Learn how to run a free Louisiana Secretary of State business search, read what each result means, and check whether a business name is available before you file.
The Louisiana Secretary of State keeps a free public record of every business registered in the state, and searching it is quick. The problem is that Louisiana’s search behaves differently from most states, and the default setting will hide conflicts from you.
A Louisiana business search matches from the start of the name, not anywhere inside it. Search "Delta Marine," and you will never see "The Delta Marine Group," even though that name could still block your filing. This guide covers how to search around that, how to read the record, and what the Commercial Database will not tell you.
Key Takeaways
- The search is free and needs no account. You only need a login to file something or order documents. [1]
- It matches from the start of the name. Search short fragments, or you will miss the near misses that get filings rejected.
- The charter number is your anchor. It returns one exact record and appears on every certificate the state issues.
- Parish-only registrations are invisible here. The Commercial Database covers state filings, not anything filed only at the parish level.
- Fourteen parishes must file online. Businesses in those parishes are required to use geauxBIZ for all available documents. [5]
Louisiana Business Entity Search at a Glance
Detail | Information |
Official tool | Commercial Search, also called the Louisiana business entity search, Louisiana business filings search, or LA SOS business search [1] |
Operated by | Louisiana Secretary of State, Commercial Division [4] |
Cost | Free and public, with no account required [1] |
Search by | Entity name, charter number, trade registration number, name reservation number, officer name, or agent name [1] |
Name matching | Starts-with by default, so short search terms work better than full names |
Covers | Domestic and foreign LLCs, corporations, nonprofits, professional corporations, partnerships, and registered trade names |
Does not cover | Entities registered only at parish level, and unregistered sole proprietors |
Filing portal | geauxBIZ, which combines Secretary of State, Department of Revenue, and Louisiana Workforce Commission registration [2] [5] |
Commercial Division | PO Box 94125, Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125. Office at 8585 Archives Avenue, Baton Rouge, LA 70809 [2] |
What the Louisiana Commercial Database Covers
The Commercial Division of the Louisiana Secretary of State runs this database on the CORAWeb portal, and it is the record of every entity that has filed at the state level. One search covers corporations, LLCs, and partnerships together, with the entity type field telling the structures apart. Trade names, trademarks, and service marks sit in the same system, so a name search here can surface more than just registered entities.
What You Will Find:
- Limited liability companies: Domestic and foreign LLCs, plus low-profit LLCs (L3Cs).
- Corporations: For-profit, nonprofit, and professional corporations.
- Partnerships: Limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, and registered general partnerships.
- Trade names, trademarks, and service marks: Registered marks sit in the same database and are searchable by trade registration number. [1]
- Closed entities: Dissolved, revoked, and terminated entities stay on file with their full filing history.
What is Not in The Database
- Parish-only registrations: Anything registered solely at the parish level never reaches the state database.
- Unregistered sole proprietors: A sole proprietor appears only after registering a trade name with the Secretary of State. Registration is optional for them, so many never do. [1]
- Tax account numbers: A federal EIN comes from the IRS, and Louisiana tax accounts come from the Department of Revenue. Neither is published here. [6]
- Business licenses: Louisiana licensing is handled by parishes, municipalities, and individual regulators rather than one statewide database. [5]
That first point explains most empty searches. A real Louisiana business can be entirely absent from the Commercial Database because nothing about it was ever filed at the state level.
How To Perform a Louisiana Business Entity Search Step by Step
Step 1. Open the Louisiana Commercial Search
Go to the Commercial Search run by the Secretary of State’s Commercial Division. [1] It is free and open to the public. You only need a geauxBIZ account to order documents or file anything.
Step 2. Choose What You Are Searching By
Search By | When To Use It |
Entity name | The default. Matches from the start of the name, so keep the term short |
Charter number | Exact and instant, returning a single record with no ambiguity |
Trade registration number | When you are tracing a registered trade name, trademark, or service mark |
Name reservation number | To check the status of a reservation you or someone else filed |
Officer name | Reverse lookup to find companies tied to a named individual |
Agent name | Reverse lookup to find every entity a registered agent represents |
Step 3. Work Around the Starts-With Match
This is the most important habit for Louisiana. Because a name search matches from the beginning of the name, entering your full proposed name gives you the narrowest possible result and a false sense of security.
