NY LLC Lookup

NY LLC lookup refers to the search for limited liability companies (LLCs) in the state of New York. Generally, this is done through the Department of State Division of Records in New York. Whether you are looking to see if a name is taken or just to do some research on an existing business, the steps are the same.

Search for Name in New York State

A new business in the state of New York must choose a name. This is a very important step for any company. Opinions vary wildly on naming your business successfully. Memorable, professional, easy to say and spell, and descriptive names are often best. Once a company selects an appropriate name, it must discover if the name is available. Of course, the state of New York, like every other state, has guidelines for names.

The Department of State Division of Records provides a searchable database on their webpage. You can find out if the name you’ve selected is already in use or look up the status of an existing registered entity.

Often, people conduct a business entity search to get information. This information may include whether the entity was formed legally, if the entity is in good standing, the address of the business, and the address of the registered agent of the business.

A new business may want to check for the availability of their name for a website. While a website may not be an immediate need, securing it will prevent others from obtaining it. Once your business is ready to take its business to the internet, you don’t want to be surprised that someone already owns it or is doing business with that name. If you would like to check the availability of your website name, do so on a domain name availability checker.

Process of Search in New York

Go to the Department of State Division of Records site. You can search like any other website, by entering the name into the search bar. Filter the search to look only for active entities.

There are three other ways to filter the search:

  • Using the first three letters of the name
  • Searching for single or multiple words
  • Using parts of words

As with most searches, a page of results will come up. Click on the name for which you were searching to pull up more robust information. There are navigation buttons at the bottom of the page to help look between pages. The page for each entity will include stock information, status, address, and even any registered agent.

When an application is made on the New York Department of State website, you will put in the name, and the site will tell you whether that name is available or not. If the name is available, then continue with the application.

Names that Work

Your limited liability company’s name must end with either LLC, L.L.C., or the words Limited Liability Company. The most common choice is LLC because of its brevity. It is prohibited to imply that your limited liability company is a corporation. Therefore, words like incorporated, corporation, or the abbreviated forms of those words cannot be used in the name of a limited liability company.

The name of an LLC must also be able to be distinguished from other organizations who are registered with the state. So, you cannot have a name that is substantially similar to another entity.

In the creation of distinguishability, the following are not adequate:

  • Designators (i.e., Inc. or LLC)
  • Possessive, plural or singular differences
  • Articles (i.e., The or An)
  • Conjunctions (i.e., Or or &)
  • Numbers written or not (I.e., 3 or three)

It is recommended that the name of your limited liability company is easy to say and spell so that people can easily find the business when looking. Some people advise that your name should be shorter because it makes the name easier to remember.

If you need help with forming a new business, setting up an LLC, any other corporate structure or any legal need, you can post your legal need (or post your job) on UpCounsel’s marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5-percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law, and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with, or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.