Conduct a business entity search before incorporating your Georgia business to ensure your desired name is available for use.
Launching a new business starts with a critical step: naming it. This will apply to all future business owners, whether they’re entrepreneurs running a sole proprietorship, LLC, or corporation. However, finding a suitable name will be a matter of careful consideration — you won’t be able to take on just any name.
Your company’s title must be unique, meaning no other business can register under the same name. Of course, this applies to Georgia businesses as well as companies nationwide. Fortunately, there’s a simple way to ensure your future business name is truly your own: doing a Georgia business name search.
With Swyft Filings, finding a unique business name is practically effortless. All you need to do is take advantage of the free business entity search tool. Utilizing the tool will only take three simple steps:
Enter the business name you’d like, your business location, your name, and a valid email address.
Choose “Submit,” then sit back and wait. The Swyft Filings tool will check the Georgia Secretary of State database for the corporation or LLC name you’ve submitted. Upon completing the search, the service will deliver the results to your inbox. This step will take no more than an hour.
You can proceed with the reservation if the desired name is available, i.e., not reserved or registered by another company. If someone else already has the name you’ve entered, you may repeat the process using a different name.
The entity search tool Swyft Filings provides is fast, reliable, and completely free. It will assist you in getting your company off the ground in the shortest period possible.
Key Takeaways:
Registering a unique Georgia business name is required by state law for all businesses operating within the state.
You must follow certain naming conventions when naming a Georgia business. Failure to do so may make your business ineligible for registration.
Getting your Articles of Organization, annual registration, or registration with the IRS is only possible with a proper, unique company name.
The faster you register a company name, the sooner you can get your business operations underway. Swyft Filings will be there for you every step of the way.
Georgia’s Business Name Conventions
The Georgia Secretary of State website provides a comprehensive guide to the state’s business naming conventions.[1] The primary rule is that a company must have a unique name. Here’s what that means specifically in the state of Georgia.
When choosing a business name, making minimal changes won’t be sufficient to make the new name legally distinguishable in Georgia. In particular, you won’t be creating a different name if you change the following:
Adding or subtracting an article — “The Catcher in the Rye” isn’t distinct from “Catcher in Rye” or “A Catcher in the Rye.”
Changing the type of business entity — “The Catcher in the Rye Inc” isn’t distinct from “The Catcher in the Rye Co.”
Adding, subtracting, or swapping “and” with “&” and vice versa — “J.D. Salinger,” “J.D. and Salinger,” and “J.D. & Salinger” would all be considered legally the same names.
Adding or subtracting punctuation — “J.D. Salinger” isn’t distinct from “JD Salinger.
Making a singular noun plural or vice versa — “The Catchers in the Rye” isn’t distinct from “The Catcher in the Rye.”
Adding a suffix or using a variant of the same base word — “The Catching in the Rye” isn’t distinct from “The Catcher in the Rye.”
Abbreviating a single word — “J.D. Salinger” isn’t distinct from “Jerome D. Salinger.”
Spelling a word phonetically — “Da Catcher in the Righ” isn’t distinct from “The Catcher in the Rye.”
While the listed rules already create strict guidelines for naming a Georgia limited liability company or corporation, several other rules are mandated, too. In particular, including specific words in the company title will require approval from the appropriate authorities.
To use “indemnity,” “surety,” “insurance,” “reassurance,” “fidelity,” “assurance,” or “reinsurance,” a business must obtain the Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner’s approval.
Using the word “bank” or any of its variations, synonyms, or derivatives (“banc,” “banker,” “banking house,” “bankruptcy,” “bank shares,” “savings & loan,” “trust company,” “trusting,” etc.) requires approval from the Department of Banking and Finance.
Including “university” or “college” will call for the Georgia Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission to approve the name.
It’s worth mentioning that Georgia naming conventions don’t limit the use of characters. You’ll be free to use any recognized symbol, letter, and spelled, Arabic, or Roman numbers.
The additional complication in the naming process is that a business name must be more than unique — it has to be recognizable. This is where matters get more complex.
Benefits of a Georgia Entity Search
Conducting a Georgia business entity search will benefit your company in several ways. Here’s how this search will help you launch a successful business:
Get a company name you won’t need to change down the line: Checking for name availability will help you get the right name on the first try. With a verified unique name, you won’t need to go through the name-changing process.
Protect your business from unnecessary expenses: Doing business under a name someone has already taken could require additional costs and take away precious time in the beginning — precisely when you need resources the most. Registering a unique name will help you avoid such complications.