- Search the distinctive word first: "Delta" rather than "Delta Marine Services LLC."
- Never include the designator: LLC, L.L.C., and Inc. at the end of your search term will hide entities that use a different ending.
- Drop the punctuation: apostrophes and hyphens interfere with matches.
- Search the second word separately: if a competitor filed as "The Delta Group," a search starting with "Delta" will still miss it. Search "Delta" and "Group" as separate passes.
Step 4. Open the Details View on Every Close Match
Results are a list. The Details view is where the charter number, status, registered agent, officers, and filing history live, and it is the only way to tell an active competitor from a long-dead namesake. [1]
Step 5. Allow For Processing Time
New filings generally appear in the Commercial Search within about a day of being accepted. If you are checking a company you know was formed last week, search again before concluding it does not exist. [1]
How To Read Your Louisiana Entity Search Results
Field | What It Tells You | Why It Matters |
Entity name | The exact registered legal name | It should match the name on any contract or invoice |
Charter number | The unique Louisiana identifier | Returns one record every time, and appears on every certificate |
Type | LLC, corporation, nonprofit, partnership, or trade name | Sets which filings and naming rules apply |
Status | Whether the entity is active with the state | The most important field on the page |
Date of registration or incorporation | When it first registered in Louisiana | Check it against the experience the business claims |
Domicile address | The registered office on file | A parish that does not match the trading location is worth a question |
Registered agent name and address | Who accepts legal service in Louisiana | A missing or out-of-state agent address is a red flag |
Officers, directors, members, managers | Who the state has on record as running it | Compare with who you are actually dealing with |
Amendments and filing history | What has changed since formation | Name changes and agent changes show up here first |
Previous names | Names the entity used before | Explains a mismatch between old paperwork and the current record |
How To Interpret Louisiana Business Search Status Results
Appearing in the results proves a filing exists. It does not prove the business is trading, compliant, or safe to deal with.
Status | What It Means | What To Do |
Active | Registered and recognized by the state | Proceed, but still check the filing history and agent |
Active, not in good standing | Registered but behind on a required filing such as the annual report | Ask when it will be cured before you rely on the entity |
Inactive | No longer active on the state record | Open the Details view to see why and when |
Revoked | The state withdrew the entity’s authority | Treat as a serious red flag |
Terminated or dissolved | The entity has ended, voluntarily or otherwise | Do not contract with it. Its name may now be free |
Withdrawn | A foreign entity ended its Louisiana registration | Confirm where it is registered now |
Merged | Absorbed into another entity | Identify and vet the surviving entity instead |
Why a Louisiana Business Status Changes
Louisiana entities file an annual report with the Secretary of State on the anniversary of the original filing. [2] Missing it is what moves an entity out of good standing, and sustained failure leads to revocation. Because the deadline is an anniversary rather than a fixed date, it is easy to lose track of.
Swyft Filings can handle your annual report filing so the anniversary is not yours to remember.
How To Check Business Name Availability in Louisiana
The Commercial Search is your name check, but a clear result is preliminary. Louisiana decides finally when it reviews your reservation or your formation filing, and it can refuse a name that is not distinguishable from one already in use. [3]
- Search the single most distinctive word in your name, not the full name.
- Search each significant word separately, because matching starts at the beginning.
- Search without any designator and without punctuation.
- Open the Details view on every close match and read its status.
- Search trade names as well as entity names, since a registered trade name can conflict.
- Search the federal trademark register separately, because Louisiana does not cover it.
Still deciding what to call the business? The free Swyft Filings business name generator is a sensible first stop before you pay a reservation fee.
