How to register a business name in Alberta

In Alberta, a name you trade under that isn’t your own is called a trade name. You register it in person at a licensed registry agent, a private business the province authorizes to do its filings. That agent is the official route: there is no online form for the public.

The official route

  1. A registry agent near you
    Cost
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    In person through a licensed registry agentSource
  2. Registries Online (subscribers only)
    Cost
    PaidSource
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    Needs a Registries Online subscription, open only to businesses with 50 or more transactions a monthSource

Do you need to register?

The short version: You trade under a name other than your own.Source Trading under just your own legal name usually needs nothing.

A trade name doesn't have to be unique, and registering one gives you no ownership of the name.Source If you want a name nobody else can use, that is what incorporating or a trademark is for.

How the cost works

The province sets a fee and the agent adds its own service charge, so the total is $10.61 + registry agent fee (varies)Source. Registry agents add their own service charge to each government fee. The government doesn't cap it, so prices vary by agent.Source Call around before you go.

Registry agents don't all have to offer incorporation or trade name registration, so ask before you go.Source

Find one close to you with the official registry agent finderSource. How you deal with them: Paid; in person through a licensed registry agentSource.

Does the registration expire or need renewing? Not publishedUnconfirmed. The registry doesn't publish this online. Confirm with the registry: Register a business name

Step by step

  1. Choose a trade nameSource. Leave off endings such as Ltd. or Inc.; only corporations may use them.
  2. Optionally, order a Business Name ReportSource. Nobody checks the name for you, so a report is the easiest way to see who else is using something similar. A quick trade name search at an agent costs $1.06 + registry agent fee (varies)Source.
  3. Fill in the Declaration of Trade Name formSource. The agent has the form, or can tell you where to get it.
  4. Take the form, your ID and payment to a registry agentSource.
  5. Keep your proof of filingSource.

Going into business with a partner

A partnership registers its name the same way, at an agent. The cost: $10.61 + registry agent fee (varies)Source.