Fictitious Business Name (DBA):

• A DBA is necessary if you are operating a business using any variation of your name or creating a new name. If you are the sole proprietor of your business you may use your official legal name without creating a DBA.
• Article on who should use a "Fictitious Business Name."
• DBAs are filed with the State/County/City that you will be doing business in
• You will need to put an ad in a paper that is specified by the registrar
• Banks usually require a DBA before you can open an account
• Sole proprietorships may use their SSN but partnerships, LLCs, LLPs, must use a Federal Tax ID
• Look online under the county registrar-recorder/county clerk
• Search the website for "DBA name search" to see if your business name is available
• DBA fees vary by state/county/city but are much cheaper if you fill out the forms online through the county website vs hiring an agency to do it.