California DBA
Primary reasons to start a California DBA
DBAs or “doing business as” can also be known as “fictitious business names”, “tradenames”, “assumed business name” depending on the county and state that you file your DBA in. It may be confusing but all these terms relate to the same thing.
In doing business in any state, it is required that you register your business name with the county if you plan on using a different name other than your own name. The purpose of this is that it prevents confusion amongst the general population with multiple company names. Therefore it is assured that only one company will have a unique name.
Also, registering a business name will also allow you to open up bank accounts for a business name. All banks will require some sort of acknowledgement that a company has been formed by either filing a DBA or a Corporation or LLC.
The DBAs are usually registered with one particular county. It is possible that the same name can occur in different counties. However some states have statewide name registries for DBAs.
When running a business under a DBA or sole proprietorship, you may still be liable for any damages or injuries that occur during the operation of your business. You as an individual may be liable to a lawsuit and your personal assets may be vulnerable to litigation. To protect your personal assets, you may need to file a LLC or a Corporation. You may want to discuss your business plans with a lawyer to see what is best for you.
Do I Need to Publish?
When we submit the necessary documents to register your DBA with the county, you must publish the DBA within 30 days of the date of the filing. The publication must run once a week for four consecutive weeks. We at Incorporate Fast take care of all the publication requirements and we even take a step further to send the county clerk the proof of publication and we’ll send you a copy.
Maintaining your DBA
Your fictitious name filing is good for five years. After 5 years you must renew your DBA in order to continue to use the name of your business. If you decide to change your name, you will need to change this DBA registration with the county that you did the filing in.
