Glossary

Certificate of good standing

Also called: certificates of good standing, certificate of existence, certificate of status, certificate of compliance, subsistence certificate

The state-issued document proving an entity exists and is current on its filings. The same document is a certificate of existence, certificate of status, certificate of fact - status (Texas), certificate of compliance (Alaska), or subsistence certificate (Pennsylvania) depending on the jurisdiction. Some states sell a short form (existence and status only) and a long form (adding filing history) at different prices.

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Cite the page for the compilation and its verification record; for the underlying fact, cite the official source shown on its row. Formats:

incFACTS, "Certificate of good standing - plain-English definition," FACTS repository v0.10.08 (data as of 2026-09-21), https://www.incfacts.com/glossary/certificate-of-good-standing/ (accessed 2026-09-21).

incFACTS, Certificate of good standing - plain-English definition, https://www.incfacts.com/glossary/certificate-of-good-standing/ (last visited 2026-09-21).

@misc{incfacts_glossary_certificate_of_good_standing_2026,
  author = {incFACTS (FACTS repository)},
  title = {Certificate of good standing - plain-English definition},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://www.incfacts.com/glossary/certificate-of-good-standing/},
  note = {v0.10.08, data as of 2026-09-21, accessed 2026-09-21}
}

How to cite incFACTS · The accessed date is today's; the version and data-as-of date identify what you relied on.