DBA · Washington

How to File a Trade Name for an LLC in Washington

By Edmond Hui · Last updated October 6, 2026

Short answer

Washington requires an LLC that does business under a name other than its own to register a trade name. An LLC or corporation must register any name it uses other than the name registered with the Secretary of State. An LLC files the Business License Application with the Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service.

Washington Trade Name at a Glance

Requirement: Required
Where to file: Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service
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 Business License Application with the Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service.

You can file online.

Washington trade names are registered with the Department of Revenue on the Business License Application, not with the Secretary of State. You can register as many trade names as you need, each for its own fee.

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

Cost and Renewal

The filing fee is $5.00. The fee is $5 for each trade name you register. It is paid on the Business License Application, which also carries its own processing fee.

The registration has no fixed term.

The registration stays in effect until you cancel it. The Department of Revenue may also cancel it when your business license account becomes inactive.

Publication

We found no publication step for an LLC's trade name filing in Washington.

Does it protect the name?

Registering does not give the LLC ownership of, or an exclusive right to, the name.

If you skip it

A business trading under an unregistered trade name cannot bring a lawsuit in a Washington court until it registers. Its contracts stay valid and it can still defend a lawsuit.

Sole proprietors

Washington requires a sole proprietor whose business name is not their full name to register a trade name. A sole proprietor or general partnership must register a name that does not include the full legal name of every owner. A name that adds words such as "company," "and sons" or "and associates" must also be registered.

A sole proprietor files the Business License Application with the Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service.

The filing fee is $5.00. The fee is $5 for each trade name you register. It is paid on the Business License Application, which also carries its own processing fee.

The registration has no fixed term.

The registration stays in effect until you cancel it. The Department of Revenue may also cancel it when your business license account becomes inactive.

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

A business trading under an unregistered trade name cannot bring a lawsuit in a Washington court until it registers. Its contracts stay valid and it can still defend a lawsuit.

Requirement	Required
Where to file	Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service
Fee	See Cost and renewal
How long it lasts	No fixed term
Newspaper notice	None found
File online	Yes

Next steps

Frequently Asked Questions

: Washington requires an LLC that does business under a name other than its own to register a trade name. An LLC or corporation must register any name it uses other than the name registered with the Secretary of State.
: An LLC files the Business License Application with the Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service.
: The filing fee is $5.00. The fee is $5 for each trade name you register. It is paid on the Business License Application, which also carries its own processing fee.
: The registration has no fixed term. The registration stays in effect until you cancel it. The Department of Revenue may also cancel it when your business license account becomes inactive.
: We found no publication step for an LLC's trade name filing in Washington.
: Registering does not give the LLC ownership of, or an exclusive right to, the name.
: A business trading under an unregistered trade name cannot bring a lawsuit in a Washington court until it registers. Its contracts stay valid and it can still defend a lawsuit.
: Washington requires a sole proprietor whose business name is not their full name to register a trade name. A sole proprietor or general partnership must register a name that does not include the full legal name of every owner. A name that adds words such as "company," "and sons" or "and associates" must also be registered. A sole proprietor files the Business License Application with the Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service.

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 Washington 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.

app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=19.80&full=trueRevised Code of Washington, Chapter 19.80, Trade Names
app.leg.wa.gov/WAC/default.aspx?cite=458-02&full=trueWashington Administrative Code 458-02-300, Trade names, Registration, Fees, Search, Changes
dor.wa.gov/manage-business/grow-business/register-trade-namesWashington Department of Revenue, Register trade names
dor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2022-03/700128.pdfWashington Department of Revenue, Business Bulletin 700 128, Trade Name Registration

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.