If you’re searching for the perfect business name for your New Hampshire C Corporation, we can help. We’ve got all the information you need on how to conduct a New Hampshire SOS business search, plus business naming rules, trade names and trademarks.
General Rules for Corporation Names
These rules generally apply to all corporations, wherever they're formed.
The name you select cannot be in use by any other business in the state. This is why it's so important to perform a New Hampshire Secretary of State corporation search before you begin your incorporation paperwork.
It’s not enough for your corporation name to be unique. It also cannot be similar to the name of another business in the state. In addition, you cannot use any of the following features in an attempt to differentiate your corporation name from that of another business:
- Suffixes, such as Corporation, Company, Incorporated, Incorporation, Limited, Corp., Co., Inc., etc.
- Definite articles, such as “A,” “An” or “The”
- The conjunction "And" or “&"
- Numbers in place of numerals (or vice versa), e.g., "One World" is the same as "1 World"
- The singular, plural or possessive forms of words
- Abbreviations, punctuation, symbols, fonts, typefaces, etc.
All corporations must use one of the following in their names, usually at the end of the name: “Incorporated,” “Corporation,” “Limited” or their abbreviations.
Most states will not allow you to incorporate with names that:
- Are similar to the name of a federal or state agency or organization (e.g., FBI, FDA, New Hampshire Department of Labor, New Hampshire Rangers, Treasury, etc.)
- Suggest affiliation with a federal or state agency or organization
- Use the term “Olympic” or any terms that are trademarks of the International Olympic Committee
- Imply a purpose that would be illegal for your business to carry out
Specific Rules for New Hampshire Business Names
Although New Hampshire doesn't have any distinct naming regulations, you'll still need to follow some New Hampshire corporation laws that apply to naming your business.
For example, per the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Title 27, Title 293-A, § 293-A:4.01, a corporate name:
"must contain the word "corporation," "incorporated," or "limited," or the abbreviation "corp.," "inc.," or "ltd.," or words or abbreviations of like import in another language."
Coming Up with the Ideal Business Name
The perfect business name can be difficult to find. We have a complete guide to deciding on the right business name, but essentially, you'll want to choose a name that will:
Appeal to your customers
Be memorable enough to stand out
Best represent your product or services
Not be used by another business
Need help coming up with business name ideas? Try our free name generator.
New Hampshire Corporation Name Search
Once you have an idea of the name you want, perform a New Hampshire business lookup to make sure another company isn't already using that name.
You can use the state's business lookup to perform a name search. Or, you can use Incfile's simple and convenient Business Name Search tool, which will search the state's business registry for you.
Trademarks and Service Marks
You must be careful that your New Hampshire corporation name doesn't infringe on the trademark or service mark of another business. The easiest way to ensure you're not infringing is to perform a trademark search through Incfile. If the trademark isn't already in use, you can even register it yourself.
Let Incfile run a trademark search for you.
Register a DBA in New Hampshire
You may do business under a name different from your corporation's legal name. While many states refer to this as a fictitious name, assumed name or "doing business as" (DBA), it's a trade name in New Hampshire. You may decide to use a trade name for a variety of reasons.
For example, your primary business may be called High Line Technologies, Inc., and you have a chain called High Line Installations. You could register a trade name just for that brand. You'd do that with the Application for Registration of Trade Name form, or you can have Incfile do it on your behalf with our DBA service.
In order to keep your business names unique, you can also use the New Hampshire SOS online portal. Perform a New Hampshire trade name search to find out whether any other companies are already using the trade name you want. We can also help you with this via our DBA name service.
Note: A trade name is not the same as a trademark. Learn more about trademark vs. DBA.
Register Your Business Name with the New Hampshire SOS
You’ve performed a New Hampshire Secretary of State corporation search, checked availability, followed the naming rules and determined whether you need a trade name. Now you can register your corporation name in one of two ways.
If you don’t want to form your corporation right away, you can reserve the business name. You'll do this by completing an Application for Reservation of Name form and filing it with the New Hampshire SOS. The name will be reserved for 120 days. If you're starting your business right away, you don't need to reserve a name.
If you’re ready to start your corporation, you can indicate your desired business name when you file your Articles of Incorporation with the New Hampshire SOS. Or you can have Incfile do this for you.
Create a Corporation in New Hampshire for $0 + State Fee ($300)
FAQs About Naming Your Corporation in New Hampshire
Use our free Business Name Search tool and enter your chosen business name. You can also perform a search of the state's registry, which will tell you whether any other corporations or businesses in the state are already using that name.
Yes. Most corporations will be bound by general rules (applicable to all corporations) and specific rules (applicable in the state of New Hampshire). We’ve detailed these rules above.
Yes. You can conduct business under a trade name. Details are above.
Yes. The New Hampshire SOS allows you to reserve a name if you're not ready to start your business immediately. Details are above. If you do want to start your business right away, you don't need to reserve a name.
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