Louisiana LLC Naming Rules and Restricted Words
Entity Type | The Name Must Contain |
Limited liability company | "Limited Liability Company," LLC, or LC |
Low-profit limited liability company | "Low-profit limited liability company," L3C, or l3c |
Corporation | "Corporation," "Incorporated," "Company," or an accepted abbreviation |
Limited partnership | "Limited Partnership" or an accepted abbreviation |
Limited liability partnership | "Limited Liability Partnership" or an accepted abbreviation |
Words Louisiana Restricts or Bans Outright
Word or Phrase | The Rule |
Bank, deposit, trust, credit union | Needs approval from the Commissioner of the Office of Financial Institutions |
Engineer, engineering, surveying | Needs approval from the Louisiana Professional Engineering and Land Surveying Board |
Insurance | Only for an insurance firm or brokerage |
Charitable wording | Cannot falsely suggest the business is a charitable or nonprofit organization |
"Doing business as" or DBA | Cannot appear in the entity name itself |
Government wording | Cannot suggest the business is a government agency |
Unauthorized activity | Cannot suggest an illegal activity or one outside your Articles of Organization |
Beyond that list, a Louisiana name must be distinguishable from names already on file. Minor changes to grammar, punctuation, or the entity designator are not enough on their own.
How To Reserve a Louisiana Business Name
A reservation is optional and is the only thing that actually holds a name.
Detail | Information |
Fee | $25.00 [3] |
Form | Name Reservation Application, Form SS398 [3] |
How to file | Online through geauxBIZ, or by post to the Commercial Division [2] [5] |
Online processing | Generally within 24 hours |
Mail processing | Generally three to five business days |
Expedite options | $30 for 24-hour processing, $50 for priority while-you-wait service [2] |
What to Check Before Reserving a Louisiana Business Name
Louisiana’s guidance on how long a reservation lasts is not consistent across its own materials. The current Name Reservation Application states the name is reserved for 120 days from receipt of the application. [3] Older instruction pages describe a 60-day reservation with two 30-day extensions available on request, which also totals 120 days.
The practical answer is the same either way, but read the term stated on the form you are actually submitting rather than relying on a third-party summary, and diarize the expiry date yourself.
Once the name is settled, you can form your Louisiana LLC, or file as a C Corp or file as a Nonprofit.
Louisiana Trade Name (DBA) Search
Louisiana calls a DBA a trade name, and it is registered with the Secretary of State rather than a parish clerk. It sits in the same Commercial Database, so you can search it alongside entity names. [1]
Trade Name Versus Legal Entity Name
Your legal entity name is what appears on your Articles of Organization and in the entity search. A trade name is a separate registration recording a name you trade under. It creates no legal entity, gives no liability protection, and is registered under Louisiana trademark law rather than the business entity statutes.
What Louisiana Requires That Most States Do Not
The name must already be in use: the trade name has to be in actual use on the date of the application. You cannot register a name for a business you have not started.
- The application must be notarized: The affidavit requires a notary, and Louisiana notaries must print their name and notary or bar roll number on the document. [2]
- $75 per class: If your goods or services fall into more than one class, you pay a separate $75 registration fee for each class.
- If you are not trading yet, reserve instead: A trade name, trademark, or service mark can be reserved for 120 days for $25 while you get started.
- Logos must be black and white: Registrations submitted with full-color or grayscale logo graphics are rejected.
- It expires: A Louisiana trade name registration runs ten years and must be renewed. Set your own reminder.
Swyft Filings can handle your Louisiana DBA registration, and for genuine brand protection, we help you with the federal trademark registration.
Louisiana Business Entity Search Costs
Searching is free. These are the costs attached to searching, holding a name, registering a trade name, and pulling documents from a record. [2] [3] Confirm current amounts with the Commercial Division before you pay.
Service | Fee | Notes |
Louisiana business entity search | Free | No account needed [1] |
Officer and agent search | Free | Reverse lookups in the same tool [1] |
Name reservation | $25.00 | Filed on Form SS398 or through geauxBIZ [3] |
Trade name, trademark, or service mark registration | $75.00 | Per class of goods or services |
Trade name reservation before use | $25.00 | Holds it for 120 days while you start trading |
Copy of an individual document | $15.00 | Ordered through the Commercial Database |
More than one document, or the complete file | $25.00 | For the same entity |
Certificate | $20.00 | Good standing, existence, registry, no record, or duplicate |
Expedited processing | $30.00 or $50.00 | 24-hour, or priority while-you-wait [2] |
How To Verify a Louisiana Company Before You Deal With It
- Search the exact legal name from the contract or invoice, not the brand name.
