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An assumed name is a DBA (doing business as) in Illinois. Obtaining an Illinois DBA registration will not safeguard your personal assets. Forming a formal company structure, such as an LLC or corporation, can provide you with liability protection as well as a business name.

To begin with an Illinois DBA, choose your company entity type:

Partnership or sole proprietorship (if your business is not a formal structure)

Corporation, LLC, or LLP (if your business has a formal structure such as LLC or corporation)

Make an Illinois DBA registration for a sole proprietorship or general partnership.

General partnerships, sole proprietorships, and professional companies must submit their Illinois DBA with the County Clerk in the county in where they do business.

A general partnership is a company created by two or more persons that does not have a formal corporate structure. A sole proprietorship is an unincorporated business held by a single person. In either scenario, the company name is the same as the proprietors’ names. In these circumstances, a DBA might be advantageous for altering the company name to a more marketable one.

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

If you operate an informal company (sole proprietorship or partnership), we highly advise you to create an LLC to keep your business and personal assets distinct. The name of the LLC might be chosen to serve as the business’s brand name.

Step 1: Conduct an Assumed Name Search in Illinois.

Illinois assumed names must be distinct and comply with Illinois’ business name standards.

To begin, go to the Illinois Secretary of State’s website and look for your new DBA name to ensure it isn’t currently in use.

Review the Illinois naming criteria next. In Illinois, assumed names shall NOT contain the following words:

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

Unless allowed by the Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation, any term or phrase (e.g., trust, trustee, fiduciary) that suggests or implies that your organisation is in the business of a corporate fiduciary.

Any phrases that imply the company is in the banking, insurance, or corporate fiduciary business without prior approval from the state Commissioner of Banks and Real Estate.

Any term or phrase prohibited by another state legislation

We suggest that you check to see whether your name is accessible as a web domain (URL). You may not want to launch a company website right now, but you may wish to prevent others from gaining your URL.

Step 2: File a DBA with the County Clerk in Illinois.

To operate under a DBA, sole proprietors, partnerships, and professional companies must submit an assumed business name application with the proper county clerk’s office(s).

Sole proprietorships, partnerships, and professional companies must register in any county where they do or transact business.

We will walk you through the process of obtaining a Cook County DBA (Chicago). Please contact your county clerk for guidance in other counties.

The Illinois Association of County Clerks and Recorders has contact information for your counties.

How to Register a DBA in Cook County

It is a good idea to check the Cook County assumed name database before beginning the DBA filing procedure.

After you’ve decided on a name, fill out the Assumed Business Name Application and send it to the Cook County Clerk. The certificate may be submitted in person, via mail, or online.

Requirement for Publication

After registering an assumed company name, sole proprietors, general partnerships, and professional companies must post a copy of the legal notice in a local weekly newspaper. The notification must be published within 15 days after registration, and it must be published once a week for three weeks.

Proof of publication must be given to the Clerk’s office within 50 days of the application date. The newspaper will supply you with a notarized Certificate of Publication as well as an original clipping of the legal notice that was published. Return the certificate as well as the clipping to the Clerk’s office.

Contact your county clerk for further information about publishing and permitted newspapers

Control Your Cook County DBA

DBA Concerns

Please contact the Cook County Clerk at (312) 603-5652.

Renewal of Your DBA

Your assumed name is not going away.

Modify Your DBA

To make changes to your Assumed Business Name Application, either file online via the Cook County Clerk’s website or fill out and submit the Notification of Assumed Business Name Amendments form. The application cost is $25.

Remove Your DBA

Section I of the Notification of Assumed Business Name Amendments form must be filed with the Cook County Clerk.

Fill out an Illinois DBA form for your LLC or corporation.

The following companies must register their assumed names with the Secretary of State of Illinois:

Corporations, both for profit and non-profit

Limited Partnerships, also known as Limited Liability Partnerships,

Companies with Limited Liability

Entities Filing from Outside the U.S.

Step 1: Conduct a business entity search in Illinois.

Illinois assumed names must be distinct and comply with Illinois’ business name standards.

To begin, go to the Illinois Secretary of State’s website and look for your new DBA name to ensure it isn’t currently in use.

Review the Illinois naming criteria next. In Illinois, assumed names shall NOT contain the following words:

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

Unless allowed by the Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation, any term or phrase (e.g., trust, trustee, fiduciary) that suggests or implies that your organisation is in the business of a corporate fiduciary.

Any phrases that imply the company is in the banking, insurance, or corporate fiduciary business without prior approval from the state Commissioner of Banks and Real Estate.

Any term or phrase prohibited by another state legislation

Step 2: Submit Your Illinois Application for Assumed Name Adoption

If your company is an LLC or corporation, you must register your DBA with the Illinois Secretary of State. LLCs and corporations have different forms and regulations.

Control Your Illinois DBA

DBA Concerns

Please contact the Illinois Department of Business Services at (217) 782-6961.

Renew Your Business Name with the State

After five years, your Certificate of Assumed Name will expire. The renewal price for your assumed name is $150. Any assumed name renewed on or after the first day of the company’s anniversary month will incur a $100 penalty.

Modify Your DBA

You must complete and submit the Application to Adopt, Change, Cancel, or Renew an Assumed Name for either an LLC or a corporation to make changes to your Certificate of Assumed Name. The filing cost for an assumed name change is $25.

Remove Your DBA

Fill out the Application to Adopt, Change, Cancel, or Renew an Assumed Name for a Limited Liability Company or a Corporation. The cost of cancelling an assumed name is $5.