Arkansas fictitious name filing guide

Arkansas uses two different filing layers, and the business’s legal form decides where to start. Sole proprietors and general partnerships using an assumed name typically use the County Clerk in every county where the business operates or intends to operate. The official Faulkner County implementation quotes the statewide assumed-name rule, identifies sole proprietorships and general partnerships as the usual users, and provides a county certificate. An LLC or corporation follows a Secretary of State fictitious-name path instead. Current Arkansas law says a domestic or foreign LLC may not conduct business under a fictitious name until it files with the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State gives the same mandatory direction for domestic and foreign corporations, while adding a second step for a domestic corporation: file the returned copy with the county clerk for its registered office unless that office is in Pulaski County. This page therefore does not collapse four entity types into one generic DBA instruction.

Begin by confirming whether the business is a sole proprietor, general partnership, LLC, or corporation. A sole proprietor or general partnership should identify each Arkansas county where it conducts or intends to conduct business and contact that county’s County Clerk for its current assumed-business-name certificate, delivery methods, and fee. Faulkner County’s official page is an example, not a statewide fee schedule: it offers an Assumed Business Name Certificate, requires notarization, and accepts the filing in person or by mail for $25. Another county may publish a different form, address, or charge, so this guide deliberately does not turn Faulkner County’s local details into an Arkansas-wide promise. An LLC or corporation can download the Secretary of State’s current DN-18/F-18 Application for Fictitious Name. The form instructs paper filers to send it to Business Services in Little Rock. The current forms tables list $22.50 online and $25 paper for a domestic LLC or corporation. The linked online endpoint returned 403 during review, so the guide keeps that path blocked instead of claiming it is available.

The reviewed statewide and county materials do not publish a general expiration date or recurring renewal interval for these assumed-name and fictitious-name records. Those fields stay explicitly unverified; the guide does not infer that a record lasts forever simply because no renewal row appeared. Arkansas does publish cancellation actions. A sole proprietor or general partnership can ask the applicable County Clerk for the current withdrawal certificate; Faulkner County provides a Certificate of Withdrawal that cites Arkansas Code section 4-70-204. For an LLC or corporation, the Secretary of State publishes a Cancellation of Fictitious Name form. That form currently lists $25 for a for-profit corporation or LLC and $15 for several partnership entity types. The forms tables also list a $25 paper transfer/cancellation action for domestic LLCs and corporations. A domestic corporation must not overlook the county-copy rule stated in the Secretary of State FAQ: after the state filing, the returned copy goes to the county clerk for the registered office unless the office is in Pulaski County. Confirm the current record and both offices whenever the name, entity status, or registered office changes.

Choose the row that matches the legal form before opening a form. Sole proprietors and general partnerships should contact the County Clerk in every Arkansas county where the business will operate, request the current assumed-name certificate, and verify the local fee and submission method. LLCs and corporations should use the current Secretary of State DN-18/F-18 PDF, confirm the live $22.50 online or $25 paper charge, and use the paper instructions while the official online destination remains blocked. A domestic corporation outside Pulaski County should also verify the county-clerk copy step for its registered office. Keep the accepted filing and any county copy together, and use the authority’s cancellation or withdrawal document when the business stops using the name. Name filing does not necessarily create an exclusive right to use the name, and it does not form an entity or replace trademark review. This site receives no applications, names, addresses, signatures, credentials, or payments and does not promote a paid filing service.