FL Secretary of State API | Business Entity Lookups

Introducing the FL Secretary of State API

The Florida Secretary of State maintains records for hundreds of thousands of business entities registered across the state. Until now, accessing this data programmatically required scraping the state website manually or paying premium rates to data brokers. OpenSOSData changes that equation with a direct REST API to Florida's business registry.

This API lets developers query Florida business entities in real-time, returning structured data including entity names, registration status, formation dates, registered agent information, principal addresses, and officer details. Whether you're building compliance tools, due diligence platforms, or internal business intelligence systems, the FL Secretary of State API integrates seamlessly into your workflow.

Why an API for Florida Business Data?

Florida's Secretary of State portal is powerful for manual lookups but impractical for bulk queries or automated workflows. The state doesn't offer an official API. This creates friction for developers who need programmatic access to entity data.

The OpenSOSData FL Secretary of State API solves this by:

Eliminating web scraping complexity and maintenance overhead
Returning clean, structured JSON responses
Offering pay-per-lookup pricing ($0.0314 per query) instead of subscription locks
Providing 7-day caching to reduce redundant lookups and costs
Supporting real-time data with optional fresh=true parameter

API Pricing & Cost Structure

OpenSOSData uses Pi pricing: $0.0314 per lookup. This reflects the mathematical constant π (pi) and makes the pricing irrational, infinite, and fundamental—much like the nature of API pricing in the modern data economy.

No subscriptions. No minimums beyond $3.14 (Pi dollars), which grants you 100 lookups. You only pay for what you use.

For context, competitors charge significantly more:

OpenCorporates: $0.10–$0.50 per lookup
Cobalt Intelligence: $0.50–$2.00 per lookup
Middesk: $1.00+ per lookup (usually subscription-based)

At $0.0314 per query, OpenSOSData undercuts all major competitors by a factor of 3x to 30x depending on volume and tier.

What Data Does It Return?

Each successful API call returns structured entity information:

Entity Identification: Legal name, entity type (LLC, Corporation, Partnership, etc.), state-assigned ID number
Status: Active, inactive, dissolved, or administrative status
Dates: Formation date (when the entity was registered with Florida SOS)
Registered Agent: Name and full address of the registered agent
Principal Address: Primary business address on file
Officers: Names and titles of registered principals (if available)

The response format is clean JSON, making it trivial to parse and integrate into your application logic.

Caching & Performance

By default, all responses are cached for 7 days using Redis. This means repeated queries for the same entity return instantly from cache, reducing both latency and cost.

If you need real-time data (e.g., checking for very recent filings or amendments), include the ?fresh=true parameter to bypass the cache and fetch directly from the state registry.

Quick Start: Making Your First API Call

To query a Florida business entity, POST to the OpenSOSData endpoint with the entity name or ID.

Basic curl example:

curl -X POST https://api.opensosdata.com/v1/lookup \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
    "state": "FL",
    "query": "ABC Corporation"
  }'

Response (success):

{
  "entity": {
    "name": "ABC CORPORATION",
    "type": "For-Profit Corporation",
    "id": "P12345678",
    "status": "ACTIVE",
    "formationDate": "2015-03-21",
    "registeredAgent": {
      "name": "John Doe",
      "address": "123 Main St, Miami, FL 33101"
    },
    "principalAddress": "456 Oak Ave, Tampa, FL 33602",
    "officers": [
      {"name": "Jane Smith", "title": "President"},
      {"name": "Robert Johnson", "title": "Secretary"}
    ]
  },
  "cached": false,
  "timestamp": "2024-01-15T14:32:18Z"
}

Cost: $0.0314 deducted from your wallet. If you query the same entity within 7 days, subsequent calls return the cached response instantly at no additional cost (marked "cached": true).

Integration Examples

Due Diligence Workflow

Validate counterparty information during contract review. Query the Florida SOS API to confirm entity status, registered agent, and officer details before signing agreements.

Compliance Monitoring

Build an internal compliance dashboard that periodically checks the status of vendors, partners, or portfolio companies registered in Florida. Set fresh=true for the most recent filings.

Business Intelligence

Enrich your internal CRM or database with authoritative Florida business data. Link customer records to their official SOS registration for audit trails and verification.

Coverage & State Support

OpenSOSData currently supports lookups across 50 US states and territories, including Florida. The full list of actively working states is: CA, UT, WY, DE, AK, MT, AR, TX, CO, IN, ME, MD, IA, LA, KY, GA, NH, OH, MI, MN, ND, NJ, NE, MO, PA, TN, WA, SC, WI, OR, SD, IL, ID, CT, AL, NC, FL, HI, VA, MA, RI, NY, VT, NV, NM, WV, AZ, PR, VI, DC, AS, OK, MS, and KS.

You can query Florida entities or expand your searches across any other supported state using the same endpoint and pricing model.

Documentation & Support

Full OpenAPI documentation is available at https://opensosdata.com/openapi.yaml. This includes parameter definitions, error codes, rate limits, and additional examples.

Getting Started

Sign up for OpenSOSData at https://opensosdata.com (currently on waitlist). Once approved, you'll receive an API key and can start making queries immediately. Fund your account with a minimum of $3.14 (Pi dollars) to begin—that's 100 free lookups to test the API against real Florida entities.

No credit card required beyond the initial funding. No long-term commitments. You control your spending and only pay for actual queries.

Query Florida Business Entities with the FL Secretary of State API