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

Other names for a Rhode Island DBA Name include:

• Rhode Island Alternate Name
• Rhode Island Assumed Business Name
• Rhode Island Assumed Name
• Rhode Island Business Name
• Rhode Island Fictitious Name
• Rhode Island Trade Name

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

Yes. You can register a Rhode Island DBA Name with the RI Secretary of State for a Rhode Island Corporation or a Rhode Island LLC.

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

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

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


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

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

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

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