DBA means "Doing Business As".  If you are an Individual Sole Proprietor and want to do business under a name which is different from your legal name then you have to Register a DBA Name with the Colorado Secretary of State.

If you are a Corporation or LLC and want to do business under a name which is different from the name which is registered with the Colorado Secretary of State then you have to Register a DBA Name with the Colorado Secretary of State.

In Colorado a DBA Name is called a Trade Name.

In Colorado a DBA Name is called a Trade Name. Other names for a Colorado Trade Name include:

• Colorado Alternate Name
• Colorado Assumed Business Name
• Colorado Assumed Name
• Colorado Business Name
• Colorado Fictitious Name

Yes. You can Register a Trade Name with the Colorado Secretary of State.

A business (other than a nonprofit entity) or an individual transacting business in the state of Colorado under a name other than the person’s true name is required to file a Trade Name with the Colorado Secretary of State.

Registering a Trade Name with the Colorado Secretary of State does not convey any exclusive rights to the use of the Trade Name in Colorado.

Yes. You can register a Colorado Trade Name with the CO Secretary of State for a Colorado Corporation or a Colorado LLC.

Before a Colorado Corporation or LLC can register a DBA Name, the CO Corporation or CO LLC must be in good standing with the Colorado Secretary of State.

Yes. You can register a Colorado Trade Name even if you have not formed a Colorado Corporation or LLC. In fact that's what most skilled craftsman and professionals do when they want to use a business name other their own name.

You Register a DBA Name with the Colorado Secretary of State for an existing Colorado business.

You Reserve a Company Name with the Colorado Secretary of State for use with a Colorado business that will be formed and legally registered with the CO Secretary of State sometime in the future.


When you Register a Corporation or LLC with the Colorado Secretary of State there are certain tax and administrative obligations which must be met to keep the company in Good Standing.  Failing to keep up with those obligations can result in the administrative dissolution of your Colorado company by the Colorado Secretary of State.

The Colorado state fees for Registering a DBA Name are less than the fees for Registering a Corporation in Colorado or Forming a LLC in Colorado and there are no tax or reporting obligation for a Registered Colorado DBA Name.

No. The Colorado Secretary of State will not issue a good standing certificate (Certificate of Existence) for a registered Colorado Trade Name. Colorado good standing certificates are issued only for companies which have registered with the Colorado Secretary of State as a Corporation, LLC or LP.

You can renew the Colorado Trade Name before the expiration date if you want to retain ownership of the Colorado Trade Name.

A Trade Name for an individual or a non-reporting Colorado entity is effective for approximately one year.

A Colorado Trade Name for an individual or a non-reporting entity will expire on the first day following the anniversary month of the original filing unless a Colorado Trade Name Renewal is filed.

Trade Names can be renewed for an additional year with the Colorado Secretary of State. A Colorado Trade Name can be renewed at any time during the three months prior to its expiration date.

A Colorado Trade Name for a reporting entity is effective as long as the Colorado entity remains in Good Standing. When a reporting entity's status becomes Delinquent or Dissolved, the Trade Name remains effective for one year from the date of Delinquency or Dissolution. If the Delinquent or Dissolved entity reinstates or cures its delinquency before the trade name expires, then the Trade Name will continue to be effective as long as the entity remains in Good Standing.

If a Colorado Trade Name Registration expires, a new Registration would need to be filed in order to maintain an effective Colorado Trade Name Registration.