Ohio Rev. Code Chapter 1782 (contains no annual/biennial report provision for limited partnerships); Ohio Rev. Code § 111.16(I)(2) (the only partnership periodic-report fee is the biennial report 'pursuant to section 1775.63, 1776.83, or 1785.06', i.e. LLPs and professional associations only) · source↗ (opens the official source)
58 of 61 fee datums on this page are verified against the agency's own published schedule or statute (2026-09-04); the rest are marked pending review in the Status column - portal-surcharge components no official page states, values the official source contradicts (held for a correction package), or sources that could not be reached.
Values were first corroborated across independent internal records; verified cells now also carry the agency's own published schedule or statute as their authority, which is what promotion to verified requires.
Cost position
Ranked 12 of 54 on first-year state
filing cost, at $99.00 against a national median
of $181.50.
Recurring annual cost $0.
See the full ranking.
Where Ohio sits among its neighbours in the first-year cost ranking (USD)Show all 54 jurisdictionsThe full ranking with Ohio highlighted (USD)
Registered-agent statutes, quoted verbatim
The one section on this page that clears the publication gate in full. 10 citations, verified, quoted from the official code with every elision marked.
Ohio Rev. Code § 1701.07
◎Verified
General Corporation Law (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1701) · applies to
corporations
Statutory agent - cancellation and reinstatement of articles.(A) Every corporation shall have and maintain an agent, sometimes referred to as the "statutory agent," upon whom any process, notice, or demand required or permitted by statute to be served upon a corporation may be served. The agent shall be one of the following: (1) A natural person who is a resident of this state; (2) A domestic or foreign corporation, nonprofit corporation, limited liability company, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, limited partnership association, professional association, business trust, or unincorporated nonprofit association that has a business address in this state. [...]
Ohio Revised Limited Liability Company Act (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1706) · applies to
LLCs
Legal agents of limited liability companies.(A) Each limited liability company and foreign limited liability company that has an effective registration as a foreign limited liability company under section 1706.511 of the Revised Code shall maintain continuously in this state an agent for service of process on the company. The agent shall be one of the following: (1) A natural person who is a resident of this state; (2) A domestic or foreign corporation, nonprofit corporation, limited liability company, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, limited partnership association, professional association, business trust, or unincorporated nonprofit association that has a business address in this state. [...]
General Corporation Law (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1701) · applies to
corporations and LLCs
Statutory agent - cancellation and reinstatement of articles.As used in division (C)(1) of this section, "usual place of business" means a place in this state that is customarily open during normal business hours and where an individual is generally present who is authorized to perform the services of a registered agent, including accepting service of process and other notifications for the person serving as a statutory agent. "Usual place of business" does not include a post office box, regardless of whether that post office box has an associated street address.
General Corporation Law (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1701) · applies to
corp
Articles of incorporation.(A) Any person, singly or jointly with others, and without regard to residence, domicile, or state of incorporation, may form a corporation by signing and filing with the secretary of state articles of incorporation that shall set forth all of the following: (1) The name of the corporation, which shall be in compliance with division (A) of section 1701.05 of the Revised Code; (2) The place in this state where the principal office of the corporation is to be located; [...]
Ohio Revised Limited Liability Company Act (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1706) · applies to
LLCs
Articles of organization.(A) In order to form a limited liability company, one or more persons shall execute articles of organization and deliver the articles to the secretary of state for filing. The articles of organization shall set forth all of the following: (1) The name of the limited liability company; (2) The name and street address of the limited liability company's statutory agent and a written acceptance of the appointment that is signed by the agent; [...] (B) A limited liability company is formed when the articles of organization are filed by the secretary of state or at any later date or time specified in the articles of organization.
General Corporation Law (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1701) · applies to
corp
Annual report.(A) At the annual meeting of shareholders, or the meeting held in lieu of it, every corporation, except a banking corporation, shall lay before the shareholders financial statements, which may be consolidated, and, as applicable, written statements or reports, consisting of: (1) A balance sheet containing a summary of the assets, liabilities, stated capital, if any, and surplus [...] as of the end of the corporation's most recent fiscal year [...]
