How to Claim a Business Name After You Check It
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A clear search result is the start of the process, not the end of it. The name is not yours, nothing is held, and in most states somebody else can file it tomorrow morning. This page covers what happens between the search and an approved filing, with the real figures for each state.
What an available result actually means
Does a clear search reserve the name?
No. A search reports what is on the register at the moment you look. It creates no rights, holds nothing and stops nobody. The name is claimed when the state accepts a filing, and not before.
How long does an available name stay available?
Until somebody files it. There is no queue and no priority for having searched first. In the busiest states that matters more than it sounds: California took 614,530 new business applications in the last twelve months, about 2,458 every business day.
Does the state check federal trademarks?
No. The two systems are run by different offices and do not consult each other. A state clerk checks the name against that state register and nothing else. We hold 3,374,058 live federal trademark registrations and every search here checks the name against them, which is a signal rather than a clearance. How often it actually matters is a measured number.
Step 1. Decide what you are forming
What is the difference between an LLC and a corporation?
An LLC is the lighter structure: fewer formalities, no board, and profits taxed once on the owners’ returns by default. A corporation carries more process and exists mainly because outside investors expect shares. Most people filing a first business file an LLC.
Does the entity type change the name I can use?
Yes, and this is where a clear search still fails at the counter. Every state requires a designator matching the entity type: an LLC ending in something like “LLC” or “Limited Liability Company”, a corporation in “Inc.” or “Corporation”. Search the name with the designator you intend to file, because the words around the name are part of the name.
Step 2. Reserve the name, or file straight away
How long can a name be reserved?
Most states hold a name for a fixed window while you prepare the filing. The window is listed below for the states where two of three independent sources agree; where they did not, the row is left out rather than guessed at.
| Jurisdiction | Reservation window |
|---|---|
| Kentucky | 120 days |
When is reserving worth the fee?
Rarely, if you are ready to file. A reservation costs money and buys time you may not need, while filing the formation documents claims the name outright. It earns its fee when something real stands between you and filing: a partner still deciding, a license that has to come first, or a bank that wants the name settled before an appointment.
Step 3. Appoint a registered agent
What does a registered agent actually do?
The agent is the address the state and the courts use to reach the business. It has to be a physical address in the state of formation, staffed during business hours, and it goes on the public record. Every state requires one.
Can I be my own registered agent?
In every state, yes. The trade is privacy and availability: your own address becomes the public one, and somebody has to be there in working hours to accept service. People who work from home, travel, or form in a state they do not live in usually appoint somebody else.
A registered agent is the step most people outsource. The agent address goes on the public record and has to be staffed in working hours. Northwest Registered Agent provides that in all 50 states and DC. That is an affiliate link and we may be paid if you use it. It changes nothing about what this page says, and you can act as your own agent for free in every state.
Step 4. File the formation documents
What does it cost to file?
The state fee is the only unavoidable cost. Everything else (agents, templates, filing services) is optional. The fees below are published by each filing office.
| Jurisdiction | LLC filing fee | Expedited | Typical processing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $200 | $100 | 3-5 business days |
| Alaska | $250 | $100 | 10-15 business days |
| Arizona | $50 | not published | 14-16 business days |
| Arkansas | $45 | $25 | 3-5 business days |
| California | $70 | $350 | 5-7 business days |
| Colorado | $50 | not published | Immediate for online filings |
| Connecticut | $120 | not published | 5-7 business days |
| Delaware | $110 | not published | 3-5 weeks |
| District of Columbia | $99 | $220 | 4-5 business days |
| Florida | $125 | $50 | Processed in the order received |
| Georgia | $110 | not published | 7 to 10 business days online, 15 business days paper |
| Hawaii | $50 | not published | Not specified |
| Idaho | $100 | not published | 5-7 business days |
| Illinois | $150 | not published | 5-10 business days |
| Indiana | $100 | $50 | 7-10 business days |
| Iowa | $50 | $25 | 5-10 business days |
| Kansas | $90 | $40 | within minutes for online filing |
| Kentucky | $40 | $10 | 4-6 business days |
| Louisiana | $125 | not published | routine processing (no specific timeframe given) |
| Maine | $175 | $50 | 35-40 business days |
| Maryland | $100 | not published | 4-6 weeks (paper), 6-8 weeks (online non-expedited), 3-4 weeks current |
| Massachusetts | $500 | not published | 5-10 business days |
| Michigan | $50 | $50 | 7-10 business days |
| Minnesota | $155 | not published | 5-7 business days |
| Mississippi | $50 | $50 | 3-5 business days |
| Missouri | $50 | not published | 5-10 business days |
| Montana | $35 | not published | 2 weeks |
| Nebraska | $100 | $50 | approximately a week for document review |
| Nevada | $75 | $125 | 2-3 weeks |
| New Hampshire | $100 | $25 | within 30 days |
| New Jersey | $100 | not published | 3-5 business days |
| New Mexico | $50 | $100 | 1-3 business days |
| New York | $200 | not published | 2-3 weeks |
| North Carolina | $125 | $100 | 5-10 business days |
| North Dakota | $135 | $20 | 5-7 business days |
| Ohio | $99 | $100 | 5-7 business days |
| Oklahoma | $100 | $25 | about 15 minutes |
| Oregon | $100 | $50 | 5-10 business days |
| Pennsylvania | $125 | $100 | 7-10 business days |
| Rhode Island | $150 | $50 | 5-7 business days |
| South Carolina | $110 | $50 | 5-7 business days |
| South Dakota | $150 | not published | normal course of business |
| Tennessee | $300 | $100 | 5-10 business days |
| Texas | $300 | $25 | 10-12 business days (online SOS Direct), 13-15 business days (online SOS Upload), 4-8 weeks plus mail time (paper) |
| Utah | $59 | $75 | 5-7 business days |
| Vermont | $155 | $25 | 7-10 business days for mail filings, less than 1 business day for online filings |
| Virginia | $100 | $200 | 24 hours online |
| Washington | $180 | not published | 5-10 business days |
| West Virginia | $100 | not published | 5-7 business days |
| Wisconsin | $170 | not published | 5-10 business days |
| Wyoming | $100 | $100 | Up to 15 business days |
How long does the state take to approve it?
