Reserving: A name reservation temporarily protects the name by giving the owner exclusive rights to the use of that name while a business or entity is being organized. You may reserve a business name if you are intending to do business using that name. A business reservation is valid for 120 days and is non-renewable.

Note: If the business name reservation has not expired but you are ready to use your reserved name please submit the following items together hardcopy:

• A notice to cancel your name reservation (which must include the entity number from the Certificate of Reservation; the notice must be signed by the applicant of the reservation). This will allow you to use your reserved name to create a business or entity using that same name.
• Your entity creation filing with the Corporations Section using the same name and/or a business license application to the Business License Section.

Registering: A name registration gives the owner the exclusive right to the use of that name. To register a name a current Business License is required. A registered name is valid for five years including any portion of the filing year, and is renewable between October 1st and December 31st of the year of expiration.

The names of the following entity types are registered automatically upon incorporation or organization by the Division: corporations; limited liability companies; limited liability partnerships; limited partnerships; cooperatives; non-profit corporations; foreign or domestic; Alaska religious corporations; professional corporations; or BIDCOs.

Exclusive right gives the person who reserved or registered the name the exclusive right to the use of that name. The person with exclusive rights may seek a court order to prohibit the use by another person of a name that is not distinguishable on record from the reserved or registered name. The person with exclusive rights may seek damages. Exclusive rights are exercised through the courts by the person with the exclusive rights. http://courts.alaska.gov/

Step 1: Determine if the name is distinguishable from another name on record by conducting a thorough search including, but not limited to: the internet; business license records; corporations records; professional license records; telephone directories; trade magazines; trademark records; and catalogs.

Distinguishable: Per Alaska Regulation 3 AAC 16.120, a name is distinguishable if:

• each name contains one or more different letters or numerals or has a different sequence of letters or numerals;
• one of the key words is different;
• the key words are the same, but they are in a different order;
• the key words are the same, but the spelling is creative, unusual, or artistic;
• the key words have a marked difference in meaning in their contexts and the words are not literally identical;
• the difference in key words is between how a number is expressed, as a numeral, Roman numeral, or word representing a numeral; or
• an "s" is added or deleted to make the word plural, singular, or possessive; and

• use of the words or abbreviations of the words "incorporated," "corporation," "company," "limited," "limited liability company," or "limited liability partnership," or use of the words "limited partnership," without abbreviation;
• differences in punctuation or special characters;
• differences in capitalization;
• differences in whether the letters or numbers immediately follow each other or are separated by a space if the sequence of letters or numbers is identical;
• the presence or absence of an article, preposition, or conjunction, or a symbol for that word, including "a," "an," "by," "for," "in," "plus," "the," "to," and "with."

Step 2: Avoid name restrictions.

• An unincorporated business may not use "incorporated" or "corporation" as part of its name, whereas an incorporated name must contain "corporation", "company", "incorporation", or "limited", or an abbreviation, as part of its name.
• A business name may not imply that the organization is a governmental unit, e.g. a city, village or borough.
• Names that mislead regarding corporate purpose are not allowed.
• Vulgar names are not allowed.
• Words used to identify goods and services, used as slogans in advertising or used to indicate association with an organization are trademarks or service marks and cannot be registered as business names. To file Trademarks in Alaska go to the Corporations Section's or filed under the federal Lanham Act.
• Words used to identify an internet domain name or internet address cannot be registered as business names.

Step 3: Begin the application process.

Reserve a Business or Corporation Name
A business reservation is valid for 120 days and is non-renewable. If you are intending to do business you may reserve your name while you organize. Complete the application and submit it along with the non-refundable $25.00 filing fee. To access the application click on the below link:

See Forms & Fees

Register a Business or Corporation Name
To register a business name a current Business License is required. A registered name is valid for five years including any portion of the filing year and is renewable between October 1st and December 31st of the year of expiration. Complete the application and submit it along with the non-refundable $25.00 filing fee. To access the application click on the below link:

See: Forms & Fees

Other application forms may be mailed to you or picked up at a division office. Completed applications must be signed and submitted to the division with the appropriate fees.