If you run a business in Texas under any name that isn’t your own legal name or your entity’s exact registered name, yes, you need to file a DBA — formally called an assumed name certificate under Chapter 71 of the Texas Business and Commerce Code. Whether you file with your county clerk or with the Texas Secretary of State depends on how your business is organized.
Who Has to File
The requirement turns on your business structure and the name you actually use with customers.
Sole proprietors. You must file if your business name doesn’t include your surname. Maria Lopez operating as “Sunrise Bakery” needs a certificate. “Lopez Bakery” wouldn’t trigger the requirement on its own. But add anything that hints at other owners — “& Company,” “& Son,” “& Associates,” “Brothers” — and the name counts as assumed even with your surname in it.
General partnerships. You must file if the business name doesn’t include the surname of every general partner. Pat Chen and Sam Rivera doing business as “Greenfield Landscaping” need a certificate because neither surname appears.
LLCs, corporations, limited partnerships, and other filing entities. You must file if you do business under any name other than the exact legal name on your certificate of formation. Even dropping “LLC” or “Inc.” from your name in everyday use creates an assumed name that triggers a filing.1State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 71 – Section: 71.002 Definitions
Where and How to File
Texas splits assumed name filings into two tracks.
Sole Proprietors and General Partnerships: County Clerk
File with the county clerk in every county where you keep business premises. If you don’t have a physical location, file in each county where you conduct business.2State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 71 – Section: 71.054 Place of Filing Fees vary by county but generally run around $18 to $23, with small additional charges for each extra owner listed. Some counties require the form to be notarized before they’ll accept it. Call the clerk’s office to confirm the fee schedule and whether notarization is required.
LLCs, Corporations, and Other Filing Entities: Secretary of State
File Form 503 with the Texas Secretary of State, either through the SOSDirect online portal or by mail.3Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Name Filings FAQs – Section: Assumed Name Certificates The fee is $25.4Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Form 503 – Instructions for Assumed Name Certificate No notarization required. The form has to be signed by an officer, general partner, member, manager, or authorized representative. Since 2019, filing entities no longer need to file a duplicate certificate at the county level — one state filing covers you.5State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 71 – Section: 71.103 Place of Filing
After processing, you’ll receive an acknowledgment or stamped copy. Keep it with your business records; banks will ask for it when you open an account under the assumed name.
What Goes on the Certificate
The county form and state Form 503 differ slightly, but both ask for the same core information:
- The assumed name, exactly as you’ll use it
- Your full legal name, or the entity name exactly as it appears on your certificate of formation
- Your entity type
- How long you plan to use the name, up to a ten-year maximum
- Each county where you’ll do business under the name
- Your principal office address, with both mailing and street addresses if they differ
Filing entities also identify the state or jurisdiction where they were formed.6State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 71 – Section: 71.102 Contents of Certificate One thing to note: the name doesn’t have to be unique. Texas won’t reject a filing just because another business already uses the same name.
How Long It Lasts and What to Do When Things Change
A Texas assumed name certificate is valid for up to ten years from the filing date, and you pick the duration when you file.7Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Form 503 – Assumed Name Certificate – Section: Period of Duration When it expires, its legal standing lapses automatically. To keep using the name, file a new certificate before the current one runs out.
You can’t amend an existing certificate. If information changes mid-term — a new principal office, a new partner — you file a statement of abandonment for the old certificate and a new certificate with the updated details. The abandonment fee with the Secretary of State is $10.8Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Business Filings and Trademarks Fee Schedule If you stop using the name entirely, a statement of abandonment clears the record.9State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 71 – Section: 71.153 Abandonment of Use of Business or Professional Name
What Happens If You Don’t File
Skipping the filing has both civil and criminal consequences.
Civilly, you can’t bring a lawsuit or legal proceeding in a Texas court under the assumed name until you file the required certificate. Your contracts stay enforceable, and you can still defend yourself in court — but you lose the ability to sue under the assumed name until you correct the filing. A court may also order you to pay the other side’s expenses, including attorney’s fees, for the trouble of tracking you down.10State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 71 – Section: 71.201 Civil Action Sanction
Criminally, intentionally violating Chapter 71 is a Class A misdemeanor, carrying up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $4,000. Filing a fraudulent certificate — one with a material false statement, a forged signature, or a signature by someone without authority — is a separate offense under the tampering-with-government-records provisions of the Penal Code.11State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 71 – Section: 71.203 Criminal Penalty Fraudulent Filing
What a Texas DBA Does Not Do
A DBA is a public-notice filing. It connects a name to an owner. It does not give you exclusive rights to that name. Another business anywhere in Texas can file the same assumed name and the state or county won’t stop them. If you want legal ownership of your brand, that’s a federal trademark through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, not a DBA.12USPTO. How Trademarks and Trade Names Differ
A DBA also does not change your federal tax situation. You don’t need a new Employer Identification Number just because you’re adding or changing a business name, and this applies across sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLCs, and corporations.13Internal Revenue Service. When to Get a New EIN On Form SS-4, your legal name goes on Line 1 and the trade name on Line 2. You can use either name on your tax returns, but pick one and stay consistent to avoid processing delays.14Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4
Federal Beneficial Ownership Reporting
Separate from Texas rules, many businesses have to file a Beneficial Ownership Information Report with FinCEN under the Corporate Transparency Act. If you use a DBA, list it as an alternate name on that report.15Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Beneficial Ownership Information Report Filing Instructions The BOI program has been through repeated legal challenges, so check FinCEN’s current guidance before you file.