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, assumed names are one type of business name that can get a bit confusing. So if you’re wondering what an assumed 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 Tennessee assumed 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 Tennessee Assumed Name?
An assumed name—often called a trade name or fictitious name or DBA—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 assumed 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 assumed name. Because of this scenario, assumed names are most commonly used by unincorporated entities.
That said, many corporations and LLCs also choose to use assumed 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 assumed name for it. Corporations might do something similar for new product lines, too.
But that’s assumed names in a nutshell!
Is assumed name registration required in Tennessee?
Tennessee, like a lot of states, requires you to register your assumed name if you intend to use one. But even if the state didn’t require it, we’d recommend registering your name. Here’s why: Tennessee requires all names, including assumed names, to be “distinguishable on the record” from other names on file. When you register your assumed name, you put your name on the state’s record.
That means other entrepreneurs must make their name distinguishable from yours. You won’t necessarily “own” the name per se, but since other people won’t be able to register a name that’s identical to yours, it’s still worth your while. For that reason alone (plus the legal requirement), we recommend registering your assumed name.
Benefits to Registering a Tennessee Assumed Name
There are several benefits to registering an assumed name. Like we’ve just mentioned, one of the biggest benefits is that you’ll prevent other businesses in Tennessee from being able to use the same name as you. This doesn’t apply to businesses in other states, of course, but while you’re just starting out, there’s a lot of peace of mind knowing that no one else in Tennessee has a name like yours.
One benefit you might not think of right away is that an assumed 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 assumed name gives your customers peace of mind. It’s not uncommon for customers to write checks, right? Without an assumed 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 assumed name gives your business an extra layer of legitimacy.
Register your Tennessee Assumed Name in 3 Steps
1. Check that your assumed name doesn’t infringe on any legally protected names.
Before you register an assumed 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 Tennessee
- Names that have been reserved for future use as the legal names of incorporated entities
- Names that are protected by U.S. trademark law
The Tennessee Secretary of State will automatically reject your assumed 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 Business Name Availability Search. This is your way to check the state database for any exact matches to your assumed name. As a general rule, if you search your desired assumed name and the tool pulls up any matches, you’ll need to change your name.
Resource: Need help with the Business Name Availability 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 Availability 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 Tennessee. 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 assumed name application.
In Tennessee, the actual process of registering your assumed name is pretty simple. All you have to do is download and file the Application for Registration of Assumed Name form. You can also file online if you’d rather. But no matter how you choose to file, this straightforward form will ask for some basic information about you and your business: your legal name, your state of incorporation (if applicable), and of course, the name you’re hoping to register.
Tennessee charges a $20 fee for this filing. Once this filing is complete, your assumed name is set to go.
3. Renew your assumed name.
In some states, an assumed name registration lasts forever. But in Tennessee, your assumed name registration lasts for five years. If you still want to keep using your assumed name after that, you’ll need to renew it.
Renewing is pretty simple; you’ll head to the Secretary of State’s website and download the Application for Renewal of Registration of Assumed Name form. Like the initial registration, this renewal requires a $20 filing fee. Once complete, your name will be good to use for another five years.
Other Considerations for Your Assumed Name
Now that you’re a proud owner of a Tennessee registered assumed name, there are a couple things to keep in mind.
Most importantly, you should note that an assumed 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 assumed 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 assumed name for those protections.
Next, keep in mind that registering an assumed 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 Tennessee, you’ll follow Tennessee law and federal (national) law for businesses. Kentucky, for example, has no jurisdiction over your business unless you choose to expand into Kentucky. This affects business names, too.
If you want to protect your assumed name or legal name outside of Tennessee, 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
Assumed 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 Tennessee Assumed Names.
If you decide that forming an actual entity is right for you, we recommend forming a Tennessee LLC for most small businesses and entrepreneurs. You can either register it yourself or hire a TN LLC filing service.