Processing times move with the state’s queue, and this is the figure most worth confirming with the office before relying on a date. Where a state publishes an expedited option the fee is in the table above; where it says not published, the office does not list one, rather than us having failed to find it.
What happens if the state rejects the name?
A rejection is usually a comparison call: the clerk judged the name too close to one already registered, even though nothing matched exactly. States apply their own similarity rules and they are stricter than any search box. Rejection normally means refiling under a changed name, and the fee is not always refunded.
Step 5. Finish the setup
Do I need an EIN?
If the business has employees, more than one member, or a bank that asks for one, yes. A single-member LLC with no employees can operate on the owner’s Social Security number, though most banks ask anyway. It is free and issued immediately by the IRS. Nobody needs to be paid to obtain one.
What does an operating agreement do?
It records who owns what, who decides what, and what happens when somebody leaves. A handful of states require one; everywhere else it matters when there is a disagreement, which is exactly when nobody wants to be relying on memory. Single-member LLCs benefit too, because it is part of showing the company is separate from its owner.
When do I need a business bank account?
Before the first dollar moves. Mixing business and personal money is the most common way owners undermine the liability separation they filed for. Most banks want the approved formation document and the EIN.
Step 6. Keep the name
How often does the state expect a report?
Registration is not permanent. Most states require a periodic report to stay in good standing, and the cadence varies more than people expect. Listed where two of three sources agree.
| Jurisdiction | Ongoing report |
|---|---|
| Alaska | Every two years |
| Colorado | Every year |
| Connecticut | Every year |
| District of Columbia | Every two years |
| Florida | Every year |
| Georgia | Every year |
| Hawaii | Every year |
| Kansas | Every two years |
| Kentucky | Every year |
| Louisiana | Every year |
| Maine | Every year |
| Maryland | Every year |
| Massachusetts | Every year |
| Michigan | Every year |
| Minnesota | Every year |
| Mississippi | Every year |
| Missouri | No routine report |
| Montana | Every year |
| Nebraska | Every two years |
| Nevada | Every year |
| New Hampshire | Every year |
| New Jersey | Every year |
| New Mexico | No routine report |
| New York | Every two years |
| North Carolina | Every year |
| North Dakota | Every year |
| Oklahoma | Every year |
| Oregon | Every year |
| Pennsylvania | Every year |
| Rhode Island | Every year |
| South Carolina | No routine report |
| South Dakota | Every year |
| Tennessee | Every year |
| Texas | No routine report |
| Utah | Every year |
| Vermont | Every year |
| Virginia | Every year |
| Washington | Every year |
| West Virginia | Every year |
| Wisconsin | Every year |
| Wyoming | Every year |
What happens if a report is missed?
The state moves the entity out of good standing and eventually dissolves it administratively. A dissolved company loses the liability protection it was formed for, and in most states the name returns to the market. Reinstatement is usually possible and usually costs more than the report would have.
Common questions
Can I file in a different state from where I live?
Yes, and people do, usually for Delaware or Wyoming. The catch is that operating in your home state generally means registering there too as a foreign entity, so you end up with two filings, two agents and two sets of fees. For most small businesses the home state is the simpler answer.
Can two businesses have the same name?
Across state lines, routinely. Registers are state-level and the same name can sit on several at once, and we measured how often against the registers we hold.
Does registering with the state protect the name?
Only against another filing in that state. It creates no trademark rights and does not stop a business elsewhere using it. What state registration does and does not do covers the difference.
Should I check the domain before filing?
Check it first, while the name is still changeable. Finding the matching domain gone after the filing is approved is a bad order to do things in, and changing a registered name costs a fee and a form in every state.
Ready to check a name? The search on our home page covers all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and every result links to the office that holds the record. Or browse the state directory.
Sources reviewed
The sources below were retrieved and confirmed in August 2026. Filing requirements and fees change with legislative sessions and agency rulemaking; check the state’s own page before acting on anything here. This page is general information, not legal or tax advice.
- Filing fees and processing times published by each Secretary of State or equivalent business filing office.
- Official business entity search portals for all 51 jurisdictions, each retrieved and confirmed to resolve. The full list appears in the table above.
- Reservation windows and report cadence are corroborated across three independent published sources per state, not taken from the state directly; rows where two of three did not agree are omitted rather than estimated. Confirm either against the office before you rely on it, which every state page links.
- United States Patent and Trademark Office, live federal trademark registrations, with abandoned applications and cancelled registrations excluded.