Alberta Corporate Registry - Trade Names 101
So, you have been thinking of paying the Alberta corporate registry
office a visit. You have taken the plunge - you have a great business
idea, wrote your business plan to map your success and are now ready to
make things 'official'. Indeed, for many business owners, going to the
Alberta corporate registry office and applying to register one's
business name is crossing that invisible line between thinking and
planning of going into business and actually establishing one.
Alberta Corporate Registry - Should You Register a Trade Name?
Before you go to the Alberta corporate registry, evaluate first if you
should establish a corporation of simply register a trade name or sole
proprietorship. A trade name is a business name that is registered to a
person or a corporation that characterizes the following.
-
is primarily
engaged in the business of trading (i.e., the exchange of goods and /
or services)
-
is solely owned and is not related in partnership to another person(s)
-
utilizes a
business name other than owner's own (e.g., a fictitious business name
like John's Fruit Cart)
- utilizes the
owner's own name with the addition of "and company" or any other
company designation indicating more members in the company; however,
the trade name cannot use the words limited, limited partnership,
corporation, incorporated or any variation of these company designations
If your business is small and is most likely only owned by you, then
registering for a trade name or sole proprietorship at the Alberta
corporate registry is what most people prefer to do. However, do note
that going to the Alberta corporate registry and opting for a trade
name is to establish a business that is an extension of one's self.
This means that all the revenues from your business will be jotted down
as your personal income. Further, any liabilities that may occur will
fall on your shoulders. For instance, should the business fail and you
find yourself in debt, debtors have a legal claim on your personal
possessions (to pay off the debt).
Alberta Corporate Registry - Researching if your Trade Name is Already Taken
The first thing that you should do before you go trekking to the
Alberta corporate registry is to check if the trade name you have in
mind is already taken. Unfortunately, many people do not do this early
during the business planning stage and before you know it, they have
already made plans about the great, and catchy business name they
thought of... but cannot use it because somebody else beat them to the
Alberta corporate registry doors and thus owns it already.
So what do you do? Get an Alberta Business Name Report (a.k.a. Newly
Upgraded Automated Name Search or NUANS report). The report basically
checks if your proposed trade name is already filed in the Alberta
corporate registry or not. If not, the report checks which currently
existing ones are deemed to close to it. For instance, if John's Fruit
Market is already registered at the Alberta corporate registry, John's
Fruit Markt may be disapproved since it resembles the previous one too
much.
However, if the NUANS report sees that your proposed trade name is not
available, it will reserve that name for a period of 90 days for you.
This is worthy to note because other business name search report
services in Alberta do not offer this 'reservation' service.
The NUANS report is not just a document 'for your information'. The
original documents (all 6 pages of it) or a carbon copy of the set
should be sent to the Alberta corporate registry or your preferred
registry agent as part of the steps to establish your business.
Assuming that your proposed trade name is all yours to register, simply
fill out the Declaration of Trade Name form and then seek a Corporate
Registry Service provider to help your register your business.