Assumed-Name (DBA) Registration Requirements in Colorado

At a glance

Requirements one by one

File online before using the other name

Section 7-71-101 says a covered person may not transact business in Colorado under a name other than the person's true name unless an effective trade-name statement is already on file with the Secretary of State. For an ordinary general partnership, using anything other than every general partner's true name triggers the rule.

The statement identifies the filer, entity form and jurisdiction when applicable, principal address for a nonreporting filer, the trade name, and a brief description of the business (§ 7-71-103(1)). The Secretary of State requires the filing and payment online. Nonprofits are the exception: C.R.S. § 7-71-107(1) lets entities whose constituent filing is on record file optionally, and subsection (2) does the same for other nonprofit entities.

The term depends on the filer's entity status

A reporting entity's statement remains effective in perpetuity while its status is maintained (§ 7-71-104(1)(a)). If the entity becomes delinquent or dissolved, the name receives a one-year tail; curing or reinstating during that period restores the continuing term, while a still-delinquent or dissolved entity may use annual renewal (§ 7-71-104(1)(b)–(c)).

An individual, ordinary general partnership, estate, trust, or other nonreporting filer instead receives a one-year registration through the last day of the twelfth calendar month after the filing month. Renewal must be filed in the final three calendar months and adds one calendar year (§ 7-71-105(1)).

Noncompliance does not void the underlying business acts

C.R.S. § 7-71-102(1) bars the noncompliant person from maintaining a Colorado proceeding to collect a debt arising from business transacted under the name until an effective statement is filed. The same section permits a civil penalty up to $500 and an injunction against continued business under the name.

The limits matter: subsection (3) preserves the validity of the person's acts and property title, and still allows the person to defend a proceeding. Filing cures the collection bar; the statute does not void the contracts.

What trips people up

• There is no newspaper publication. The statute and online filing do not require four weekly notices, an affidavit, or a publication-retention period.
• A trade name is not unique. The Secretary of State allows more than one person to file the same name, and a trade name cannot be reserved.
• Reporting entities do not renew through every periodic report. Their trade names generally remain effective with entity status. Annual trade-name renewal becomes relevant after delinquency or dissolution if that status is not cured or reinstated.
• The $5 renewal fee is not due from every filer every year. Annual renewal is the ordinary rule for nonreporting filers; compliant reporting entities have the continuing term described above.

Common questions

Can I renew after the trade name expires? No. The Secretary of State says an expired trade name cannot be renewed; the filer submits a new $20 statement, which creates a new record.

Can I transfer a trade-name filing to a buyer? No. The Secretary of State says trade names are not transferable. Because the name is not unique, the new user may file its own statement for the same name.

Statutes and sources

• C.R.S. §§ 7-71-101–107 — required filing, contents, enforcement, entity-dependent terms, renewal, withdrawal, and nonprofit exception. Official 2025 Title 7 PDF (accessed 2026-07-25).
• Colorado Secretary of State Trade Name FAQ — covered filer examples, online workflow, term examples, expired-name procedure, and no-uniqueness rule. Official FAQ (accessed 2026-07-25).
• Colorado Secretary of State fee schedule — current $20 statement, $5 renewal, and $10 withdrawal/change/correction fees. Official schedule (accessed 2026-07-25).