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New Hampshire keeps its register of companies with the Corporation Division of the Department of State. The search lives inside NH QuickStart, the same system used to form a business and file annual reports. You search by business name, and it costs nothing. Most charter documents and annual reports can be viewed and downloaded at no charge from the record. People often search for a "New Hampshire secretary of state business search", and the Corporation Division of the Department of State is the right office for it.
New Hampshire LLC and corporation search in QuickStart
Start from the Business Name Lookup page on the Department of State site. It points you to the QuickStart search. The division retired its legacy search page, so older guides that link to it will not work. QuickStart now also holds the older data and filed documents that were only on the legacy page, so one search covers the whole register.
A few habits give better results:
- Search the distinctive words, not the ending. "Granite Ridge" finds more than "Granite Ridge LLC".
- Try the short and the long form of any word. The state treats "NH" and "New Hampshire" as the same name.
- Note the Business ID Number once you find the record. It is the same as the charter number and you need it to file an annual report online. Your federal EIN will not work there.
If a document shows "File Not Found", it has not been scanned yet. The division can pull it from the State Archives on request. For a general walk through of reading any state's register, see our LLC lookup guide.
What a New Hampshire record tells you
Each record shows the Business ID Number, the entity type, its status, the registered agent and the filing history. For LLCs, the annual report lists at least one member or manager. Corporations list their officers and directors. Shareholders are not filed with the state, so you will not find owners of a corporation here. Our business owner lookup guide covers other places to look.
The status field uses the division's own status definitions. The ones you will see most:
- Good Standing: the entity has filed all reports and fees.
- Not in Good Standing: it owes reports or fees, or its agent has resigned.
- Administrative Dissolution: the Secretary of State dissolved it for missed reports, fees or agent.
- Administrative Suspension: the same, for a foreign entity registered in the state.
- Dissolved, Merged and Withdrawn: the entity ended, joined another, or left New Hampshire.
- Reserved Name: a name held for 120 days, with no company formed yet.
Name rules and holding a name
An LLC name must contain "limited liability company", "L.L.C.", "LLC" or a similar abbreviation (RSA 304-C:32). The division's Name Availability Guidelines say a new name must be distinguishable upon the record from every business formed, registered or reserved in the state. These differences do not count:
- an article such as "A" or "The"
- plurals, phonetic spellings and abbreviations
- a different entity ending, so "Nashua Builders, Inc." blocks "Nashua Builders, LLC"
- punctuation, spacing, and a number written as a digit, word or Roman numeral
Names of businesses administratively dissolved in the last 120 days are also protected. Words such as "Bank" or "Engineering" need sign off from another agency first.
Name availability is decided by division staff when your filing arrives. There is no online availability check, only the search. If you want certainty before filing, reserve the name with Form 1 under RSA 304-C:27. The fee is $15 and the hold lasts 120 days. Names cannot be reserved for nonprofits or trade names. Our name availability guide explains how to test a name first.
Keeping a New Hampshire entity in good standing
LLCs and corporations file an annual report by April 1 each year, starting the year after they register. The report fee is $100 and a $50 late fee is added after April 1. The division does not waive it. You can file online through QuickStart, use the One Click Annual Report if nothing changed, or ask for a paper form.
Miss the deadline and a domestic entity turns Not in Good Standing. After two years in a row without filing, it is administratively dissolved. A foreign entity is administratively suspended after missing the current year. Nonprofits are different: they file a nonprofit report every five years, due December 31. Fees paid electronically carry a $2.00 handling charge. Formation costs $100 for an LLC or a corporation, $100 to register a foreign LLC, and $25 for a nonprofit. See LLC fees by state to compare.
To prove standing, order a certificate of good standing in short or long form. It costs $5 by mail or in person, and you can also order online through QuickStart or One Click Good Standing. Certificates now carry a Business ID number and a certificate number, and anyone can verify one on QuickStart. Our certificate of good standing guide covers when banks and other states ask for one.
Buying New Hampshire business data
The Corporation Division's pages do not list a free bulk file. QuickStart offers a "Purchase Business Data" order, but the price is not shown on the division's pages.
Starting a company here? Read our guide on how to start an LLC in New Hampshire and the New Hampshire registered agent rules.
Business license in New Hampshire
The pages we read show no general business license from the New Hampshire Secretary of State. Its Corporation Division says no further certification is required from that office once you register, but there may be a requirement for a license or certificate from another agency. That is the honest answer: it depends on what your business does.
The division points to the New Hampshire Employment Security website as a place to review whether you need additional licensing or certification. We did not read that site, so we cannot list what it covers. Ask your town or city hall as well, and any board that regulates your trade.
What you do owe the division is the filing itself. A New Hampshire LLC is formed with Form LLC-1 for $100, and the annual report is due by April 1 each year for $100, starting the year after you register. Nothing here replaces a local license.
If you will sell under a second name, that is a trade name, a separate filing. See the New Hampshire DBA page. The steps for forming are in the New Hampshire LLC guide. For general lookup methods, read business license lookup.
Also see our guides to the New Hampshire DBA.