A simple method is presented for determining transient responses of locally nonlinear structures using substructure eigenproperties and Lagrange multiplier technique. Although the method is based upon the mode synthesis formulation procedure, the equations of the combined whole structure are not constructed compared with the conventional methods. Lagrange multi-pliers are used to enforce the conditions of geometric compatibility between the substructure interfaces and they are treated as external forces on each substructure itself. Substructure eigenvalue problem is defined with the substructure interface free of fixed. The transient analysis is based upon the recurrence discrete-time state equations and offers the simplicity of the Euler integration method without requiring small time increment and iterative solution procedure. Numerical examples reveal that the method is very accurated and efficient in calculating transient responses compared with the direct numerical integration method.