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

In Arkansas a DBA Name is called a Fictitious Name.

In Arkansas a DBA Name is called a Fictitious Name. Other names for an Arkansas Fictitious Name include:

• Arkansas Alternate Name
• Arkansas Assumed Business Name
• Arkansas Assumed Name
• Arkansas Business Name
• Arkansas Trade Name

Yes. You can Register a Fictitious Name with the Arkansas Secretary of State.

In Arkansas all Corporations and LLCs that wish to conduct business under a name other than the company name must Register a Fictitious Name with the Arkansas Secretary of State. In addition the Arkansas Corporation or LLC may have to Register a Fictitious Name with the Clerk of the Arkansas counties in which they want to do business under the Fictitious Name.

Sole Proprietors who wish to conduct business under a name different from their legal name do not have to Register a Fictitious Name with the Arkansas Secretary of State but they do have to Register a Fictitious Name in the counties in which they want to do business under the Fictitious Name.

Registering an Arkansas Fictitious Name has effects on the company's or person's ability to conduct business under a specific name. Registering an Arkansas Fictitious Name does not have any tax implications in Arkansas.

Yes. You can register an Arkansas Fictitious Name with the AR Secretary of State for an Arkansas Corporation or an Arkansas LLC.

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

Yes. You can register an Arkansas Fictitious Name even if you have not formed an Arkansas 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 Arkansas Secretary of State for an existing Arkansas business.

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


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

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

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

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

An Arkansas Fictitious Name Registration expires every five years. The owner of the Arkansas Fictitious Name Registration may renew the Registration before it expires with the Arkansas Secretary of State.