New York: Assumed-Name (DBA) Registration Requirements

Requirements one by one

Which track you're on

New York splits the filing by the kind of business you are (§ 130(1)):

• Individuals, general partnerships, and unincorporated associations file a
  business certificate with the county clerk of each county where they
  conduct business (§ 130(1)(a)).
• Corporations, limited partnerships, and limited liability companies file a
  certificate of assumed name with the Department of State (§ 130(1)(b)).

The trigger is doing business under a name other than "his or its real name." For
a registered entity, the "real name" is the name in its certificate of
incorporation, certificate of limited partnership, or articles of organization
(§ 130(1-a)). Using a trade or divisional name alongside the real name counts as
using the real name — so "ABC Corp. d/b/a ABC Corp." files nothing, but "ABC
Corp." operating solely as "ABC Home Solutions" must file.

The county-clerk track: certificate, acknowledgment, and display

If you are an individual or general partnership, the certificate lists the assumed
name, the business address in the county, and the full names and residence
addresses of everyone conducting the business (§ 130(1)(a)). It "shall be executed
and duly acknowledged" — meaning currently it must be notarized (a pending
bill would drop that; see below). You file it before doing business under the
name, and you must "conspicuously display" a certified copy at each place you do
business (§ 130(4)). If you operate in more than one county, you file a separate
certificate with each county's clerk.

The Department of State track: registered entities

A corporation, LP, or LLC files its certificate of assumed name with the
Department of State, listing the assumed name, the entity's real name, its
principal New York office, and each county where it does or intends to do business
(§ 130(1)(b)). A corporation doing business as a member of a partnership that has
already filed the § 130(1)(a) partnership certificate does not have to file
separately just for that.

Fees

On the county track, the clerk's filing fee is set by CPLR § 8021(b)(2): $100
in the five New York City counties (New York, Kings, Queens, Bronx, Richmond)
and $25 in every other county. On the state track, the Department of State
charges a $25 indexing/filing fee (§ 130(5)(b)(1)), and additionally collects,
for each county the entity lists, the same per-county fee under CPLR § 8021(b)(2)
($100 for a NYC county, $25 otherwise) and forwards it to that county clerk
(§ 130(5)(b)(2)). No fee is charged to file a discontinuance.

If you skip it

Two consequences stack (§ 130(9)). First, a curable suit-bar: a business that has
not filed is "prohibited from maintaining any action or proceeding in any court in
this state on any contract, account or transaction made in a name other than its
real name until the certificate ... has been ... filed." You cure it by filing,
then you may proceed. Second, a crime: "knowingly" failing to comply, or knowingly
filing a false certificate, "shall be guilty of a misdemeanor."

What trips people up

• No newspaper publication — but you must display the certificate. Unlike a
  new LLC's formation notice, a § 130 assumed-name certificate needs no
  publication (§ 130); instead a certified copy must be posted at the business
  (§ 130(4)). Don't confuse the DBA rule with the separate LLC-publication rule.
• The certificate never expires — until you discontinue it. There is no
  renewal (§ 130(10)); the flip side is that a name you stopped using stays on the
  record until you file a certificate of discontinuance.
• Filing does not lock up the name. Acceptance of the certificate "shall not
  be construed to confer any right to or interest in any trade name" (§ 130(8-a)).
  Brand protection is a trademark question.
• A corporation or LLC files with the state, not the county. The county-clerk
  business certificate is for individuals and partnerships; registered entities
  use the Department of State (§ 130(1)(b)).

Common questions

I'm a sole proprietor in Brooklyn — where and how much? You file a business
certificate with the Kings County Clerk; the CPLR sets the fee at $100 for a New
York City county (§ 8021(b)(2)). The certificate must be notarized (§ 130(1)(a))
and a certified copy displayed at your business (§ 130(4)).

My LLC wants a second brand name — do I file in my county? No. An LLC files a
certificate of assumed name with the Department of State for a $25 fee, plus the
per-county charge for each county where it does business (§ 130(1)(b), (5)).

Does my certificate expire? No. It stays effective until you file a
certificate of discontinuance (§ 130(10)).

If I forgot to file, can I still sue on my business's contracts? Not until you
file. Section 130(9) bars you from maintaining the action in the assumed name
until the certificate is filed — but the bar is curable, so you file and then
proceed.

Statutes and sources

• N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 130(1) — dual filing: county clerk for individuals and
  partnerships, Department of State for corporations, LPs, and LLCs. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 130(4)–(5) — certified-copy display and the $25 state
  fee. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 130(8-a) — filing confers no right in the trade name.
  Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 130(9) — curable suit-bar and misdemeanor for a knowing
  violation. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 130(10) — certificate of discontinuance (no expiration).
  Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• N.Y. C.P.L.R. § 8021(b)(2) — county filing fee: $100 in NYC counties, $25
  elsewhere. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).