Getting A DBA In Alabama

A trade name is an Alabama DBA (doing business as). Alabama trade name registration allows a company to operate under a name other than its legal name.

A DBA registration in Alabama will not protect your personal assets. Forming a formal business structure, such as an LLC or corporation, will provide you with liability protection as well as a business name.

In Alabama, you can register a DBA.

It is simple to register an Alabama trade name, also known as a DBA.

A DBA is only used for branding purposes. A DBA does not protect your personal assets in the event that your company is sued. As a result, we strongly advise that a DBA be used only by a formal business structure such as an LLC or corporation to add new brands to an existing business.

If you run an informal business (sole proprietorship or partnership), we strongly advise you to form an LLC to keep your business and personal assets separate. The name of the LLC can be chosen to serve as the business’s brand name

Learn How to Get a DBA in Alabama in Three Easy Steps:

Begin by conducting a trade name search in Alabama.

Use Your Alabama Business Name

Create an Alabama DBA.

A DBA is only used for branding purposes. To keep your business and personal assets separate, we recommend forming an LLC.

Step 1: Conduct an Alabama Trade Name Search.

Your Alabama trade name must be distinct and comply with the state’s business name requirements.

To begin, use the Alabama Secretary of State’s Business Entity Search to ensure that your new DBA name is not already in use.

Review the Alabama naming requirements next. In Alabama, your business name should NOT include the following words:

Any banking-related words that are not accompanied by a letter from the Alabama Banking Commissioner’s Office, or any insurance-related words that are not accompanied by a letter from the Alabama Insurance Commissioner’s Office.

Any words that may cause confusion between your company and a government agency (FBI, Treasury, State Department, etc.).

A professional designation in the name (e.g., engineer, attorney) without a copy of one officer’s/license member’s or a letter from the governing agency allowing the use of the name without licencing.

Any words that indicate or imply that the corporation is conducting a business that is not permitted by law.

We recommend that you check to see if your name is available as a web domain (URL). You may not intend to launch a business website right now, but you may want to prevent others from acquiring your URL.

Step 2: Make Use of Your Alabama Trade Name

Before you can register your trade name in Alabama, you must have used it. So, if you want to register and protect a trade name in Alabama, you must begin using it immediately.

Three “specimens” of trade name usage will be required by Alabama. Acceptable specimens include the following:

Cards for Business

Brochures

Flyers

Labels

Decals

The specimens must be undamaged and legible. The trade name application will ask where and when you used the trade name for the first time in any state, including Alabama, so keep track.

Step 3: Create an Alabama DBA.

Your Alabama trade name can be registered with the Secretary of State either online or by mail. You can file online through the Secretary of State’s website, or you can print and fill out the Application to Register or Renew Trademark, Service Mark, or Trade Name form.

The following are some critical sections of the form:

Section 4: Trade name description

Section 5: Description of the goods or services to be provided under the trade name

Section 6: A description of how the trademark will be used.

Section 10: Any other entities that have been granted permission to use the trade name (if applicable)

Section 11: The first time the trade name was used

Maintain Control of Your Alabama Trade Name

General Concerns

Call the Trademarks Division of the Alabama Secretary of State at (334) 242-5325.

Renew Your Business Name with the State

Every five years, your Alabama DBA should be renewed. You can renew your trademark, service mark, or trade name by visiting the Secretary of State’s website or by filling out and mailing the Application to Register or Renew Trademark, Service Mark, or Trade Name. Send the completed form to the following address:

Secretary of State’s Office of the State of Alabama

Division of Trademarks

P.O. Box 5616

36103-5616 Montgomery, AL

Change Your Company Name

Call the Alabama Secretary of State’s Trademarks Division at (334) 242-5325 to change your Alabama trade name.

Remove Your Trade Name

Call the Alabama Secretary of State’s Trademarks Division at (334) 242-5325 to cancel your Alabama trade name.