Alaska: Assumed-Name (DBA) Registration Requirements

Requirements one by one

Alaska uses a mandatory license and an optional protective registration

Alaska's ordinary DBA route begins with the Business License Act. Alaska Stat.
§ 43.70.020 requires a person to obtain a license before engaging in business,
and the license must state the business name that will be used. Under 12 AAC
12.020, each operating name needs its own license, and the business must operate
and advertise in exactly the name printed on that license.

Chapter 35 adds a separate choice. An unincorporated or DBA business may file a
business-name registration to obtain exclusive state-record rights. The filing
is optional for operation; the official registration form requires the matching
Alaska business license first.

The two filing tracks go to different sections of the same division

The per-name business license goes to Business Licensing within the Alaska
Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development's Division of
Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing. The optional Chapter 35
registration goes to the division's Corporations Section.

Neither route requires newspaper publication or an affidavit of publication.
The complete Business License Act, business-licensing regulations, and Business
Names chapter contain no publication step.

Fees and terms must be kept separate

The ordinary business-license fee is $50 for an annual license or $100 for
a biennial license. A qualifying sole proprietor who is at least 65 or a
disabled veteran pays half those amounts. Because a separate license is needed
for each operating name, a business using multiple DBAs pays the applicable
license fee for each name.

Optional business-name registration costs $25, and renewal also costs
$25. The filing year counts as the first full calendar year, even if the
registration is filed late in that year. Registration expires at the close of
the fifth calendar year and may be renewed between October 1 and December 31 for
the following five calendar years.

Only the optional registration creates statutory exclusivity

A business license permits operation under the printed name but does not reserve
that name. Alaska Stat. § 10.35.040 requires an optionally registered name to be
distinguishable on the department's records and gives the registrant exclusive
use. The registrant may seek an injunction and damages against another person
using a name that is not distinguishable on those records.

The operating penalty attaches to the license, not the optional filing

Under § 43.70.020(e), knowingly engaging in business without a current license
can result in a civil fine of up to $300. Chapter 35 states no separate fine
for declining the optional business-name registration. Without that filing, the
business simply does not receive Chapter 35's statutory exclusivity and remedies.

What trips people up

• One license does not cover multiple DBAs. It may cover multiple lines of
  business, but 12 AAC 12.020 requires a separate license for each business name.
• The $25 filing is not the operating license. It is the optional name-
  protection registration, and the official form requires the corresponding
  business license first.
• “Five years” means five calendar years. The filing year counts as a full
  year, so a registration made late in the year still expires December 31 of the
  fifth calendar year beginning with that year.
• A changed business name generally means a new license. 12 AAC 12.050 allows
  only narrow title or legal-form adjustments without a new license.

Common questions

Do I need a separate business license for every DBA?

Yes. Alaska requires a business license for each business name used to operate
or advertise, although one license may cover multiple lines of business under
that same name.

Does the business license stop someone else from using the same name?

No. The license itself gives no exclusive right. The separate Chapter 35
registration is the filing that requires distinguishability and creates the
injunction and damages remedies.

Can I replace the name on my current business license?

Generally, a changed business name requires a new license. The regulation has
narrow exceptions for adding or removing a professional title or a word that
describes the legal form when ownership has not changed.

Statutes and sources

• Alaska Stat. § 43.70.020(a), (e) — pre-operation license, business name
  on the license, and up-to-$300 civil fine. Official Alaska Legislature
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• Alaska Stat. § 43.70.030(a) — annual license fee and reduced fee for a
  qualifying sole proprietor. Official Alaska Legislature
  text
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• Alaska Stat. § 43.70.105(a) — business-license exemptions. Official
  Alaska Legislature text
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• 12 AAC 12.010, 12.020, 12.040, and 12.050 — per-name licensing, exact-name
  use, annual/biennial fees and terms, renewal, and name changes. Official
  March 2026 compilation
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• Alaska Stat. § 10.35.040(a)-(b) and §§ 10.35.050-.070 — optional
  registration, application, exclusivity, remedies, term, and renewal. Official Alaska Legislature
  chapter text
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• 3 AAC 16.010 — $25 initial and renewal fees. Official June 2026
  compilation
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• Alaska DCCED Form 08-557 — matching license prerequisite and filing route.
  Official form
  (accessed 2026-07-26).