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, alternate names are one type of business name that can get a bit confusing. So if you’re wondering what an alternate 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 New Jersey alternate 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 New Jersey Alternate Name?
An alternate name—often called a fictitious name or 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, an alternate 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 an alternate name. Because of this scenario, alternate names are most commonly used by unincorporated entities.
That said, many corporations and LLCs also choose to use alternate 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 an alternate name for it. Corporations might do something similar for new product lines, too.
But that’s alternate names in a nutshell!
Is alternate name registration required in New Jersey?
New Jersey requires you to register an alternate name if you intend to use one. But unlike many states, New Jersey does not protect alternate names once they’re registered. So technically, in New Jersey there can be multiple businesses using the same alternate name. That’s not ideal, but it’s how things go in New Jersey. If you want name exclusivity, you’d have to look into registering as a federal trademark.
Benefits to Registering a New Jersey Alternate Name
There are several benefits to registering an alternate name. Unfortunately, that doesn’t include exclusive rights to a name. But from a practical standpoint, registering does put your name on public record. That ensures that the public is aware of who’s doing business under a given name. That kind of transparency is generally a good thing.
One benefit you might not think of right away is that an alternate 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, an alternate name gives your customers peace of mind. It’s not uncommon for customers to write checks, right? Without an alternate 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 an alternate name gives your business an extra layer of legitimacy.
Register your New Jersey Alternate Name in 3 Steps
1. Check that your alternate name doesn’t infringe on any legally protected names.
Before you register an alternate 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 New Jersey
- Names that have been reserved for future use as legal entity names by corporations or LLCs
- Names that are protected by U.S. trademark law
The New Jersey Division of Revenue will automatically reject your alternate name if it infringes on other protected 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 Business Name Search. This is your way to check the state database for any exact matches to your alternate name. As a general rule, if you search your desired alternate name and the tool pulls up any matches (that aren’t also alternate names), you’ll need to change your name.
Resource: Need help with the Business Name 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 Business Name 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 New Jersey. 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 alternate name application.
In New Jersey, the actual process of registering your alternate name in New Jersey is pretty simple. The biggest challenge is making sure you head to the right website. In New Jersey, alternate name filings are handled by the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services.
There you can download the form you need (or file it online, if you prefer). Once you fill it out and pay the $50 filing fee, your name is officially registered.
3. Renew your alternate name.
In some states, an alternate name lasts forever. But in New Jersey, your assumed name registration lasts for five years. If you intend to keep using your name beyond that five-year mark, you’ll need to file a renewal before your registration expires.
The renewal process looks a lot like the initial registration, and once it’s complete, you’re set to use your name for another five years.
Other Considerations for Your Alternate Name
Now that you’re a proud owner of a New Jersey registered alternate name, there are a couple things to keep in mind.
Most importantly, you should note that an alternate 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 an alternate 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 an alternate name for those protections.
Next, keep in mind that registering an alternate 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 New Jersey, you’ll follow New Jersey law and federal (national) law for businesses. Pennsylvania, for example, has no jurisdiction over your business unless you choose to expand into Pennsylvania. This affects business names, too.
If you want to protect your alternate name or legal name outside of New Jersey, 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
Alternate 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 and paying the filing fee. Hopefully this guide has taken away some of the guesswork to New Jersey alternate names.
If you decide that forming an actual entity is right for you, we recommend forming a New Jersey LLC for most small businesses and entrepreneurs. You can either register it yourself or hire a NJ LLC filing service.