Michigan: Assumed-Name (DBA) Registration Requirements

Requirements one by one

Pick the route by business type

Michigan does not use one DBA office for everyone.

• An individual, general partnership, trust, fiduciary, or other covered
  noncorporate person may not do business under a name other than the owner's
  real name unless a certificate is filed with the county clerk (§ 445.1).
  The definition in § 445.1(4)(a) lists those covered users, while Act 101
  expressly excludes corporations and limited partnerships (§ 445.4).
• A corporation files under § 450.1217, an LLC under § 450.4206, and a limited
  partnership under § 449.1104. Those certificates go through the state entity
  filing system administered by LARA.

Using the exact legal name does not trigger an assumed-name filing. The trigger
is operating under another name.

County users file in every business county, before starting

The county route is broader than a principal-office-only filing. Section 445.1
requires filing with the clerk of every county where the business is conducted,
is intended to be conducted, or maintains an office or place of business.
Section 445.2 sets the timing: a new user must file "before commencing said
business."

The county clerk may reject a name likely to mislead the public, already filed
in that county, or confusingly similar to an existing county filing (§ 445.2).

Terms are both five-year based, but calculated differently

A county certificate authorizes the name for five years. Filing a renewal
before expiration extends it for another five-year period (§ 445.1a).

An entity certificate does not simply expire five years from its filing date.
For a corporation, LLC, or limited partnership, it runs through December 31
of the fifth full calendar year following the filing year. An entity may file
its next five-year certificate no earlier than 90 days before expiration
(§§ 450.1217, 450.4206, 449.1104).

No newspaper publication is part of either route

Act 101's complete county procedure requires the acknowledged certificate and
county filings but no newspaper notice. The corporation, LLC, and limited-
partnership sections likewise make the certificate—not publication—the step
for using an assumed name. Michigan therefore has no statewide DBA publication
requirement.

Fees depend on the route

The current Oakland County form charges $10 for a county assumed-name
certificate. Confirm the amount with every county where you must file because
the statutory text is internally awkward: § 445.1 still says $6 at filing,
while § 445.3 separately says the clerk receives $10 for indexing and filing
and supplies two certified copies with that payment. The current clerk form is
the practical filing figure; do not add the two old statutory figures without
checking the clerk.

For LARA filings, the current state fee schedule lists $10 for Form 541 for
corporations and limited partnerships. An LLC pays $25 under §
450.5101(1)(f). Expedited service, if requested, costs extra.

Filing does not create trademark rights

The corporation, LLC, and limited-partnership statutes each say that filing a
certificate "does not create substantive rights" to the assumed name
(§§ 450.1217, 450.4206, 449.1104). County-level rejection of an already-filed or
confusing name is a filing-screening rule. It is not a substitute for trademark
clearance or registration.

What trips people up

• A county filing is not statewide. If a covered noncorporate business
  expands into another Michigan county, § 445.1 requires a filing there too.
• The two five-year calculations differ. A county certificate runs five
  years from filing. A LARA entity certificate runs through December 31 of the
  fifth full calendar year after the filing year, so it can last longer than
  five calendar years.
• The county fee language does not match current clerk forms cleanly. Use
  the filing county's current form and instructions rather than calculating a
  payment from the old dollar figures in §§ 445.1 and 445.3.
• The county-route penalty is not merely administrative. Section 445.5
  makes each day a separate misdemeanor, punishable by a $25–$100 fine, up to
  30 days in jail, or both. It preserves the contracts but bars suit on matters
  done under the name until the filer complies.

Common questions

I formed an LLC. Do I file with my county clerk? No. An LLC using a name
other than the name in its articles or certificate of authority uses the LARA
certificate under § 450.4206. The county Act is the route for covered
noncorporate users.

I work in two counties. Is one county filing enough? Not on the county
route. Section 445.1 requires filing in each county where you conduct or intend
to conduct business or maintain an office.

Does Michigan require a DBA newspaper notice? No. Neither the complete
county procedure nor the entity certificate statutes contain a publication
step.

Can another business use the same DBA after I file? An entity certificate
does not create substantive rights in the name. County clerks screen against
misleading and confusingly similar county filings, but broader brand rights
depend on trademark and prior-use law, not the DBA certificate alone.

Statutes and sources

• Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.1 — county filing trigger, covered persons,
  multi-county filing, and the statute's $6 fee language. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.1a — five-year county term and renewal. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.2 — filing before commencement and county name
  screening. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.3 — separate $10 indexing/filing language and
  certified copies. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.4 — corporations and limited partnerships excluded
  from Act 101. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.5 — misdemeanor, daily offense, preserved
  contracts, and curable suit-bar. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 450.1217 — corporation assumed-name certificate, term,
  renewal window, and no substantive name rights. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 450.4206 — LLC assumed-name certificate, term, renewal,
  and no substantive name rights. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 449.1104 — limited-partnership assumed-name certificate,
  term, renewal, and no substantive name rights. Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 450.5101(1)(f) — $25 LLC assumed-name filing fee.
  Official
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Michigan LARA Corporations Division fee schedule — current Form 541 fee
  for corporations and limited partnerships. Official fee
  schedule
  (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Oakland County Clerk assumed-name instructions — current county filing and
  renewal fee. Official county
  form
  (accessed 2026-07-28).