Note: This version of section effective until 1-1-2018. See also following repeal of this chapter, effective 1-1-2018.

1. (b) This article must require or permit filing the document in the office of the secretary of state.
2. (c) The document must contain the information required by this article. It may contain other information as well.
3. (d) The document must be legible, typewritten or printed or, if electronically transmitted, in a format that can be retrieved in a reproduced or typewritten form, and otherwise suitable for processing.
4. (e) The document must be in the English language. A corporate name need not be in English if written in English letters or Arabic or Roman numerals, and the certificate of existence required of foreign corporations need not be in English if accompanied by a reasonably authenticated English translation.

5. (f) The document must be signed:

   1. (1) by the chairman of the board of directors of the domestic or foreign corporation or by any of its officers;
   2. (2) if directors have not been selected or the corporation has not been formed, by an incorporator;
   3. (3) if the corporation is in the hands of a receiver, trustee, or other court appointed fiduciary, by that fiduciary; or

   4. (4) for purpose of annual or biennial reports, by:

      1. (A) a registered agent;
      2. (B) a certified public accountant; or

      3. (C) an attorney;

         employed or retained by the business entity.

6. (g) Except as provided in subsection (m), the person signing the document shall sign it and state beneath or opposite the signature the person's name and the capacity in which the document is signed. A signature on a document authorized to be filed under this article may be:

   1. (1) a facsimile; or
   2. (2) made by an attorney in fact.

7. (h) A power of attorney relating to the signing of a document authorized to be filed under this article by an attorney in fact may but is not required to be:

   1. (1) sworn to, verified, or acknowledged;
   2. (2) signed in the presence of a notary public;
   3. (3) filed with the secretary of state; or

   4. (4) included in another written agreement.

      However, the power of attorney must be retained in the records of the corporation.

8. (i) A document authorized to be filed under this article may but is not required to contain:

   1. (1) the corporate seal;
   2. (2) an attestation by the secretary or an assistant secretary; and
   3. (3) an acknowledgment, verification, or proof.
9. (j) If the secretary of state has prescribed a mandatory form for the document under section 2 of this chapter, the document must be in or on the prescribed form.
10. (k) The document must be delivered to the office of the secretary of state for filing as described in section 1.1 of this chapter and the correct filing fee must be paid in the manner and form required by the secretary of state.
11. (l) The secretary of state may accept payment of the correct filing fee by credit card, debit card, charge card, or similar method. However, if the filing fee is paid by credit card, debit card, charge card, or similar method, the liability is not finally discharged until the secretary of state receives payment or credit from the institution responsible for making the payment or credit. The secretary of state may contract with a bank or credit card vendor for acceptance of bank or credit cards. However, if there is a vendor transaction charge or discount fee, whether billed to the secretary of state or charged directly to the secretary of state's account, the secretary of state or the credit card vendor may collect from the person using the bank or credit card a fee that may not exceed the highest transaction charge or discount fee charged to the secretary of state by the bank or credit card vendor during the most recent collection period. This fee may be collected regardless of any agreement between the bank and a credit card vendor or regardless of any internal policy of the credit card vendor that may prohibit this type of fee. The fee is a permitted additional charge under IC 24-4.5-3-202 .

12. (m) A signature on a document that is transmitted and filed electronically is sufficient if the person transmitting and filing the document:

    1. (1) has the intent to file the document as evidenced by a symbol executed or adopted by a party with present intention to authenticate the filing; and
    2. (2) enters the filing party's name on the electronic form in a signature box or other place indicated by the secretary of state.

Sec. 1. (a) A document must satisfy the requirements of this section, and of any other section that adds to or varies these requirements, to be entitled to filing by the secretary of state.

As added by P.L.149-1986, SEC.2. Amended by P.L.228-1995, SEC.1; P.L.11-1996, SEC.8; P.L.277-2001, SEC.1; P.L.178-2005, SEC.1; P.L.130-2006, SEC.2; P.L.133-2009, SEC.2; P.L.40-2013, SEC.1; P.L.170-2016, SEC.1.