How to Change Your Alabama Business Name

How to Get a New Business Name

If you want to change a business name in Alabama, you need to do some prep work. We break down the general steps for you below. 

1.) Choose a new business name

When picking a new name for your business, you have many options. But you need to follow a handful of state rules.  In general, your business’s new name needs to:

• Contain appropriate words or abbreviations that indicate what kind of business you’re running (e.g., LLC, corporation, etc.)
• Be distinguishable from names already in use by other businesses that are on file with the Alabama Secretary of State

It’s pretty simple to include words that clearly describe the kind of business you’re running. But it can be more difficult to check that your business’s new name is distinguishable. We make it easy with our Business Name Checker.  

2.) Gather information for filing your amendment

When you file an Amendment to Certificate of Incorporation or a Certificate of Amendment to change your business’s name, you need to include multiple pieces of information. Normally, LLC and corporation owners need the following information to change business names: 

• The business’s current name
• The business’s Alabama Entity Identification Number
• The date the business filed its Certificate of Incorporation (for corporations) or Certificate of Formation (for LLCs)
• The date the business adopted the name change
• Information about how the business adopted the amendment or a certification that the business properly adopted the amendment 
• A Name Reservation Certification
• Information about the business’s previous amendments
• A filing fee payment 
• The signature of an appropriate party

When you file your name change document by mail, you must mail two copies to the Secretary of State, and you must include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. 

3.) File your Alabama amendment

You can file your name change paperwork by mail, by courier, or through the Secretary of State’s Online Portal. The Secretary of State accepts checks, money orders, and credit cards for payment of your filing fee. 

Changing your business name can be important work, but you don’t have to do the work on your own. We can handle this task for you with our Amendment Filing Service. 

After You Change Your Business Name

There are other important considerations after you legally change your business name. These include:

• Changing your business name on contracts, loans, and business checking accounts
• Changing employment contacts
• Reviewing marketing materials like business cards, stationery, website materials, logos, and more

Taking care of these little things at the start can avoid confusion as you move forward with your new name.

We can help

Who says change always has to be hard? Well, it doesn’t. We can make changes to your business easily with our Amendment Filing Service. If you don’t have an LLC or corporation yet, our Alabama LLC and Alabama Corporation Formation Services can help turn your dream into a business owner quickly! 

We can also help you keep your business legally compliant with our Worry-Free Compliance Service, which includes up to two amendment filings per year. We’re here to support new businesses because we want entrepreneurs like you to succeed!