, other one is in recycle) so I’m filing a complaint. The SCAM is simple. They send you an official looking letter for your “ANNUAL (business) RENEWAL INSTRUCTION FORM” in an effort to get you to send them $95 (unless a change of address, it then goes to $150). If you read the actual words they tell you in plain English that they are a scam but it is buried under an official document that they are counting on you NOT to read and just send a check.

Business renewal is free. Answer email from SOS and click click you’re done.

- Marietta, GA, USA

Received an official-looking annual registration form requesting a $150 check for my LLC to be sent to a P.O. box - NOT the Georgia Secretary of State office, and 3X the price!

See https://georgia.gov/blog/2017-02-14/its-time-complete-your-annual-business-regis...

Received a letter titled 2021 - Annual Registration Instruction Form (Georgia LLCs) stating my husbands business name and saying to pay $150 for an annual registration fee.

Knowing this fee is $50 annually I read the fine print that basically means they will pay for you for a total of $150. It is clearly stated All CFS Processing Fees are 100% Fully Guaranteed and they ask for your Signature and enclosed check.

So this is a scam. I know because a couple of years ago I got the same letter and contacted the Georgia state attorneys office who said it was a scam. Got it again this year. Why can’t something be done on this? People are getting scammed for $150 plus giving a check with account numbers. This is simply wrong. Thank you!

- Augusta, ME, USA

sent form mimicing state gov form for filing business annual report. Uses bogus charter number, which is how I knew it was scam. Say annual report due ... send $185. Tells you to sign, but in fine print says "I understand that CFS is not a government agency and is not providing legal advice."

I almost fell for it.

- Dawson, MN, USA

Received a form titled 2021-ANNUAL RENEWAL INSTRUCTION FORM for businesses filed as an LLC. They are requesting that you fill out this form, sign it and return it with a check to allow them to process your annual filing. With additional fees requested for services like change of address or registered agent.

This process is taken care of annually by our accountant and we have NEVER used the services of this organization. It would be very easy for an unsuspecting business to pay this fee when it is already being taken care of for them. This is EXTREMELY DECEPTIVE and should not be allowed. Please let me know if I should be reporting this to any other organizations.

- Charlotte, NC, USA

This company sends a "Solicitation for Services" notice for 2021 Annual Report for the Secretary of State for NC (SOSNC). It is in English on one side and Spanish on the other. At the top is the SOSNC LLC ID number and the date that the LLC was listed with SOSNC on the top. The letter looks official with a QR code (I did not scan it to see if it worked for fear I'd lose money). This letter was printed a week prior to my receipt of it with a response date approximately 4 weeks from the date of notice. Next, there is a statement reminding the recipient that an annual report is due by state law and at risk for penalties if not filed. Then it cites NC General Statutes 57D-2-24 as well as G.S. 57D-2-02 in the next paragraph. The key piece is the 3rd paragraph that states specifically, "C.F.S. IS NOT A GOVERNMENT AGENCY AND IS NOT AFFILIATED WITH THE North Carolina Secretary of State OR ANY OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCY". Then the letter states that it won't share any information about your business to any third-part "unless required by law". The the letter states that "all orders are fulfilled" at our corporate office at 7718 Northport Drive, Lansing, Michigan with the entreaty in bold, "Please respond today!". No zip code is provided for the Lansing Michigan address. I checked out the address on Google. The address is real, a building in an industrial/commercial park.

Next are the 5 steps for you to complete/confirm. This includes confirming the LLC name replete with a space to describe the nature of the business the LLC conducts followed by a request that the recipient to supply the FEIN (Step 1: Please do not give away your FEIN!). The registered agent is listed in Step 2. Names of the manager(s) and address(es) are already provided with a check box to indicate if the managers represent a commercial entity (Step 3). The fee requested is $295 (Step 4). No website is given and inquiries can be sent to an email address or by the 855 toll number. The letter instructs you at the bottom to make the check to CFS. You are not given the option to pay by credit card. The address at the bottom of the form and the enclosed envelop: PO Box 30668, Charlotte NC 28230. At the very bottom, the letter states "FAILURE TO RETURN THIS FORM OR REMIT PAYMENT WILL HAVE NO EFFECT ON YOUR ABILITY TO CONTINUE CONDUCTING BUSINESS WITHIN THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA". Then the letter concludes that you can file directly with SOSNC for $202 (which is true).

Please note that there is an insert that reminds you what you have to do. A check or money order is requested and a different toll number starting with 877 is given.

I did not take the bait but I can see that it is easy to be fooled into writing a check out of panic. The other red flag is that our LLC has been around for 7 years. I had never seen a form like this.

+4
- Cromwell, CT, USA

C.F.S. requests an Annual Report filing - at a cost of $120 - from small businesses registered as LLCs in the State of CT. This scam has been reported in prior years but apparently has been reborn. According to a prior report published by CBIA - https://www.cbia.com/news/small-business/report-filing-scam-targets-businesses - this is a fraud. Attached is the letter sent in 2019; mine was updated but essentially identical for 2020.

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