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 Vermont 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 Vermont Secretary of State then you have to Register a DBA Name with the Vermont Secretary of State.

Other names for a Vermont DBA Name include:

• Vermont Alternate Name
• Vermont Assumed Business Name
• Vermont Assumed Name
• Vermont Business Name
• Vermont Fictitious Name
• Vermont Trade Name

Yes. You can Register a DBA Name with the Vermont Secretary of State.

Yes. You can register a Vermont DBA Name with the VT Secretary of State for a Vermont Corporation or a Vermont LLC.

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

Yes. You can register a Vermont DBA Name even if you have not formed a Vermont 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 Vermont Secretary of State for an existing Vermont business.

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


When you Register a Corporation or LLC with the Vermont 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 Vermont company by the Vermont Secretary of State.

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

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

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