There are many companies that do business in the state of Iowa and each has a unique Business Name for their Iowa Company.

If you have an idea for a Business, the Name of your Iowa Company can be very important for a number of reasons.  The right Name for your Iowa Company can increase sales and make your Iowa Business more credible.

Reserving a name for your Iowa Company could reduce the processing time for your application to form an Iowa Corporation or LLC with the Iowa Secretary of State.

Iowa Company Name Reservation protects a Business Name by giving the owner exclusive rights to the use of that Company Name during the time the Iowa Company is being organized and afterward while doing Business in the state of Iowa.

We can Reserve your Iowa Company Name with the Iowa Secretary of State for only $29 + Iowa state fees.

We will check to make sure that your Iowa Company Name is available and conforms to all state of Iowa Business Naming regulations.

You can easily Reserve an Iowa Company Name by choosing one of the Iowa Business Type options in the Iowa Company Name Reservation Cost Estimator just to the right; then clicking on the Order Form link.

Please note that the availability of an Iowa Company Name can change at any time so if you're worried that someone else may snatch your Iowa Company Name you might want to Reserve that Iowa Company Name online today.

You need to use an Iowa Company Name which is not the same or too similar to the Business Name of any other entity operating in the state of Iowa.  The Iowa Secretary of State will not approve an Iowa Company Name which is so similar to another Iowa Company Name (Corporation or LLC) as to be likely to be mistaken for it.

Your Iowa Company Name can identify the type of products and/or services your Iowa Corporation or Iowa LLC will provide; or it may be the name of the founder; or it can be a combination of the two or even something else.

In any case, the Iowa Company Name that you choose must be distinguishable from the name of any other registered Iowa Business entity and the name must also be different from any Reserved Company Names on record with the Iowa Secretary of State.  Your Iowa Company Name must not imply that it was formed for a purpose other than that stated in your formation documents and your Iowa Company Name must not be a name that is likely to mislead the public.

If you are planning on starting an Iowa Corporation then your name must include the words "Incorporated", "Corporation", "Inc." or "Corp.".  If you are planning on starting an Iowa LLC then your name must include the words "LLC" or "Limited Liability Company".

Here are some general guidelines to keep in mind when you come up with your Iowa Company Name:

• Your Iowa Company Name must include only English letters and numbers or Roman numerals.
• Punctuation DOES NOT make Iowa Company Names distinguishable from each other.
  For example, "A.B.C., Inc." is not distinguishable from "ABC, Inc."
• Plural forms of the same word DO NOT make the Iowa Company Names distinguishable from each other.
• A suffix added to a word or any other deviation from or derivative of the same word DOES NOT make Iowa Company Names distinguishable from each other.
• Iowa Company Names are NOT DISTINGUISHABLE if the only difference is the abbreviation of a word in the name.  For example, "IA Auto Store, Inc." is not distinguishable from "Iowa Auto Store, Inc."
• Iowa Company Names are NOT DISTINGUISHABLE if the only difference is a phonetic spelling of the same word.  For example, "Boyz, Inc." is not distinguishable from "Boys, Inc."

It's important to choose a good name for your Iowa Business because if you want to change it after you form your Iowa Company you will have to file amended formation documents with the Iowa Secretary of State (and pay a fee).

Exclusive rights gives the person who Reserved a Company Name for an Iowa Business the exclusive right to the use of that name.

An exclusive right means that no one else may use the Iowa Company Name which you Reserved for your Iowa Business.  This includes both the time during which you are forming your Iowa Corporation or LLC and afterward when you are doing Business in the state of Iowa.

To find out how much it will cost to Reserve an Iowa Company Name, choose an Iowa Company Option on one of the Iowa Company Name Reservation Cost Calculators on this web page.  The total cost will be displayed automatically.

Processing times for new Iowa Company Name Reservations vary depending on the work load of the Secretary of State's staff.  We've found that normal processing of a new Iowa Company Name Reservation takes the state around 3-5 business days.

We are dependent on, and have no control over, the staff and systems of the Iowa Secretary of State.

In our experience 3-5 business days is the time it usually takes the Iowa Secretary of State to process a new Iowa Company Name Reservation.  We get your Iowa Company Reservation request to the IA Secretary of State ASAP.  Once it is at the state we have no control over the new Iowa Company Name approval process.

Once you Reserve a Name for your Iowa Company it is valid for 120 days.  You must file your Iowa Business formation documents (Articles of Incorporation for new Corporations or Articles of Organization for new LLCs) with the Iowa Secretary of State within that time period.

If you don't use the Iowa Company Name which you have Reserved you can Reserve it again unless some other Iowa Business has Reserved the Name before you do.

If you are ready to Reserve an Iowa Company Name Online now, simply fill in the Company Name Reservation Order Form below and press the Place Order button. If you have any questions you can call us at 855-771-2477 or email us at CorpServices@AllBizDocs.com.