How to File a DBA in New York
In New York a DBA is a Certificate of Assumed Name under General Business Law 130. A sole proprietor or general partnership files with the county clerk; an LLC, LP, or corporation files with the Department of State. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
The New York name for a DBA is the Certificate of Assumed Name, a public filing that lets a person or company do business under a name different from its legal name, and it creates no separate legal entity. New York splits where you file by who you are. A sole proprietor or general partnership files a business certificate with the county clerk of each county where it conducts business, and each county sets its own form and fee. A limited liability company, limited partnership, or corporation instead files a Certificate of Assumed Name with the New York Department of State under General Business Law section 130. The Department of State fee is $25 for an LLC or LP, while a corporation pays $25 plus a fee for each county where it does business: $100 for each of the five counties within New York City (Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, and Richmond) and $25 for each county outside the city. General Business Law section 130 sets no newspaper publication requirement for the assumed name certificate, which is different from the separate publication rule that applies only when a new LLC or limited partnership is formed. A New York Certificate of Assumed Name does not expire and has no periodic renewal; you amend it within 30 days after a change in the facts and file a certificate of discontinuance to stop using the name. Filing an assumed name does not create a corporation or an LLC, does not shield the owner from liability, and does not give a trademark or an exclusive right to the name. DocDraft builds your New York certificate of assumed name from your facts, with attorney review available before you file.
Key Things to Know
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New York's legal term for a DBA is the Certificate of Assumed Name, a public registration that lets you use a business name different from the legal name of the owner or entity. It is a name filing only and creates no separate legal entity.
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Where you file is split by filer type. A sole proprietor or general partnership files a business certificate with the county clerk of each county where it conducts business; an LLC, limited partnership, or corporation files a Certificate of Assumed Name with the New York Department of State (Gen. Business Law 130).
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The New York Department of State fee is $25 for an LLC or LP. A corporation pays $25 plus a per-county fee: $100 for each of the five counties within New York City (Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, and Richmond) and $25 for each county outside the city. The county clerk filing fee for a sole proprietor or general partnership is set at the county level, so confirm it with your county clerk.
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General Business Law section 130 sets no newspaper publication requirement for the assumed name certificate. Do not confuse this with the separate publication rule for forming a new LLC or limited partnership, which is a different filing and is not part of a DBA.
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A New York Certificate of Assumed Name does not expire and has no periodic renewal. You amend it within 30 days after a change in the facts, and you file a certificate of discontinuance when you stop using the name.
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A DBA does not give you any ownership of or exclusive right to the name, and it does not limit your liability. A sole proprietor with an assumed name is still personally responsible for the business.
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You must file a Certificate of Assumed Name in New York when you regularly conduct business under a name that is different from the legal name of the owner, or, for a company, different from its true legal name on record.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a DBA (Doing Business As) in New York, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The DBA (Doing Business As) guide walks through them.
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New York Requirements for DBA (Doing Business As)
Filing is split by filer type. A sole proprietor or general partnership files a business certificate with the county clerk of each county where it conducts business. An LLC, limited partnership, or corporation files a Certificate of Assumed Name with the New York Department of State (Gen. Business Law 130).
The New York Department of State fee is 25 dollars for an LLC or LP. A corporation pays 25 dollars plus a per-county fee of 100 dollars for each of the five counties within New York City and 25 dollars for each county outside the city. The county clerk fee for a sole proprietor or general partnership is set at the county level.
The exact assumed name to register. It must not include a word such as Corporation, Incorporated, LLC, or Limited unless the registrant is that type of entity, and a filing is required when the business name is different from the legal name of the owner or entity.
The full legal name and type of the registrant, and the name and address of each owner who will use the assumed name. For a general partnership, every partner is listed and signs the business certificate.
The street address and county of the principal place of business, plus each county where the business operates. County of business sets where a sole proprietor or general partnership files with the county clerk.
General Business Law section 130 sets no newspaper publication requirement for the assumed name certificate. A separate publication rule applies only to forming a new LLC or limited partnership and is not part of filing a DBA.
A New York Certificate of Assumed Name does not expire and has no periodic renewal. You amend it within 30 days after a change in the facts, and you file a certificate of discontinuance when you stop using the name.
A New York DBA is only a name registration. It creates no separate legal entity, gives no exclusive right or trademark in the name, and does not limit the personal liability of a sole proprietor or general partner.
Frequently Asked Questions
In New York a DBA is a Certificate of Assumed Name, a public filing that lets a person or company do business under a name different from its legal name (N.Y. Gen. Business Law 130). A sole proprietor or general partnership files it with the county clerk of each county of business, while an LLC, limited partnership, or corporation files it with the Department of State. It connects the name to you on the public record. It does not create a separate legal entity, protect the name, or limit your liability.
In New York a DBA (Certificate of Assumed Name) is only a name registration; it creates no new entity and gives no liability protection. A New York LLC is a separate legal entity you form by filing Articles of Organization with the Department of State, and it shields the owners personal assets. You can have both, since an existing LLC can file an assumed name to run a brand under another name. Choose based on whether you need liability protection or just a name.
It depends on your filer type. A sole proprietor or general partnership files a business certificate with the county clerk of each county where it does business, and that county sets the form and fee. An LLC, limited partnership, or corporation files a Certificate of Assumed Name with the New York Department of State (Gen. Business Law 130). The Department of State fee is $25 for an LLC or LP; a corporation pays $25 plus a per-county fee of $100 for each of the five New York City counties (Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, and Richmond) and $25 for each county outside the city.
No. General Business Law section 130 sets no newspaper publication requirement for a Certificate of Assumed Name in New York, whether you file with the county clerk or with the Department of State. There is a separate publication requirement that applies only when you form a new LLC or limited partnership in New York, but that rule is part of forming the entity and is not part of filing a DBA. Do not confuse the two.
A New York Certificate of Assumed Name does not expire and has no periodic renewal requirement under General Business Law section 130. It stays in effect until you stop using the name. If an owner, address, the name, or another fact changes, you amend the certificate within 30 days of the change. When you stop using the assumed name, you file a certificate of discontinuance. Confirm any local practice with your county clerk if you filed at the county level.
You generally need a New York Certificate of Assumed Name when you regularly conduct business under a name that is different from your own legal name or, for a company, different from its true legal name on record. A sole proprietor using only a personal legal name usually does not need one. Filing matters because operating under an unregistered assumed name can expose you to penalties and can complicate opening a bank account or enforcing contracts in that name.
No. A New York Certificate of Assumed Name is a public record connecting a name to the person or company using it, but it gives no ownership of or exclusive right to the name, so another business could use a similar name. It also creates no separate legal entity, so a sole proprietor or general partner filing an assumed name remains personally liable for the business. For exclusive name rights you would seek a trademark, and for liability protection you would form an LLC or corporation.
Yes. A New York assumed name filing lists each person or entity that owns the business and will use the name. For a general partnership, every partner is listed on the business certificate filed with the county clerk, and all listed owners sign it. For an LLC, limited partnership, or corporation, the Certificate of Assumed Name filed with the Department of State names the entity that holds the assumed name. The county clerk or the Department of State records the filing for the assumed name.