To file a DBA in Nevada, submit a notarized Fictitious Firm Name (FFN) certificate to the county clerk in every county where your business operates, within one month of starting to use the name. The fee is $25 in most counties, including Clark and Washoe. Nevada handles these filings at the county level, not through the Secretary of State, and no newspaper publication is required.
Who Has to File, and by When
Anyone doing business in Nevada under a name that isn’t their legal name has to file. For a sole proprietor, your legal name is your personal name. For a corporation or LLC, it’s the name on your Secretary of State formation documents. Anything else is a fictitious name and needs a certificate.1Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes NRS 602.010 – Filing of Certificate With County Clerk
Sole proprietors, general partnerships, trusts, corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, and business trusts can all file. If you’re forming an artificial entity (corporation, LLC, limited partnership, business trust), that entity must already be on file with the Secretary of State before you can register a DBA for it at the county level.
The deadline is one month after you start operating under the fictitious name.2Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes NRS 602.030 – Time for Filing Certificate You can file before you open, and that’s often the smarter order because you’ll need the certified copy to open a business bank account. Nevada does not require newspaper publication, which saves both time and money.
Choosing a Name That Will Clear
Search for name conflicts in every county where you plan to file. Each county clerk keeps its own records, so a name that’s free in Washoe might be taken in Clark. Clark County charges $0.50 per name searched.3Clark County Clerk. Fictitious Firm Name General Information
Some words are off-limits. You can’t use “Corporation,” “Corp.,” “Incorporated,” or “Inc.” unless the business is actually incorporated, and the clerk must reject a certificate that breaks this rule.4Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes NRS 602.017 – Limitations on Adoption of Certain Fictitious Names Regulated-industry words like “bank,” “insurance,” or “trust” can also cause a rejection if you don’t hold the matching license.
One boundary worth knowing before you commit to a name: a county DBA gives you no trademark rights. Another business in a different county or state could still challenge you. If you plan to grow beyond your area, run the name through the federal trademark database first.5United States Patent and Trademark Office. Federal Trademark Searching
Filling Out the Certificate
What goes on the certificate depends on who’s filing.6Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes NRS 602.020 – Contents and Requirements of Certificate and Renewal Certificate A sole proprietor gives their full legal name and the street address of the business or residence. A general partnership lists every partner’s full name and street address. A corporation, LLC, or other artificial entity gives its full legal name, its mailing address, and the name and title of the person signing for it.
Watch the address rule. Natural persons (sole proprietors and partners) must give a street address; a P.O. box will not satisfy the requirement. Artificial entities can use a mailing address, and that one can be a P.O. box.
Every owner, partner, or authorized signer has to sign in front of a notary. All signatures must be notarized before the clerk will accept the filing. Nevada caps notary fees at $15 for the first signature on an acknowledgment and $7.50 for each additional signature.7Nevada Secretary of State. Notary FAQs Most county clerks post the official forms on their websites, often as separate versions for sole proprietors, partnerships, and entities.
Where to File and What It Costs
Take the completed, notarized certificate to the county clerk’s office in each county where you do business. Most offices accept filings in person or by mail. Clark and Washoe also offer electronic filing.
The filing fee is $25 in both Clark and Washoe County, whether for a new registration or a renewal.3Clark County Clerk. Fictitious Firm Name General Information8Washoe County Clerk. Sole Proprietorship – Fictitious Firm Name Other counties fall in a similar range. Expect small additional charges for certified copies (Clark County charges $6) and name searches. Fees are non-refundable and due at filing.
After the clerk processes your paperwork, you’ll get back a certified copy of the certificate. Keep it. Banks will want it to open a business account, and local licensing offices may ask for it during permitting.
Renewing, Changing, or Ending Your DBA
Fictitious Firm Name certificates don’t run forever in most Nevada counties. State law lets a county’s board of commissioners adopt an ordinance making certificates expire five years after filing, and most populated counties have done so.9Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes NRS 602.035 – Authority of County to Provide for Expiration of Certificate Plan on renewing every five years. The renewal certificate carries the same information and the same filing fee as the original. If it lapses, another business can claim the name in that county.
If the partners in a general partnership change, or a trustee of a trust changes, you must file a new certificate within one month of the change.10Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 602 – NRS 602.040 Same one-month window as the original filing.
When you stop using the name (closing the business, rebranding, or converting to a different entity), file a certificate of termination with the county clerk to remove the name from the active registry.11Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes NRS 602.055 – Certificate of Termination Clark County charges $20 for a termination filing.
What Happens If You Skip the Filing
If you do business under a fictitious name without filing the certificate, you cannot bring a lawsuit to enforce any contract or transaction conducted under that name.12Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 602 – NRS 602.070 A customer who owes you money can sit on the debt, and until you file, the courthouse door is closed. You can cure the problem by filing the certificate before you file the complaint, but many owners hear about the rule for the first time from a lawyer after a dispute has already started.
What a DBA Does Not Do
A fictitious name filing is a public record connecting a name to its owner in one county. It is not a trademark, and it does not give you exclusive rights to the name beyond that county. A federal trademark, by contrast, gives nationwide rights to the mark for your goods or services.13United States Patent and Trademark Office. How Trademarks and Trade Names Differ The two serve different purposes, and one doesn’t substitute for the other.
A DBA also doesn’t create a new tax entity. If you’re a sole proprietor, keep using your existing Social Security number or EIN. The IRS does not require a new EIN just because you changed your business name; a new EIN is triggered by a change in business structure, such as incorporating or forming a partnership.14Internal Revenue Service. When to Get a New EIN
Using the Certificate at the Bank
To open a business bank account under your fictitious name, bring the certified copy of the filed certificate, your EIN (or Social Security number for sole proprietors), any business formation documents, and a government-issued ID.15U.S. Small Business Administration. Open a Business Bank Account Banks won’t deposit checks made out to your DBA name without proof that the name is legally registered to you, so get the certified copy in hand before you go.