- Save the charter number, the status, and the date you checked.
- Confirm the status is Active and read the Details view rather than the results list.
- Check the registration date against the experience the business claims.
- Read the registered agent and confirm the address is in Louisiana.
- Run an agent search to see how many other entities share that agent.
- Check the officers against who you are actually dealing with.
- Order a certificate of good standing if the deal is significant.
Red Flags Worth a Second Look
- A company using LLC or Inc. in its name with no state record at all.
- A revoked or terminated status behind a business presenting itself as fully operational.
- A registered agent address outside Louisiana, or one that is only a mailbox.
- A brand name that appears nowhere as a registered trade name of the entity.
- A recent name change in the filing history that nobody mentioned to you.
Need proof of your own standing for a bank or another state? Swyft Filings can obtain a Certificate of Good Standing on your behalf.
Louisiana Business Search for Foreign Entities
A company formed in another state that transacts business in Louisiana must register with the Secretary of State, and it then appears in the same Commercial Search as a foreign entity.
- Run a normal name search: There is no separate database for out-of-state companies.
- Read the type field: It distinguishes a domestic Louisiana entity from a foreign one.
- Withdrawn means it left: A foreign entity that ends its Louisiana registration shows as withdrawn rather than dissolved.
- Registration fees differ: Foreign entities pay more to register in Louisiana than domestic ones, which is worth knowing if you are the one expanding here. [2]
- No record is meaningful: An out-of-state company doing real business in Louisiana with no record may not have registered as required.
Let Us File Your Louisiana Business
Once your search confirms a name is clear, filing is the step that follows. Swyft Filings has helped more than 600,000 businesses get started since 2015. We handle Louisiana LLC formation, C Corp and nonprofit filings, registered agent service, trade name registration, annual report filing, and business name changes, so nothing slips between filings.
Bibliography
- Louisiana Secretary of State. Commercial Search. Accessed on August 6, 2026.
- Louisiana Secretary of State. File Business Documents. Accessed on August 6, 2026.
- Louisiana Secretary of State. Name Reservation Application, Form SS398. Accessed on August 6, 2026.
- Louisiana Secretary of State. Business Services. Accessed on August 6, 2026.
- geauxBIZ. Louisiana Business Portal. Accessed on August 6, 2026.
- Louisiana Department of Revenue. Louisiana Department of Revenue. Accessed on August 6, 2026.
Other Important Resources
FAQs
Yes. The Louisiana business entity search (Commercial Search) is free and available to the public without creating an account. A geauxBIZ account is only required when you want to file documents or request official copies and certificates.
You can check availability by searching the Louisiana Commercial Database using the most distinctive words in your proposed business name. Search each important word separately, remove business designators like LLC or Inc., and review similar records. The final approval is still determined by the Secretary of State when you file.
A Louisiana charter number is the unique identification number assigned by the Secretary of State to a registered business entity. It is used to locate a specific company record and appears on formation documents and official certificates issued by the state.
A Louisiana business name reservation generally lasts 120 days from the date the application is received. The exact expiration period depends on the terms stated on the submitted reservation form, so businesses should track the deadline before it expires.
No. Louisiana does not provide an EIN lookup through its business entity database. An EIN is issued by the IRS, while Louisiana tax account numbers are managed by the Department of Revenue. To verify a business EIN, request a completed Form W-9 from the company.
Yes. The Louisiana Commercial Search allows you to search registered entities by registered agent name. Each entity record also displays its registered agent information, making it useful for verifying company representation and conducting business research.
A business entity search is important before registering because Louisiana requires a business name to be distinguishable from existing records. Checking availability first helps avoid rejected filings, wasted fees, and delays during formation.
Yes. Dissolved, revoked, and terminated Louisiana businesses can still appear in the Commercial Database along with their filing history. A closed business may still have a public record, while no search result means no entity was registered under that name.
