Trade Name Information

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Trade Name Look Up


Register a Trade Name 

 

A Certificate of Trade Name: Is required by § 35-1 of the Connecticut General Statutes. The Penalty for failure to file a Trade Name Certificate is $500.00.

Currently, a name can be registered through the mail after a responsible party checks the current database.  

To register you must print, fill out the Trade Name Registration Form, sign it and send it in with your check.

NOTE: All registrants must sign the certificate. The original signed form (with acknowledgement), must be filed with the Town Clerk. Copies are not accepted.

The Town Clerk maintains an alphabetical listing of all registered trade names filed in the City of Stamford. The proposed trade name of the business must be researched in the Office of the Town Clerk to insure that the proposed trade name has not already been previously issued.

Once the research has been completed, a Trade Name Registration can be issued.

The fee to file a Trade Name is $10.00, which includes one certified copy.  

If your business is a corporation or LLC, you must file with the Connecticut Secretary of State, prior to filing your DBA name in Stamford. 

You may also call the Secretary of State at (860) 509-6200 or (800) 540-3764. 

The Secretary of State's Office offers various information on their website helpful to those considering opening a new business.

You must also obtain State and Federal Tax Identification Numbers.

Contact the Internal Revenue Service for a federal ID Number and to get necessary Forms.

  • The phone number is (800) 829-1040 

For the Connecticut ID Number, go to the Department of Revenue Services website for Forms and information.

  • The phone number is (800) 382-9463.


Information on Trade Names

Trade name registration does not apply to:

  1. Partnerships, if the partnership name includes the true surname of at least one of the persons composing said partnership;

  2. Limited partnerships which have registered with the Connecticut Secretary of State;

  3. Limited liability companies which have registered with the Connecticut Secretary of State.

Certain words related to banks, trusts and savings are prohibited from use.

Connecticut State Law states, in part, that “No person…shall conduct…business in this state under any assumed name or under any designation, name or style, corporate or otherwise, other than the real name or names of the persons conducting such business, unless there has been filed in the Office of the Town Clerk in the town in which such business is to be conducted, a certificate stating the name under which the business will be conducted and the full name and post office address of each person conducting such business or, in the case of a corporation or limited liability company, by an authorized officer thereof, and acknowledged before some authority authorized to administer oaths.”

Special Note to Contractors: You MUST register with the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection.

Public Act 94-68 authorizes the Commissioner of the Department of Consumer Protection to impose civil penalties ranging up to $1500 per violation. 

You may phone (860) 566-3290 or (800) 842-2649 for an application.