Assumed-Name (DBA) Registration Requirements in Georgia
At a glance
| Governing law and scheme | O.C.G.A. §§ 10-1-490–10-1-493 — county superior-court-clerk filing plus two-week newspaper publication |
|---|---|
| Who must register | A person, firm, partnership, or entity using a trade or business name that does not disclose ownership or differs from its filed legal name; corporations, LPs, and LLCs using their exact filed names, and professionals using a partnership name, are exempt (§§ 10-1-490, 10-1-492) |
| Filing office | Clerk of the superior court in the county where the business is chiefly carried on; a domestic corporation files in the county of its legal domicile (§ 10-1-490) |
| Filing deadline | Before commencing business under the trade name (§ 10-1-490) |
| Publication requirement | Publish notice in the newspaper carrying the county sheriff's legal advertisements once a week for two weeks; no statewide post-filing deadline is stated (§ 10-1-490) |
| Filing fee | $15 statutory clerk registration fee, plus the newspaper's publication charge; Georgia.gov says county forms and total payment procedures vary (§§ 10-1-490, 15-6-77(g)(10)) |
| Term and renewal | No fixed expiration or periodic renewal; file a new or amended registration when ownership changes, and Georgia.gov directs a new amended filing to change the trade name (§ 10-1-490) |
| Name exclusivity | No exclusive name right is stated — the statute creates a county filing and alphabetical ownership index, and Georgia.gov directs applicants to search the county records (§ 10-1-490) |
| Penalty for noncompliance | Misdemeanor; contracts remain valid and lawsuits are not defeated, but an unregistered plaintiff is charged court costs (§§ 10-1-491, 10-1-493) |
Requirements one by one
Who must file
Section 10-1-490 reaches a person, firm, or partnership operating under a name that "does not disclose the individual ownership" of the business. O.C.G.A. § 10-1-492 supplies the practical exact-name exemptions: a corporation, limited partnership, or LLC operating under the legal name already filed under Title 14 does not register, nor does a professional practice using a partnership name. Using a different operating name brings the county filing rule back into play.
Where and when to file
File the verified statement with the clerk of the superior court in the county where the business is "chiefly carried on" (§ 10-1-490). A domestic corporation using a different name files in the county of its legal domicile. The filing is due "before commencing to do business" under the trade name, not after the business has accumulated a month of transactions.
The statement identifies the owners and their addresses, describes the nature of the business, and states the trade name. The statute requires verification by affidavit; Georgia.gov's current filing guide tells applicants to bring notarized owner signatures and use the filing county's current form.
Publication, fee, and maintenance
After filing, publish notice in the newspaper that carries the county sheriff's legal advertisements "once a week for two weeks" (§ 10-1-490). The statute does not add a universal number of days for completing publication or filing the publisher's affidavit. Georgia.gov says to keep the publisher's affidavit as proof.
The clerk's statutory registration charge is $15 (§ 15-6-77(g)(10)). The newspaper charge is separate, and Georgia.gov warns that county forms and total payment procedures vary. A registration has no fixed expiration: § 10-1-490 says an already registered business does not reregister unless ownership changes, while the current state guide directs a new amended filing when the trade name changes.
What nonregistration changes
The consequences are split across two sections. O.C.G.A. § 10-1-493 makes failure to register a misdemeanor. Section 10-1-491 protects the underlying deal: the contract is not invalid, and a contract or tort action is not defeated merely because the name was unregistered. But a plaintiff that had not registered when the action was filed "shall be cast with court costs."
What trips people up
- Publication is part of the state-law process. Filing the verified county statement is not the final step; the two weekly legal-newspaper notices are separately required by § 10-1-490.
- The $15 statute figure is not the whole checkout total. Publication is a separate paid service, and the current county form and payment workflow can add locally administered charges.
- A DBA record is not an LLC. Georgia.gov says the filing does not create a separate legal entity or liability protection. Formation with the Secretary of State is a different process.
Common questions
Does the trade-name form need notarized signatures?
Section 10-1-490 requires a statement "verified by affidavit." Georgia.gov's current checklist translates that into notarized signatures of the business owners; use the current form supplied by the filing county.
Where can I check whether the name is already being used?
Georgia.gov directs applicants to search the county trade-name records through the clerk of the superior court. A separate Secretary of State entity-name search does not replace the county DBA search.
Does a DBA protect my personal assets?
No. The official state guide says a DBA is primarily a branding device and does not create a separate legal entity or liability protection. Entity formation and trademark protection are separate questions.
Statutes and sources
- O.C.G.A. § 10-1-490 — filing trigger, county office, verified contents, ownership-change filing, two-week publication, index, and fee cross-reference. Official text (accessed 2026-08-17).
- O.C.G.A. §§ 10-1-491 through 10-1-493 — contract effect, exact-name and professional exemptions, court costs, and misdemeanor consequence. Official text (accessed 2026-08-17).
- O.C.G.A. § 15-6-77(g)(10) — $15 clerk fee for registering and filing a trade name. Official text (accessed 2026-08-17).
- Georgia.gov, File for a DBA — current county filing checklist, publication-proof instruction, local payment warning, and no-renewal guidance. Official guidance (accessed 2026-08-17).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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