How it works. Pick the state, who owns the name and the date the registration was filed. You get the expiry or renewal date, when the renewal window opens, the state fee where we confirmed it, and any newspaper deadline, with the official link.
Find your DBA renewal or expiry date
California business name rules
- Called
- fictitious business name (FBN) statement
- Where to file
- The county clerk where the principal place of business is. There's no state or national registry. LLCs and corporations file with the county too; Los Angeles asks for a Secretary of State good-standing printout.
- Fee
- No state fee. Each county sets its own: $26 in Los Angeles and $45 in Tulare for one name and one registrant.
- How long it lasts
- Expires five years from the filing date unless abandoned sooner. Renew by refiling; a renewal with no changes doesn't need to be published again (San Luis Obispo, Tulare).
- Newspaper notice
- Once a week for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the filing county. Los Angeles says to start within 30 days of filing; San Luis Obispo and Tulare say 45 days. San Luis Obispo wants the affidavit of publication within 45 days after the last run.
- Online filing
- Some counties take filings online (Los Angeles); San Luis Obispo's portal still needs an in-person visit within 30 days.
Add the filing date above to put this on a date. Source: Tulare County Clerk-Recorder: Fictitious business names FAQ
Reading the result
"Expires" is the last day the registration runs under the state's rule. "Renewal can be filed from" is the start of the window the state allows, such as six months before in Texas, Ohio and Maryland, 90 days in North Dakota or July 1 in Florida. Where a state's pages describe a renewal without a fixed length, as Minnesota's annual renewal does, you get the rule in words.
For every state at once, see DBA registration by state.
General information, not legal advice; we are not lawyers. Checked November 2026 against the official pages linked in each result. Fees and forms change, and a county or town office can add its own steps, so confirm with the filing office before you file. We don't file DBAs or trade names for anyone.
Questions about the calculator
How does the calculator count?
It reads the state's rule from our table and counts from the filing date you enter. A five-year rule lands on the same day five years later (February 29 becomes February 28). Florida and Alaska run to December 31 of the fifth year, Michigan's state filings to December 31 of the fifth full calendar year, and Colorado's individual trade names to the first day after the anniversary month.
Which date counts as the filing date?
The date the office accepted or filed the registration, as shown on your certificate or the state's record. Maryland counts from SDAT's acceptance and Arizona from the date the office receives it. If your certificate shows an expiration date, that date wins over this calculator.
How are the newspaper deadlines worked out?
Only from day counts an official page states: Illinois' 15 days to start and 50 days for proof, California's 30-day start (45 days in some counties) and four weekly runs, Florida's notice before filing. Where a page names no deadline, as in Georgia and Minnesota, the result says so instead of inventing one.
Why does it ask whether an LLC or a person owns the name?
Several states file and time them differently. Texas certificates from the Secretary of State and the county run on separate rules, Colorado entity trade names last as long as the entity is in good standing, and Illinois ties an LLC's or corporation's name to its anniversary month.
Does the calculator store what I enter?
No. The page reads your choices from the address bar, works out the dates on the server and shows them. Nothing is saved, and it works without JavaScript.