Ensure your business doesn’t become subject to legal action: Taking another company’s name as your own exposes your organization to potential litigation. If you conduct a business entity search ahead of filing, you’ll never be at risk of lawsuits against your company.
Enable early domain registration: Your business website should be up and running immediately after your business operations start, if not sooner. Checking name availability immediately allows you to register your business and, by extension, your domain name sooner.
Eliminate time spent and guesswork: A Georgia business entity search will ensure you don’t waste time on trial and error. You can reserve a suitable name without guessing which one is available.
Next Steps
As mentioned, finding an available business name is only the starting step. If you’ve done that successfully, here are the next steps you’ll be taking:
Name reservation
Domain registration
Getting a “doing business as” (DBA)
Complete Your Name Reservation
It would be wise to reserve a business name as soon as you verify it’s unique enough. This step will ensure the name doesn’t get taken by another organization while you’re wrapping up other tasks.
You can reserve a Georgia business name reservation online or via regular mail.[2] To complete the online reservation, go to the Georgia Corporations Divison website and follow these steps:
Create an account.
Choose the “Name Reservation” option.
Submit your information, along with three potential business names.
Use a credit card to cover the filing fee of $25.
For name reservation via mail, fill out the Name Reservation Request form and send it to the following mailing address:
Office of Secretary of State
Corporations Division, Name Reservation Request
2 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. SE
Suite 313 West Tower
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
The filing fee, in this case, will be $35.
After registering the name, you can register your business address, designate a registered agent, and handle any other matters necessary to start a business in Georgia.
Choose a Domain Name
The best time to consider a domain name would be as soon as you start thinking about naming your business. Ideally, you’ll want those two names to match so potential customers can easily locate you online.
Your website could become a critical tool for promotion, marketing, customer contact, and sales. Just because a domain name matches your company name doesn’t mean you can automatically reserve the domain. Like business names, someone may already have your desired domain.
Consider a DBA
If you need to register your company under a name that doesn’t seem best for your marketing and outreach, it’s possible to choose a “doing business as” (DBA). This is a name under which you can do business, although your company isn’t registered by that name.
In Georgia, DBA registration goes through a County Clerk of the Superior Court. You’ll need to supply the following:[3]
Desired DBA
The nature of your business
The owner’s name, address, and a notarized signature
Specific forms required by your county
The filing fee (varies by county)
File Your LLC Online
After you’ve obtained a business name and, optionally, a DBA, you can get your LLC filed online with Swyft Filings’ LLC business services. Our experts can help you in every aspect of LLC or other business filings.
If you’ve already registered a business name but want another one for whatever reason, we’ll change your company’s name with ease. Swyft Filings is here for all your business filing needs, from the beginning stages to the final touches.
FAQs
How do I find out if a business name is available in Georgia?
To discover whether a Georgia business name is available, use the Business Search function on the Georgia Corporations Division website. You can search by entity name, control number, registered agent name, and officer name. You can also utilize Swyft Filings’ free business entity search tool.
What is the Georgia Secretary of State Business Entity Search?
The Georgia Secretary of State (SOS) business entity search is a search page on the Georgia Corporations Division site. The website is ecorp.sos.ga.gov.
How do I find a business entity in Georgia?
You can find any Georgia LLC or corporation using the search tool provided by the Secretary of State office or the entity name search tool on the Swyft Filings website.
What is the legal name of a business entity?
The legal name of a business is the name that’s registered and kept on public record. This is a unique name connected with a specific office address, registered agent service, business license, and business bank account.
How much does a Georgia business entity search cost?
The service will be free if you go through the official state tool or opt for the business entity search by Swyft Filings. No fees will apply whatsoever.
What is a popular type of business entity in Georgia?
LLCs are the most popular business type in Georgia. They are followed by joint-stock companies (JSC), partnerships, and sole proprietorships.
How can I find a person’s address for a business in Georgia?
The easiest way to find an address of an existing business in Georgia will be to conduct a business entity search. This search will provide all crucial information about the business, including its address.
Bibliography:
Georgia Secretary of State. “Business Division FAQ — Name Availability Standards.” Accessed May 23, 2023.
Georgia.gov — An Official Website of the State of Georgia. “Reserve a Business Name with Georgia Secretary of State.” Accessed May 23, 2023.
Georgia.gov — An Official Website of the State of Georgia. “File for a DBA (Doing Business As).” Accessed May 23, 2023.
