Virginia: Assumed-Name (DBA) Registration Requirements

Requirements one by one

Who must register

Chapter 5 reaches any "person" — an individual or any kind of entity — that
"conduct[s] or transact[s] business in the Commonwealth under any assumed or
fictitious name" (§ 59.1-69(B)). In practice:

• An individual files whenever the business name is not the individual's own
  name.
• A corporation, LLC, limited partnership, or registered partnership files
  for any name other than the exact name on record with the SCC; using the
  registered name requires no assumed-name certificate.

There is also a substantive limit on what an assumed name may do: you "shall
[not] use an assumed or fictitious name ... to intentionally misrepresent the
geographic origin or location of the person" (§ 59.1-69(C)).

Where and when to file

You file a certificate of assumed or fictitious name with the clerk of the
State Corporation Commission (§ 59.1-70). This is the part that trips up anyone
working from older guidance: before 2020, individuals filed in the circuit court
of each locality. That route is gone. Since January 1, 2020, everyone — including
individuals — files the single statewide certificate with the SCC, and the
circuit court no longer accepts these filings (§ 59.1-74(B)). Filing is a
precondition to doing business under the name (§ 59.1-69(B)), and there is a
practical deadline built in: a locality's commissioner of the revenue "shall
[not]" issue you a business license until the SCC certificate is filed and you
have shown proof of it (§ 59.1-74(B)).

The fee is fixed by statute at $10 (§ 59.1-70(C)), and there is no newspaper
publication requirement anywhere in the chapter.

It does not expire

A Virginia certificate has no term and nothing to renew. It stays on file
indefinitely. When you stop using the name, you file a certificate of release
of the assumed or fictitious name with the same SCC clerk (§ 59.1-70.1).

If you skip it

Two consequences stack. First, a curable suit-bar: failing to file "shall not
prevent a recovery by or against" you, but "no action shall be maintained in any
of the courts in this Commonwealth" in connection with the business "unless and
until the certificate ... has been filed" (§ 59.1-76). You cure it by filing,
then you can proceed. Second, a criminal penalty: violating the chapter is a
misdemeanor punishable by "a fine not exceeding $2,500 or by confinement in jail
for not more than one year, or both" (§ 59.1-75), and knowingly signing a false
certificate is a Class 1 misdemeanor (§ 59.1-75.1).

What trips people up

• Everyone files with the SCC now — not the circuit court. This is the single
  biggest source of stale advice about Virginia DBAs. The circuit-court filing
  ended December 31, 2019; as of January 1, 2020, individuals and entities alike
  file the one statewide certificate with the clerk of the SCC (§ 59.1-74(B)).
• Registering does not lock up the name. The certificate is a public
  disclosure of who is behind a business name (§ 59.1-69), not a grant of rights.
  Another business can adopt the same name, and a prior trademark holder can still
  stop you. Brand protection is a trademark question.
• The suit-bar is a delay, not a forfeiture. A defendant can freeze your
  lawsuit if you never filed, but § 59.1-76 lets you cure by filing and then
  maintain the action; the recovery itself is not lost.
• Do not use the name to fake your location. Section 59.1-69(C) separately
  forbids using an assumed name to misrepresent where the business is from or
  based.

Common questions

Do I need a DBA to open a business bank account? Virginia law does not require
it for the account itself, but banks routinely ask for the filed SCC certificate
before opening an account in the business name, so file early.

I'm a sole proprietor — do I really file with the state, not my county? Yes.
Since 2020, a sole proprietor files the assumed-name certificate with the clerk of
the SCC, the same office an LLC or corporation uses (§ 59.1-74(B)).

Does my certificate expire or need renewing? No. It stays on file until you
file a certificate of release when you stop using the name (§ 59.1-70.1).

What does it cost? The SCC filing fee is $10 (§ 59.1-70(C)). Your locality may
charge separately for the business license that the certificate lets you obtain
(§ 59.1-74(B)).

Statutes and sources

• Va. Code § 59.1-69 — certificate required before transacting business under
  an assumed name; no geographic misrepresentation. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• Va. Code § 59.1-70 — filing with the clerk of the SCC and the $10 fee.
  Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• Va. Code § 59.1-70.1 — certificate of release when the name is no longer
  used. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• Va. Code § 59.1-74 — SCC filing since January 1, 2020, and the
  business-license tie-in. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• Va. Code § 59.1-75 — misdemeanor penalty for violating the chapter.
  Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• Va. Code § 59.1-75.1 — Class 1 misdemeanor for signing a false certificate.
  Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).
• Va. Code § 59.1-76 — curable bar on maintaining an action until the
  certificate is filed. Official text (accessed 2026-07-23).