Ohio Business Entity Search

Ohio Business Entity Search allows you access to the state’s database of existing business entities. This is a very useful function that could be used for better administration of your own company, getting relevant information on other businesses, and other similar activities. 

One of the key aspects of the business entity search is in using it to check the viability for the name of your new Ohio LLC or another business. As with most other states, Ohio requires the name of your LLC to be unique and distinguishable upon record. 

Doing a search through existing entities can help you check the viability and availability of the name you intend to use. While we are specifically talking of Ohio LLC Name Search, the search process remains similarly valid for other business entities, like corporations. 

Accessing Ohio Secretary Of State Business Search

The Ohio Business Database is a collection of filings and records submitted to and approved by the Ohio Secretary of State. As such, the Ohio Secretary of State Business Search includes relevant information on several business entities, including LLCs and Corporations.

Ohio Business Entity Search database is fairly expansive and includes almost all entity structures and entities registered with the state. Additionally, you can also find information on Trademarks, Service marks, and Name Reservations. Apart from other considerations, this makes it very easy to conduct an Ohio business name availability search when you’re creating a new entity.

The database and search are maintained by the office of the Ohio Secretary of State and are available online.



Working With The Ohio Business Entity Search Page

Detailed as the Ohio entity search is, there are several options available. While this is a good thing, it’s also necessary to consider the right way to conduct the search. Some states also call their entity search page as the corporation search, even if it’s a misnomer. 

In that sense, the OH corporation search provides a lot of options. It’s worth noting that for Ohio, this search will provide results based on all entities registered with the state.

The page is broadly divided into four sections:

  • General Information
  • Business Search
  • Trademark/Service Mark Search
  • Help (this is the help section for the entity search in Ohio)

Amongst these, our primary consideration is the Business Search section. 

Ohio Business Search For Entities

The business search section on the database offers the following options. Many of these have further sections and details that are listed here.

  • Business Name: This is the simplest and most useful option available. You can simply enter the name of a business and press the search button. The database will list results that best match the search query. More details on this function are available in the section below. 
  • Exact Name: The search query must be an exact name of the entity being requested. 
  • Prior Business Name: Enter a relevant search query for a prior business entity name.
  • Agent/Registrant: Conduct a search using the name of the registrant or the Ohio Statutory Agent.
  • Organizer/Incorporator: Search for a business entity using the name of an organizer or incorporator.
  • Number Search: Search using the Doc-ID or entity number of the business entity. This is an exact search and will return only one result corresponding to the number entered.

Understanding The Ohio Business Name Search Better – Best For Ohio LLC Name Search

The Business Name search, as listed above, is perhaps the most powerful tool for Ohio LLC Name Search. It’s also very useful for conventional use in getting the details on some business entities. This is a versatile option, which is why it deserves greater attention and more details.

Once you reach the business name search, you can choose to filter entities based on one of the following criteria:

  • All
  • Active
  • Canceled
  • Dead

Business name search is not exact. It makes allowances so you can more easily find relevant businesses to your query. The tool has enough flexibility and functions to make the entire process easier and better.

To make the process easier (and as a way to get more results), the business name search ignores “stop words”. These are commonly used characters that may be used in a business name, but may not always be used by a person making the query. 

For example, if a business is registered as A.C.M.E. LLC., a conventional user may only search for ACME LLC. By ignoring the periods, the search function gets rid of details that might be insignificant for conventional results. Of course, if you prefer to be exact, you can still use the “Exact Name Search”.

The stop words ignored by the system include:

  • Words like A, and, but, the, an.
  • Entity name designators like LLC, L.L.C, INC, Corporation, LLP (and other variants of these designators).
  • Symbols like the period sign, quotation marks, underscore, plus sign, forward slash.

Additionally, the search allows the use of wild cards and boolean or logical operators. 

The wild cards available are:

  • Percent sign (%): Fills up partial characters for a word. For example, searching CON% will return results that have any characters after “con”. This includes, construct, construction, continent, etc.
  • Underscore sign (_): Fills up a single character. For example, searching for “b_t” will include words like bet, bot, bat, etc.
  • Boolean AND: Will return results that have both terms included. Searching Cat AND Dog will return business entities that have both Cat and Dog in their name.
  • Boolean OR: This returns results that have at least one term included. Searching Cat OR Dog will show entities that have either of the worlds in their name.
  • Boolean NOT: This function specifies what not to include in the results. Searching Cat NOT Dog will show entities that have the word Cat in their name, but not the word Dog.

How To Reserve A Business Name In Ohio

Reserving a business name is an option that many entrepreneurs find extremely useful. There can be several reasons for reserving a business name. You might have thought of an excellent name but aren’t ready to launch your business right away, you’re arranging finances and logistics, or you’re holding for tax reasons. 

Whatever be the reason, choosing to go with a name reservation can be helpful. This option blocks an entity name for your use for a few months, so that you can get things for your business in order.

Is It Mandatory To Reserve A Name In Ohio?

No, Ohio doesn’t require that you reserve a name for your business. Those who choose to do it usually do it for administrative or similar reasons. 

It might be a good idea to go for reservation if you have a specific name in mind. As we know, it can take a fair bit of effort and mind storming to get the right name. It’s fruitful to reserve that special name soon as you can.

However, if you see no special use in reserving a name, it’s perfectly okay to skip name reservation for your Ohio business. 

How Long Does A Name Reservation Last And What Does It Cost?

Once the Secretary of State accepts your request, the name reservation lasts for 180 days. There is no way to renew the name reservation. That said, the 180 days are a generous enough time to make the best of your name reservation.

The name reservation costs $39 and takes 3-7 business days to process. However, if you’re in a hurry, you can choose to pay more and expedite the process. Expedition fee is added to the original cost of the filing. The following options are available:

  • Expedite Service 1: This costs $100 and reduces the processing time to two business days.
  • Expedite Service 2: Costs $200 and is available only to walk-in customers. The processing time is reduced to one business day.
  • Expedite Service 3: Costs $300 and is available only to walk-in customers. The filing will be processed within four hours, if the document is delivered to the Client Service Center before 1 p.m.

Filing The Name Reservation Application In Ohio

The simplest way to file your Name Reservation Application is to do it online at the Ohio Business Portal. 

If you prefer to submit it by walk-in or by postal mail, you can download and fill form 534B available at the Filing Forms and Fee Schedule section of the Ohio SOS website. 

You can enter three names for reservation according to your order of preference. The office of the SOS will check these names for availability, starting with the first name. If the name is available, it will be reserved. If it’s not, they will move to the second name, and so on. Only one name can be reserved for each filing.

Though the three options give you some leeway, it’s a good idea to do a preliminary check of the names through the Ohio business entity search.