DBA · California

How to File a Fictitious Name for an LLC in California

By Edmond Hui · Last updated October 7, 2026

Short answer

California requires an LLC that does business under a name other than its own to register a fictitious name. An LLC files the Fictitious Business Name Statement with the county clerk in the county of the principal place of business. It must also publish notice of the filing in a newspaper.

California Fictitious Name at a Glance

Requirement: Required
Where to file: County office (county clerk)
Fee: Varies by county
How long it lasts: 5 years
Newspaper notice: Required
File online: Not confirmed

How an LLC Files

An LLC files in the county where it has its principal place of business in California, or with the Sacramento County clerk if it has no place of business in the state.

File within 40 days after starting to do business under the name.

An LLC files the Fictitious Business Name Statement with the county clerk in the county of the principal place of business.

Filing needs proof of identity.

California fictitious business names are filed with the county clerk, not the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of State does not check entity names against them. A refiling made within 40 days after the old statement expires does not need to be published again unless the information changed.

Open the filing office's site

Cost and Renewal

The state sets a default of $10.00, which each county may change. State law sets a $10 default fee for one name and one owner, plus $2 for each additional name or owner on the same statement, and each county board of supervisors may raise or lower it to cover its costs. Ask your county clerk for the current fee.

The registration has a 5-year term.

Publication

After filing, you must publish notice of the filing for 4 weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the statement was filed (or an adjoining county if that county has none), or in Sacramento County if the business has no place of business in California. You must arrange for the notice to be published within 45 days after the statement is filed. The affidavit of publication must be filed with the county clerk within 45 days after the publication ends.

Does it protect the name?

Filing creates a rebuttable presumption that the registrant has the exclusive right to use the name, and any confusingly similar name, as a trade name in the county where the statement is filed, if it is the first to file that name there and actually does business under it there. The filing does not by itself authorize using a name in violation of someone else's rights.

If you skip it

A business trading under an unfiled fictitious name cannot bring a lawsuit in a California court on a contract or transaction made under that name until the statement has been filed and published.

Sole proprietors

California requires a sole proprietor whose business name leaves out their surname to register a fictitious name. A sole owner needs a statement only when the business name leaves out the owner's surname or suggests other owners (such as Company, Sons, Associates or Brothers), and a general partnership when it leaves out any general partner's surname or suggests other owners, while words that only describe the business do not count. The statement is filed in the county of the principal place of business in California, or with the Sacramento County clerk if there is none in the state.

File within 40 days after starting to do business under the name.

A sole proprietor files the Fictitious Business Name Statement with the county clerk in the county of the principal place of business.

Filing needs proof of identity.

The registration has a 5-year term.

A business trading under an unfiled fictitious name cannot bring a lawsuit in a California court on a contract or transaction made under that name until the statement has been filed and published.

Requirement	Required
Where to file	County office (county clerk)
Fee	Varies by county
How long it lasts	5 years
Newspaper notice	Required
File online	Not confirmed

Next steps

Frequently Asked Questions

: California requires an LLC that does business under a name other than its own to register a fictitious name. An LLC files in the county where it has its principal place of business in California, or with the Sacramento County clerk if it has no place of business in the state. File within 40 days after starting to do business under the name.
: An LLC files the Fictitious Business Name Statement with the county clerk in the county of the principal place of business. Filing needs proof of identity.
: The state sets a default of $10.00, which each county may change. State law sets a $10 default fee for one name and one owner, plus $2 for each additional name or owner on the same statement, and each county board of supervisors may raise or lower it to cover its costs. Ask your county clerk for the current fee.
: The registration has a 5-year term.
: After filing, you must publish notice of the filing for 4 weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the statement was filed (or an adjoining county if that county has none), or in Sacramento County if the business has no place of business in California. You must arrange for the notice to be published within 45 days after the statement is filed. The affidavit of publication must be filed with the county clerk within 45 days after the publication ends.
: Filing creates a rebuttable presumption that the registrant has the exclusive right to use the name, and any confusingly similar name, as a trade name in the county where the statement is filed, if it is the first to file that name there and actually does business under it there. The filing does not by itself authorize using a name in violation of someone else's rights.
: A business trading under an unfiled fictitious name cannot bring a lawsuit in a California court on a contract or transaction made under that name until the statement has been filed and published.
: California requires a sole proprietor whose business name leaves out their surname to register a fictitious name. A sole owner needs a statement only when the business name leaves out the owner's surname or suggests other owners (such as Company, Sons, Associates or Brothers), and a general partnership when it leaves out any general partner's surname or suggests other owners, while words that only describe the business do not count. The statement is filed in the county of the principal place of business in California, or with the Sacramento County clerk if there is none in the state. A sole proprietor files the Fictitious Business Name Statement with the county clerk in the county of the principal place of business.

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It reports what each state's filing office publishes about registering a business name, with the sources this page cites. A filing here does not register a federal trademark, and fees and forms change between our reviews. Confirm with the office named on this page before you file.

Sources

Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified California sources, and each entry says what the document is. Some statutory text is read from an accurate mirror rather than from the state's own host, and those say so.

leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17910Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17910
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17900Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17900
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17915Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17915
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17913Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17913
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17917Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17917
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=GOV&sectionNum=6064Cal. Gov. Code 6064
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17920Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17920
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17929Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17929
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=GOV&sectionNum=54985Cal. Gov. Code 54985
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17918Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17918
sos.ca.gov/business-programs/business-entities/faqsCalifornia Secretary of State, Business Entities FAQs
sos.ca.gov/business-programs/business-entities/name-availabilityCalifornia Secretary of State, Name Availability
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17900Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17900
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17900Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17900(c)
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17913Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17913(d) and (f)
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17900Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17900(b)(2)
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=14411Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 14411
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17910Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17910(a)
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17917California Business and Professions Code section 17917
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17917California Business and Professions Code section 17917

Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC

Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.