Assumed-Name (DBA) Registration Requirements in New York

At a glance

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).