DBA · Rhode Island

How to File a Fictitious Name for an LLC in Rhode Island

By Edmond Hui · Last updated October 6, 2026

Short answer

Rhode Island requires an LLC that does business under a name other than its own to register a fictitious name. Rhode Island's law lets an LLC transact business under a fictitious name provided that it files a fictitious business name statement with the Secretary of State. We found no publication step for an LLC's fictitious name filing in Rhode Island.

Rhode Island Fictitious Name at a Glance

Requirement: Required
Where to file: Department of State Business Services Division
Fee: See Cost and renewal
How long it lasts: No fixed term
Newspaper notice: None found
File online: Yes

How an LLC Files

An LLC files the Fictitious Business Name Statement with the Department of State Business Services Division.

You can file online.

Rhode Island uses two different filings: an LLC files a fictitious business name statement, while a sole proprietor registers a trade name that covers a single city or town. Trade names moved from town clerks to the Department of State, with every municipality's records due there by January 1, 2026.

Open the filing office's site · Open the filing page

Cost and Renewal

The filing fee is $50.00. The Department of State's document library also lists a $2.50 enhanced fee next to the form without saying when it applies.

The registration has no fixed term.

The statement stays in effect until the LLC files a statement of abandonment of the name, or until the LLC is dissolved or its foreign registration is cancelled.

Publication

We found no publication step for an LLC's fictitious name filing in Rhode Island.

If you skip it

An LLC or a sole proprietor using an unfiled name cannot sue in a Rhode Island court on business done under it until the filing is made.

Sole proprietors

Rhode Island requires a sole proprietor whose business name is not their full name to register a trade name. A sole proprietor must register unless the business name is the owner's own name (last name with a first name, middle name or initials) and has no words that suggest other owners, and a general partnership is exempt if its name includes the surname of at least one partner. Each trade name covers business in one Rhode Island city or town, and trading under a trade name without registering it can be punished by a fine of up to $500 or up to one year in prison.

A sole proprietor files the Trade Name Certificate with the Department of State Business Services Division.

The filing fee is $20.00.

The registration must be renewed every year.

Renewals can only be filed online, between September 1 and November 30, starting the calendar year after registration. A trade name that is not renewed can be cancelled.

Renewal is free.

We found no publication step for a sole proprietor's trade name filing in Rhode Island.

Requirement	Required
Where to file	Department of State Business Services Division
Fee	$20.00
How long it lasts	Renewed every year
Newspaper notice	None found
File online	Yes

Next steps

Frequently Asked Questions

: Rhode Island requires an LLC that does business under a name other than its own to register a fictitious name. Rhode Island's law lets an LLC transact business under a fictitious name provided that it files a fictitious business name statement with the Secretary of State.
: An LLC files the Fictitious Business Name Statement with the Department of State Business Services Division.
: The filing fee is $50.00. The Department of State's document library also lists a $2.50 enhanced fee next to the form without saying when it applies.
: The registration has no fixed term. The statement stays in effect until the LLC files a statement of abandonment of the name, or until the LLC is dissolved or its foreign registration is cancelled.
: We found no publication step for an LLC's fictitious name filing in Rhode Island.
: An LLC or a sole proprietor using an unfiled name cannot sue in a Rhode Island court on business done under it until the filing is made.
: Rhode Island requires a sole proprietor whose business name is not their full name to register a trade name. A sole proprietor must register unless the business name is the owner's own name (last name with a first name, middle name or initials) and has no words that suggest other owners, and a general partnership is exempt if its name includes the surname of at least one partner. Each trade name covers business in one Rhode Island city or town, and trading under a trade name without registering it can be punished by a fine of up to $500 or up to one year in prison. A sole proprietor files the Trade Name Certificate with the Department of State Business Services Division.

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 Rhode Island 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.

webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE7/7-16/7-16-9.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 7-16-9, Name; Fictitious business names
webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE6/6-1/6-1-1.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 6-1-1, Filing of business trade name requirements
webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE6/6-1/6-1-1.1.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 6-1-1.1, Definitions
webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE6/6-1/6-1-2.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 6-1-2, Indexes; Filing fee
webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE6/6-1/6-1-3.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 6-1-3, Corporations; Partnership names
webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE6/6-1/6-1-4.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 6-1-4, Penalty for violations
webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE6/6-1/6-1-6.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 6-1-6, Failure to file
webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE6/6-1/6-1-7.htmR.I. Gen. Laws 6-1-7, Renewal or cancellation
docs.sos.ri.gov/documents/BusinessServices/Fictitious_Name_vs_Trade_Name.pdfRhode Island Department of State, Fictitious Name vs. Trade Name
sos.ri.gov/divisions/business-services/ri-trade-namesRhode Island Department of State, Information for Rhode Island Trade Names
sos.ri.gov/divisions/business-services/ri-trade-names/register-trade-nameRhode Island Department of State, Register a Trade Name
sos.ri.gov/divisions/business-services/ri-trade-names/maintain-update-trade-name/annual-renewalRhode Island Department of State, File Annual Renewal
docs.sos.ri.gov/DocumentLibrarySearch?d=fictitiousRhode Island Department of State, Document Library (fictitious)
docs.sos.ri.gov/documents/BusinessServices/624B-fictitious-business-name-statement-Limited-Liability-Company.pdfRhode Island Department of State, Form 624B, Limited Liability Company Fictitious Business Name Statement

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.