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Oregon's Secretary of State keeps business records through its Corporation Division in Salem, in a database called the Business Registry. The public tool is Business Name Search, reached from the Find a Business page. Enter a business name or a Business Registry Number. You can also find a business's registered agent through the same search, and there is a separate name availability check for anyone picking a new name.
Getting more from an Oregon LLC and corporation search
A plain name search returns active business registrations. To widen it, use the associated name search. You enter a registry number, or look a business up by name and click "search" next to it, and the system lists every entity tied to that record. You can filter by associated name type, and choose active entities, inactive entities or both. The default is all name types and active businesses only. The associated name search help gives two uses: seeing every entity where a company acts as registered agent, and finding a company's assumed business names. Our registered agent lookup guide covers the same task in other states.
The registry record shows a Next Renewal Date at the top and a Summary History below it. Many filing images in the Summary History can be printed free, so check there before ordering copies.
Name availability, the Oregon way
For a new name, choose the Business Name Availability Check search method. It looks at the main words in your name and compares them with active businesses on file. If nothing is close, it suggests the name can be registered. The final decision is made when you file.
Under OAR 160-010-0012, names that differ only in these ways are not distinguishable:
- entity words such as Inc., LLC, Co. or Corp.
- punctuation or symbols such as !, &, + or @
- an added "s" for a plural, singular or possessive form
- spacing, capitalization, or small words such as a, an, and, the, to or with
A different letter or number does make a name distinguishable. So do the same key words in a new order, creative spelling, or a number written as a numeral, Roman numeral or word. Assumed business names are filed by county, so identical names can appear in the database for different counties. Banking words such as bank, loan, savings or trust need a Certificate of Name Compliance from the Division of Financial Regulation first. The name availability page also warns that registering a name does not give you the legal right to use it.
An LLC name needs "Limited Liability Company" or L.L.C. To hold a name, file the name reservation form. It reserves the name for 120 days and costs $100. Compare holds elsewhere in our name reservation guide.
Renewals, fees and certificates
The Business Registry fee schedule sets these processing fees, all nonrefundable:
- Articles of Organization (LLC) or Articles of Incorporation (business): $100
- Nonprofit Articles of Incorporation: $50
- Foreign LLC or corporation Application for Authority: $275
- Annual renewal: $100 domestic, $275 foreign, $50 nonprofit
- Assumed business name: $50, renewed every 2 years for $50
Every entity except an assumed business name renews each year on the anniversary date of its original filing. The Corporation Division mails a notice about 45 days ahead. On the renewal you confirm the registered agent, whose Oregon street address cannot be a PO box, a commercial mail receiving agency, a mail forwarding business or a virtual office. For a nonprofit, the office says a report not filed within 45 days of the renewal date leads to administrative dissolution.
Online filings are reviewed by staff, and review typically begins within one business day. Proof of status is a Certificate of Existence, which you can order online through Oregon Business Registry and receive in minutes. See certificate of good standing for how this compares across states.
Bulk data
Oregon gives active business data away. The Corporation Division points to the Active Businesses - ALL dataset on data.oregon.gov. For inactive businesses, the special search request costs $150 and returns a tab-delimited file by email within 3 business days. Neither includes phone numbers, email addresses or business activity type.
Starting a company here? Read our guide on how to start an LLC in Oregon and the Oregon registered agent rules.
DBA and assumed names in Oregon
Oregon calls a DBA an assumed business name, and the Corporation Division of the Secretary of State registers it. The fee schedule lists a new registration at $50. The FAQ says an assumed business name renews every two years, on the anniversary of the original filing, and the state sends a notice about 45 days ahead. It also says an assumed business name has its own registry number, even when an LLC or corporation owns it.
You need one when the real and true name of each owner is not in the business name. Words that suggest more owners, such as "company" or "associates", also trigger it. An LLC's registered name counts as its real and true name, so a plain LLC name needs no filing.
Skipping it has costs. The Start a Business Guide says an unregistered assumed business name can leave you without legal standing in court, and can cause trouble with licenses, bank accounts and contracts. The guide adds that one registration can cover every Oregon county at no extra charge.
Use the business search to look names up, and read DBA search, DBA vs LLC and how to file a DBA for the wider picture. The LLC route is in our Oregon LLC guide.
Also see our guides to the Oregon business license.