To do a search for business names in Montana, go to the Business Entity Search.
State law, 35-1-308, MCA, requires a business name to be distinguishable in the records of the secretary of state from the name of another business currently on file with our office.
Business identifiers (and their abbreviations) are not considered distinguishable. Examples: Incorporated, Inc, Corporation, Corp, Company, Co, Limited, LTD, Professional Corporation, PC, Limited Liability Company, LLC, Limited Company, LC, Limited Liability Partnership, LLP, Limited Partnership, LP, Partnership |
Examples of Business Names:
New Business |
Business on File with SOS |
Name Acceptable for Filing |
ABC Trails, LLC. |
ABC Trails of Montana, Inc. |
Yes, adding a word or words to the name makes it distinguishable |
ABC Café Corporation |
ABC Cafe, Inc. |
No, business identifiers are not considered distinguishable |
ABC Trucks, Inc. |
ABC Truck, Inc |
No, Plurals are not considered distinguishable. |