Registering
Business Names and Company Names
If you decide to start a business and trade under your own name,
there is no need to even register your business name. i.e. If
your name is John Smith and you decide to use that as your trading
name, there is no legal requirement to register that name.
If,
however, you decide to use the name John Smith Television
Repairs or John Smith’s Record Bar you will
need to register your name with the relevant body in your state
or territory. A fee is payable initially, followed by a periodical
renewal fee.
You
can see if anyone else is already using the name you have chosen
by checking the Identical
names check at ASIC. When you have chosen a name
that appears to be available you can find out about registering
it in your state or territiory from the relevant government
agency below.
Company
name
If
you want to start a company you have to register your company
name with the Australian Securities and Investments
Commission (ASIC). If you want to trade under a different
name, that also has to be registered. You can find more about
this from the ASIC website.
