There are dozens of decisions to make when you start a business, but one of the most important ones is your business name. Some might even say that it’s harder than naming a baby. After all, the government doesn’t give “rules” about what you can name your children. They do give rules for business names.
Thanks to those legal regulations, fictitious names are one type of business name that can get a bit confusing. So if you’re wondering what a fictitious name is, if you need one, or how you can get one, you’re in the right place. In this guide, we’ll cover all the essentials to Florida fictitious names so you don’t have to sort through the legal jargon and focus on what really counts: your business.
Important Tip
What is a Florida Fictitious Name?
A fictitious name—often called a DBA or trade name—is a type of business name. More specifically, it’s a fake name used by a business, much like you might use a nickname around family and friends.
A bit more technically, a fictitious name differs from the business’s legal name. Here’s where it becomes important to note what kind of entity you’re running.
For example, let’s say Lauren Smith operates as a sole proprietorship. From a legal standpoint, her business is indistinct from her own person. So her business’s legal name is, well…Lauren Smith. Not many people want to call their business by their own name.
Lauren sells handmade baby clothes, so she decides to name her shop “Sew Sweet Creations.” Unless she incorporates as an LLC or corporation, she’d be using a fictitious name. Because of this scenario, fictitious names are most commonly used by unincorporated entities.
That said, many corporations and LLCs also choose to use fictitious names. For example, a local restaurant, “Becky’s Bistro,” might want to expand across their county, with a slightly different name for each location. Instead of creating a new LLC for the new locations, Becky might get a fictitious name for it. Corporations might do something similar for new product lines, too.
But that’s fictitious names in a nutshell!
Is fictitious name registration required in Florida?
In Florida, all businesses are required to register a fictitious name if they intend to use one. Unfortunately, though, registering does not mean that you’ll have exclusive rights to a fictitious name. Florida allows multiple different businesses to use the same fictitious name; only the names of legally incorporated entities like corporations or LLCs have protected names.
In theory, then, you and another business could have the same fictitious name. But don’t think that multiples of a name means you can slip under the radar and skip registration. Registration is still a requirement, but thankfully, it’s pretty simple.
Benefits to Registering a Florida Fictitious Name
There are several benefits to registering a fictitious name. Foremost among them is the fact that you’ll ensure that you’re in compliance with state laws. That’s a no-brainer. But one other benefit to registering is the fact that registration makes your name a part of public record, which helps keep everyone aware of who’s conducting business under each name. That’s important.
One benefit you might not think of right away is that a fictitious name allows you to get a business bank account in that name. This isn’t a necessity for many entrepreneurs, but from an accounting standpoint, it’s really helpful. You can keep all your “business funds” in one place, separate from your personal funds. That’s a good habit to start from the get-go (especially if you ever intend to become an incorporated entity later).
On a similar note, a fictitious name gives your customers peace of mind. It’s not uncommon for customers to write checks, right? Without a fictitious name, they’d write the check to you personally. Some people are leery about that. But thanks to a business bank account, Lauren can tell her customers to make their checks out to “Sew Sweet Creations.” It’s just a psychological thing, but a fictitious name gives your business an extra layer of legitimacy.
Register your Florida Fictitious Name in 4 Steps
1. Check that your fictitious name doesn’t infringe on any legally protected names.
Before you register a fictitious name, you have to do your homework to ensure that you actually have clearance to use that name. Here are a few of the names you cannot use:
- Names that are already in use as the legal names of any corporations, LLCs, and other protected entities in Florida
- Names that have been reserved for future use by a corporation or LLC
- Names that are protected by U.S. trademark law
The Florida Secretary of State will automatically reject your fictitious name if it infringes on other names registered in the state. They won’t check the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s database for you. That’s why it’s important to complete a few different searches.
First, you’ll need to run a Fictitious Name Search and an Entity Search. This is your way to check the state database for any exact matches to your fictitious name. As a general rule, if you search your desired fictitious name and the tool pulls up any matches, you’ll need to change your name somewhat.
Resource: Need help with the Entity Search? Check out our full name search guide here.
