NYS Department of State, Public Inquiry
New York Business Search: Corporations and LLCs on the DOS Database
A New York business search runs on the Department of State’s Corporation and Business Entity Database, the Secretary of State’s free lookup for corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships and their assumed names, searchable by name or DOS ID and updated daily. It answers status questions for companies already on file; the Department warns that it “should not be used to determine the acceptability of an Entity Name.”
Search New York businesses
New York onlyOne distinctive word finds more than the full legal name.
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New York Corporation and LLC Lookup, Setting by Setting
A New York entity search runs only after at least one box in the Entity list is ticked. None is ticked when the page opens, and the form stops on “Select the entity type from entity list.” The BaseWord mode it opens on can also miss a company that Contains finds.
Official site: Corporation and Business Entity Database (Public Inquiry, apps.dos.ny.gov)
Step 1: Choose What to Search By, and Tick the Entity Types
To look up an LLC or a corporation, Search By offers EntityName, DOS ID, Assumed Name and Assumed Name ID. The Entity list has four boxes: Corporation, LimitedLiabilityCompany, LimitedPartnership and LimitedLiabilityPartnership. The Entity type field is really a status filter (AllStatuses, Active, Inactive or Suspended).
Step 2: Switch Search Functionality From BaseWord to Contains
The form opens on BaseWord. Searching BROOKLYN BREWERY returns nothing in BaseWord and three entities in Contains, BROOKLYN COLD BREWERY LLC among them. The Department’s help text says Contains needs one or more whole words of the name, in any order, and punctuation can be left out. BeginsWith needs the exact start of the name, commas and periods included.
Step 3: Open the Entity Details
Clicking a name opens the record: DOS ID, entity type, the section of law it was formed under, ENTITY STATUS with its REASON FOR STATUS, the filing and inactive dates, STATEMENT STATUS with the next due date, and the county. DATE OF INITIAL DOS FILING is the date of incorporation or formation. Tabs underneath list the Name History, Filing History, Merger History and Assumed Name History; the Filing History names the formation document itself (Articles of Organization or Certificate of Incorporation), and copies are $5, or $10 certified, from the Department.
The DOS ID is the number the Department gives each entity, digits only (1983973 for The Brooklyn Brewery Corporation), and a DOS ID lookup is just Search By set to DOS ID. The Department’s Biennial Statement page sends filers to this database to find both the exact name and the DOS ID. A company that doesn’t come up in a Contains search, with every entity type ticked and AllStatuses selected, isn’t registered with the Department as a corporation, LLC, LP or LLP; sole proprietors and general partnerships register only an assumed name, with the county clerk.
Is a New York LLC Still Active? Status, Reason and Statement Status
ENTITY STATUS reads Active, Inactive or Suspended, and REASON FOR STATUS says why a company went inactive, such as VOLUNTARILY DISSOLVED with the INACTIVE DATE next to it. STATEMENT STATUS is a separate line about the Biennial Statement: CURRENT, past due, or NOT REQUIRED once the company is gone.
| On the record | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| ACTIVE, statement CURRENT | The company exists and no Biennial Statement is overdue; NEXT STATEMENT DUE DATE gives the month the next one is due. |
| ACTIVE, statement past due | The company exists, but a Certificate of Status ordered now would show the late Biennial Statement. It is not a dissolution. |
| INACTIVE | Read REASON FOR STATUS and the Filing History: a dissolution filed by the owners, a surrender of authority by an out-of-state company, or a dissolution by proclamation for unfiled tax reports. |
| SUSPENDED | A status the search can filter on. Under the LLC Transparency Act, an LLC formed outside the U.S. shows as past due 30 days after a missed ownership disclosure, delinquent after two years, then suspended after a 30-day notice. |
The $9 Biennial Statement
Corporations and LLCs file a Biennial Statement every two years, in the calendar month their original filing was made, for $9, and not before that month. A Department email goes out at the start of that month when an email address is on file. For an LLC, the statement only updates the address where the Department forwards lawsuits; for a corporation it also names the chief executive officer.
