The Alabama Secretary of State keeps the business register through its Business Entities Division in Montgomery. Public records are in Business Entity Records, and online filings run through a state portal run by Alabama Interactive under contract with the state.
Two points set Alabama apart. Forming any domestic entity, from an LLC to a nonprofit, costs one flat $200. And the Secretary of State does not collect a yearly report at all: the ongoing filing is the business privilege tax with the Department of Revenue.
Alabama business entity search
Business Entity Records gives you four ways to search. Pick the one that matches what you know, whether that is a name, a number or a person tied to the company.
| Official business search | sos.alabama.gov/government-records/business-entity-records (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| You can search by | business name, entity or file number, officer or owner name, registered agent, other (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| What a result means | Not stated (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
- Four search options: Entity Name, Entity Number, Officer | Agent | Incorporator, Reservation | Registration by ID.
- Entity IDs moved from 6 to 9 digits; you may see 3 leading zeros added to old numbers.
- Corporation records from 1949 to 2010 are held by the Alabama Archives, not this system.
From sos.alabama.gov, checked .
The search page carries a warning about fraudulent business filings. If a record lists an officer or address you do not recognise for your own company, contact the division at once. The page does not say whether results are preliminary, so treat a free name as a starting point only.
What Alabama statuses mean
Alabama keeps its status words simple. Exists is the normal state for a company on the record. Dissolved means the company filed to close and the office processed it.
| Status shown | What it means |
|---|---|
| Exists | Formation documents have been processed. Entities with this status are subject to being taxed. |
| Dissolved | Dissolution documents have been processed. |
Status wording from sos.alabama.gov, checked .
Exists has a tax side as well. The Secretary of State points out that an entity with that status is subject to being taxed, which in practice means the business privilege tax.
Alabama Secretary of State fees
The Certificate of Formation costs $200 for every domestic entity type. A company formed elsewhere registers in Alabama for $150. Name reservations and Certificates of Existence each cost $25 by mail or $28 online.
| Form an LLC | $200 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Form a corporation | $200 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Form a nonprofit | $200 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Register an out-of-state LLC | $150 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Reserve a name | $25 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Good standing certificate | $25 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
Rather not file it yourself? Ask our private filing service about forming or reporting in Alabama. State fees are separate.
Online filings add a portal fee charged by the system operator. The office says standard processing times depend on volume and cannot be estimated or guaranteed, so leave margin before any deadline.
No annual report: the Alabama business privilege tax
Alabama has no annual report with the Secretary of State. Instead, companies file a business privilege tax return with the Alabama Department of Revenue, which sets the rate and the deadline. Questions about the amount you owe go to Revenue, not to the Business Entities Division.
| Franchise or privilege tax | Business privilege tax, administered by the Alabama Department of Revenue, not the Secretary of State. Filed on the entity's return. (revenue.alabama.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Where to file | alabamainteractive.org/sos/welcome.action (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Processing time | Standard processing time cannot be estimated or guaranteed by SOS, depends on volume (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
Our annual report deadlines by state table shows how this differs from states that collect a report at the filing office.
Alabama name rules and reservations
An Alabama LLC name must contain Limited Liability Company, L.L.C. or LLC. A business corporation needs Corporation, Inc. or Corp. in its name or one of the other listed words. Nonprofit corporations have no designator requirement.
| LLC name must include | Limited Liability Company, L.L.C., LLC (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Corporation name must include | Corporation, Incorporated, Inc., Corp. (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Reservation fee | $25 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Reservation form | sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/form-files/domesticEntityNameReservation.pdf (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
You can reserve a name with the domestic entity name reservation form before you file. A reservation also matters for DBAs, as the next section explains.
Certificate of Existence in Alabama
Alabama's proof of good standing is the Certificate of Existence. It costs $25 by mail or $28 online, and an expedite adds $25.
What it costs, where to order it and what blocks it are in our Alabama good standing guide.
Banks and other states use it to confirm that the company is on the record. See our guide to the certificate of good standing for what they usually check.
Trade names and fictitious names in Alabama
Trade names are registered at the state level with the Secretary of State Trademarks Division ($30 fee, three specimens, notarized application). Alabama LLCs and corporations use a fictitious name only if the legal name is not available, set up through a name reservation. (sos.alabama.gov, checked )
For an LLC or corporation, a fictitious name is only used when the legal name you want is not available, and it is set up through a name reservation. Check the trade name form for the current fee before you send it.
Old records and the Alabama Archives
Corporation records from 1949 to 2010 are held by the Alabama Archives rather than the current search. If you are tracing an old company and the search shows nothing, the Archives is the next place to ask.
Contact the Alabama Business Entities Division
| Office | Alabama Secretary of State (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Division | Business Entities Division (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Officeholder | Wes Allen (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Phone | 334-242-5324 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Hours | 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Mailing address | PO Box 5616, Montgomery, AL 36103-5616 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
| Street address | 770 Washington Avenue, Suite 580, Montgomery, AL 36104 (sos.alabama.gov, checked ) |
Mail goes to the PO Box in Montgomery, while walk in visits go to the Washington Avenue address. Keep your 9 digit entity number ready when you call.
Sources
- www.sos.alabama.gov/business-entities: office name, division, mailing address, street address, phone, hours, online filing, processing time, status terms. Checked .
- www.sos.alabama.gov/newsroom/secretary-state-wes-allen-promotes-business-registration-video-honor-small-business-week: officeholder. Checked .
- www.alabamainteractive.org/sos/welcome.action: contact page. Checked .
- www.sos.alabama.gov/government-records/business-entity-records: business search, search fields, search disclaimer, search tips. Checked .
- www.sos.alabama.gov/business-entities/llcs: LLC name endings. Checked .
- www.sos.alabama.gov/business-entities/domestic-corporations: corporation name endings. Checked .
- www.sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/2021FeeSchedule.pdf: name reservation fee, LLC filing fee, corporation filing fee, nonprofit filing fee, foreign LLC fee, certificate fee. Checked .
- www.sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/form-files/domesticEntityNameReservation.pdf: name reservation form. Checked .
- www.revenue.alabama.gov/faqs/when-is-the-alabama-business-privilege-tax-return-due/: franchise tax. Checked .
- www.sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/form-files/trademark-files/lat-1.pdf: assumed names (DBA). Checked .