Next, we recommend searching the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s trademark database. Even though trademarks are usually regarded as visuals or logos, any names and text included within those visuals are nationally protected. That means no other names or visuals in the entire United States can’t be the same or similar as a trademarked name.
There are plenty of examples of different small businesses being taken to court for infringing on the name of large international chains, but we won’t get into them. Just rest assured that you’ll be doing yourself a big favor by ensuring that your name is completely unique.
Another optional search is just your tried-and-true Google search. This won’t give you any systematic, organized results like what you’d get from the Entity Search. But it will give you insight into names being used everywhere.
For example, you might find that your desired name is being used by another business in a neighboring state. That’s fine as long as the name isn’t trademarked and you intend to run business exclusively in Florida. But if you have any aspirations of expanding into other states, you’ll want to know what names are in use there.
2. File the appropriate fictitious name application.
In Florida, the process of registering a fictitious name isn’t incredibly complicated. You’ll start out by filing the Application for Registration of Fictitious Name form online. If you’d rather file a paper form, you can do so. But either way, this document is what you’ll use to officially register your fictitious name. The filing fee is $50.
3. Declare your fictitious name to the public.
If you aren’t already familiar with your news publications, now’s the time to know where they are—and get in touch with them. Florida law requires you to publish a statement of your name in a local newspaper.
This doesn’t have to be anything incredibly elaborate, thankfully. For example, Lauren Smith might publish a simple ad in her local paper that states, “Lauren Smith is the sole proprietor of the shop ‘Sew Sweet Creations,’ located on 123 Business Boulevard.” Basically, what that accomplishes is that it lets the public know the person behind a business name.
State law only requires you to make this notice once in at least one newspaper, but if you choose to, you can publish in more than one paper (or publish it more than once). That’s up to you.
4. Renew your fictitious name.
In some states, a fictitious name lasts forever. But in Florida, your fictitious name registration lasts until December 31st of the fifth year after you registered it. If you intend to keep using it after that point, you’ll need to renew the name.
Renewing looks a lot like registering: you’ll file the Application for Renewal of Fictitious Name and pay a $50 filing fee. That’s all you need to do to buy yourself another 5 years with your fictitious name.
Other Considerations for Your Fictitious Name
Now that you’re a proud owner of a Florida fictitious name, there are a couple things to keep in mind.
Most importantly, you should note that a fictitious name does not give you any personal asset protection. That’s a perk that comes with incorporating your business, such as forming an LLC or corporation.
If you already are (or you’re thinking about forming) an LLC or a corporation, then you get personal asset protection and even privacy through a registered agent service. This means that if something ever goes wrong with your business, your personal belongings—your car, your house, your personal savings account—are protected. Creditors or legal plaintiffs cannot touch them.
That protection is not available to unincorporated entities like partnerships or sole proprietorships. Moreover, applying for a fictitious name does not grant you that protection. In these cases, if something went wrong with your business, you’d have to pay any debts out of personal funds. So please don’t rely on a fictitious name for those protections.
Next, keep in mind that registering a fictitious name doesn’t prevent businesses in other states from using that name. The same applies for business’s legal names, too. We won’t get too technical with this, but each state governs its own businesses with no effect on businesses in other states. So as a businessperson in Florida, you’ll follow Florida law and federal (national) law for businesses. Georgia, for example, has no jurisdiction over your business unless you choose to expand into Georgia. This affects business names, too.
If you want to protect your fictitious name or legal name outside of Florida, you do have options. Foremost among them is applying for a trademark with USPTO. If that’s something you’re interested in, we recommend seeking additional legal counsel. Trademarks are a very complicated (and expensive) process, and a lawyer will help you conquer every aspect of the application.
Conclusion
Important Tip
Fictitious names might sound a bit complicated, but they don’t have to be. As long as you follow the proper state guidelines, it’s actually as simple as filling out the form, paying the filing fee, and publishing notice of your name in a local paper. Hopefully this guide has taken away some of the guesswork to Florida Fictitious Names.
If you decide that forming an actual entity is right for you, we recommend forming a Florida LLC for most small businesses and entrepreneurs. You can either register it yourself or hire an LLC service.