Dissolution by Proclamation
A corporation that hasn’t filed its tax reports, or paid its tax, for two years can be dissolved by a proclamation of the Secretary of State at the request of the tax department (Tax Law § 203-a). Its name stays reserved for three months. Coming back takes a consent from the Commissioner of Taxation and Finance, given only once all taxes, penalties and interest are paid, plus a $50 filing (more if filed over three months after the proclamation).
LLC Publication, Seen in the Filing History
Within 120 days of forming, a New York LLC publishes a notice once a week for six weeks in two newspapers chosen by the county clerk, then files a Certificate of Publication ($50) under LLC Law § 206. Without it, the LLC’s authority to do business is suspended, though its contracts stay valid. The Filing History shows whether it was done, with a CERTIFICATE OF PUBLICATION line next to the Articles of Organization. The status line isn’t a reliable signal on its own. One LLC formed in August 2025 still read ACTIVE in September 2026 with no such line in its Filing History.
Certificate of Status: $25, by Written Request
New York’s certificate of good standing is the Certificate of Status, $25. It can’t be ordered online or by phone. The request goes by mail or email with the exact name and, if known, the DOS ID.
The Free Download: Every Active Entity on data.ny.gov
The Department publishes its active corporations file on the state’s open data portal, free and without an account. Despite the name, its 4,288,052 rows (September 28, 2026) include LLCs, more than two million of them, with the DOS ID, filing date, county, the address for service of process, the registered agent and, for corporations, the CEO.
Inactive companies aren’t in that file. For one company, the online record is the one to read: it is updated daily and keeps inactive entities and the filing history. A daily file lists the last 30 days of filings with the filer’s name, and a weekly file holds nearly 21 million filings.
No Member or Manager Names on a New York Record
There is no owner search in New York. The Department of State keeps no names of LLC members or managers, corporate officers or directors, or partners, according to its FAQ. The record gives the address where it forwards lawsuits, the registered agent if one was named and, for a corporation that filed its Biennial Statement, the chief executive officer’s name and address. The Person tab in the search above matches those CEO and registered agent names; it can’t find an LLC’s members, because New York never collects them.
The Secretary of State is the legal agent for service of process of every New York LLC and corporation. Papers are served by delivering two copies to the Department in person, with a $40 fee; it then mails them to the address on the record, which is why an outdated address can end in a default judgment.
The LLC Transparency Act, in force since January 1, 2026, applies only to LLCs formed outside the U.S. and authorized in New York; New York LLCs and LLCs from other states are exempt. The owners it collects are confidential and exempt from FOIL. The name in the address block of an LLC’s record is simply where lawsuits are mailed, not a list of owners.
Is a New York LLC Name Available? A $5 Written Request Decides
New York has no official online name search that settles availability. The Department says the only way to know whether a name is available is a written name availability inquiry, at $5 per name, and the answer only holds for the date and time of the search.
An LLC name must include Limited Liability Company, L.L.C. or LLC and be distinguishable from the LLCs, corporations and limited partnerships on file (LLC Law § 204). Words such as bank, insurance, trust, lawyer or doctor need approval from the superintendent of financial services, and school, college, museum or academy need the commissioner of education’s consent. A corporation name needs corporation, incorporated or limited, or an abbreviation.
A name can be reserved for 60 days for $20, with no more than two extensions. Checking that nobody else holds the brand as a trademark is a separate step, covered in the LLC name and trademark check.
NY SOS Search: NYC, EIN, DBA and License Questions
Is there a separate NYC LLC search?
No, the state database covers companies in all five boroughs. The County column uses county names, so a Brooklyn company shows Kings, Manhattan shows New York and Staten Island shows Richmond.
Does a DOS record give a New York company’s EIN?
No. Neither the DOS record nor the data.ny.gov files carry an EIN; the number comes from the IRS, and tracking down a New York company’s EIN starts from the company’s own paperwork.
Where are New York DBAs searched?
Assumed names of corporations, LLCs and limited partnerships are filed with the Department and searchable with Search By set to Assumed Name. A sole proprietor or general partnership files with the county clerk of each county where it does business, so those names are only in county indexes.
Which office checks a New York business license?
NY Business Express has a Business Wizard that lists what a given activity needs, New York City licenses are checked with the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, and licensed professionals with the State Education Department’s Office of the Professions.