How to register a business name in Ontario

This guide is for sole proprietors and partners who want to trade in Ontario under a name of their choosing. Companies are a different filing; for those, read the incorporation guide instead.

The official route

  1. Ontario Business Registry filings
    Cost
    PaidSource
    Login
    Needs Ontario.ca Login and an Ontario Business AccountSource

You file in the Ontario Business Registry. To get in you need: Paid; needs Ontario.ca Login and an Ontario Business AccountSource.

The government charge for a new registration is $60Source. Filing services will do it for you, but their price sits on top of that charge. Third-party filing services may charge more than the government fee.Source

Do you need to register?

The rule in short: You trade under any name other than your own full legal name.Source Trading as yourself, under your own full name, needs no registration at all.

Look the name up first

Before paying, run the name through the registry’s searchSource to see who already uses it. A basic look costs FreeSource.

Can two businesses register the same name? YesUnconfirmed. We haven't confirmed this on an official page yet. Confirm with the registry: Register your business online If so, registering may not stop someone else from using your name too. If owning the name matters to you, look at the federal trademark database as well.

Step by step

  1. Check that you need to registerSource. If the name you will use is just your own, you can stop here.
  2. Search the registry for the nameSource. Try spelling variations too, so you are not surprised later.
  3. Create your Ontario.ca Login and Ontario Business Account as you fileSource. Pick the sole proprietorship or the partnership option. Keep an email address and a payment card to hand.
  4. Pay and receive your Business Identification NumberSource. The fee is the one shown above.
  5. Renew every five yearsSource. Put the expiry date in your own calendar so it does not slip past.

After you register

Renewal. A registration does not last forever. The charge to keep it going:

$60 every 5 yearsSource

Know which number is which. The 9-digit Ontario Business Identification Number is not the same as the CRA Business Number.Source A business number for tax comes separately, from the Canada Revenue Agency.

Your company key. Every filing for an existing business needs its company key, even when an intermediary files for you.Source Our company key explainer covers what it is and how to get it.