Connecticut business entity search and name check

What the Connecticut search covers

Every business on the Connecticut registry, whatever its status: LLCs, stock and nonstock corporations, limited partnerships, LLPs, statutory trusts, benefit corporations and out-of-state businesses registered here. Name reservations appear too, marked Reserved or Expired Reservation.

When you search Connecticut here, keep in mind:

• Published by the Connecticut Secretary of the State as open data and refreshed nightly; same-day filings may not appear yet.
• Includes reserved names and expired reservations, which can also block a name while active.

Each record has a Business ALEI / Account Number (for example 0678408). Choose “Look up an existing business”, then “Registry number”, to search by it.

How to read Connecticut results

Connecticut uses its own status labels. We always show the official wording; here is what the common ones mean according to the state:

A status describes the registry filing only. It isn’t evidence of a license, tax compliance or reputation, and a record with the same name as a company you know may be a different business. More on statuses.

Connecticut business name rules

An LLC name must include one of: Limited Liability Company, LLC, L.L.C., Limited Liability Co., Ltd. Liability Company, Ltd. Liability Co.. A corporation uses one of: corporation, incorporated, company, Societa per Azioni, limited, corp., inc., co..

Your name must be distinguishable on the Secretary of the State's records from businesses that exist (not dissolved), out-of-state businesses registered here, and names that are reserved or registered. (C.G.S. 34-243k(b),(d)) Source: cga.ct.gov

When comparing names, Connecticut disregards: corporation, corp., incorporated, Inc.; professional corporation, P.C., PC; limited, Ltd.; limited partnership; professional limited liability company, P.L.L.C., PLLC; limited liability partnership, L.L.P., LLP. Our name check applies these same rules.

Words that need approval or are restricted

Professional LLCs

A professional LLC must end its name with P.L.L.C., PLLC or Professional Limited Liability Company.

Using a similar name with consent

Allowed. The business holding the similar name can consent in writing and promise to change its own name (C.G.S. 34-243k(c)). If the two names differ only by the entity ending, such as LLC versus Inc., consent alone is enough (34-243k(e)). A court judgment can also establish your right to the name (34-243k(g)).

Reserving a name in Connecticut

Connecticut lets you reserve a name before you form the business for $60, held for 120 days. Connecticut law doesn't say whether a reservation can be renewed, but the holder can transfer it to someone else.

File an Application for Reservation of Name online at business.ct.gov.

Connecticut name reservation Source: cga.ct.gov

Searching on this site doesn’t reserve anything. Only CT SOTS can.

Forming an LLC in Connecticut

Document

Certificate of Organization

State filing fee

$120
The $120 includes appointing your registered agent. The form asks for at least one member or manager, an email address for the business and a 6-digit NAICS industry code.

File online

CT SOTS filing

Processing

The state doesn't publish a standard processing time. Expedited service is available, but only for online filings.

Registered agent

An LLC can't be its own agent. The agent must be a Connecticut resident (a member or manager can serve) or a business on the Secretary of the State's records with a Connecticut address, and the agent must sign to accept the appointment.

Out-of-state LLC registering here

$120 (Foreign Registration Statement (with home-state certificate of legal existence issued within 90 days))

Fees change. Confirm them on the official Connecticut fee schedule before you file.

Keeping a Connecticut LLC in good standing

Annual Report: $80. File each year between January 1 and March 31, starting the year after the LLC is formed. There's no late fee, but an overdue LLC can't get a Certificate of Legal Existence and can be forfeited after more than a year in default. Late fee: $0. Source: business.ct.gov

Connecticut's Business Entity Tax ended for tax periods beginning after December 31, 2018. For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2024, the pass-through entity tax is an optional tax that can be elected each year.

Annual reports must be filed online. A stock corporation's annual report costs $150 and is due by the end of its anniversary month.

Proof of status: Certificate of Legal Existence ($50). Source: business.ct.gov

Assumed names (DBAs)

Trade names are filed with the town clerk where the business mainly operates, not with the state, on a form the Secretary of the State prescribes. A trade name certificate lasts 5 years and can be renewed starting 6 months before it expires. Certificates issued before January 1, 2025 expire December 31, 2029 unless renewed. The fee is set by C.G.S. 7-34a. Source: cga.ct.gov

Good to know about Connecticut

• The full registry, including principals, registered agents, filing history and past names, is free to download from data.ct.gov and updated nightly. The state no longer charges for the extract. Source: portal.ct.gov
• Every LLC files its annual report in the same window, January 1 to March 31, rather than in the month it was formed. Source: cga.ct.gov
• There's no late fee for an overdue annual report. Instead, the LLC can't get a Certificate of Legal Existence and risks being forfeited. Source: portal.ct.gov
• The formation document and the annual report ask for a NAICS industry code and an email address for the business. Source: cga.ct.gov
• Since January 1, 2025, trade names are registered with town clerks on certificates that must be renewed every 5 years. Source: cga.ct.gov
• Connecticut labels administratively dissolved businesses "Forfeited", not "Dissolved", and a forfeited business's name becomes available to others. Source: business.ct.gov

Sources and accuracy

We checked this page against official Connecticut sources on October 30, 2026. Our monitor rechecks the official search, filing portal and fee pages daily and flags changes for review.

See something wrong? Tell us. We can fix how we present information, but only CT SOTS can change an official record.