General Corporation Law (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1701) · applies to
corp
Statutory agent - cancellation and reinstatement of articles.(M) Upon the failure of a corporation to appoint another agent or to file a statement of change of address of an agent, the secretary of state shall give notice thereof by ordinary or electronic mail to the corporation [...] Unless the default is cured within thirty days after the mailing by the secretary of state of the notice or within any further period of time that the secretary of state grants, upon the expiration of that period of time from the date of the mailing, the articles of the corporation shall be canceled without further notice or action by the secretary of state.
Ohio Revised Limited Liability Company Act (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1706) · applies to
LLCs
Legal agents of limited liability companies.(L) Upon the failure of a limited liability company or foreign limited liability company to continuously maintain a statutory agent or file a change of name or address of a statutory agent, the secretary of state shall give notice thereof by ordinary or electronic mail to the company [...] Unless the default is cured within thirty days after the mailing by the secretary of state of the notice or within any further period of time that the secretary of state grants, upon the expiration of that period of time from the date of the mailing, the articles of the limited liability company or the registration of the foreign limited liability company shall be canceled without further notice or action by the secretary of state.
General Corporation Law (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1701) · applies to
corp
Corporate name - transfer - reservation.(A) Except as provided in this section, and in sections 1701.75, 1701.78, and 1701.82 of the Revised Code, which sections relate to the reorganization, merger, and consolidation of corporations, the corporate name of a domestic corporation shall comply with all of the following: (1) It shall end with or include the word or abbreviation "company," "co.," "corporation," "corp.," "incorporated," or "inc." [...] (3) It shall be distinguishable upon the records in the office of the secretary of state from all of the following: [...] (4) It shall not contain any language that indicates or implies that the corporation is connected with a government agency of this state, another state, or the United States.
Ohio Revised Limited Liability Company Act (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1706) · applies to
LLCs
Naming of limited liability company.(A) The name of a limited liability company shall contain the words "limited liability company" or the abbreviation "L.L.C.," "LLC," "limited," "ltd.," or "ltd". (B) Except as provided in this section and in sections 1701.75, 1701.78, 1701.82, 1705.36, and 1705.37 of the Revised Code, the secretary of state shall not accept for filing in the secretary of state's office the articles of organization of a limited liability company if the company name set forth in the articles is not distinguishable on the records of the secretary of state from the name of any of the following: (1) Any other limited liability company [...]
The statutory agent (for a licensed foreign corporationDomestic / foreignRelative to one state's records: an entity is domestic in the state that formed it and foreign everywhere else it registers to do business.Read the full entry →, the designated agent) must be a natural person resident in Ohio, or almost any entity type (corporation, nonprofit, LLC, partnership, LP, LLP, professional association, business trust, etc.) with a business address in Ohio; a non-Ohio-corporation entity agent must be qualified under Title XVII to transact business in Ohio. The agent's address must be a primary residence or a 'usual place of business' - a PO box does not qualify. LLC rule is materially identical (R.C. 1706.09(A)); banks, trust companies, insurance companies, and public utilities are excluded from 1701.07.
Is the agent's consent required
○Pending review
Consent required: yes.
What happens when the agent cannot be served
○Pending review
If the agent cannot be found, no longer has the recorded address, or the corporation has failed to maintain an agent, the serving party files an affidavit with the SoS and serves the SoS as the corporation's agent by delivering quadruplicate copies and a $5 fee; the SoS forwards a copy by certified mail and service is deemed made. Same mechanism for LLCs (R.C. 1706.09(H)(2), four copies, $5) and for licensed foreign corporations (R.C. 1703.19, $5).
Revocation Foreign. A licensed foreign corporation that fails to designate a replacement agent after its designated agent dies, resigns, or leaves Ohio gets certified-mail notice; unless cured within 30 days, the SoS cancels its license to transact business. The former name is reserved for only one year.
No Court Access. A foreign corporation whose license expired or was canceled (including for failure to designate an agent) cannot maintain any action in an Ohio court until reinstated; to sue on a cause of action arising while unlicensed it must first pay a $250 forfeiture and file reinstatement papers (with a 15% forfeiture on the reinstatement fee).
Reinstatement Fee. A corporation or LLC whose articles (or foreign LLC registration, or foreign corporation license) were canceled may be reinstated only within TWO YEARS of cancellation, by filing an application, the required agent appointment, and the filing fee specified in R.C. 111.16(Q) (amount codified outside this corpus). Reinstated rights are subject to R.C. 1701.922 / 1706.46.
Dollar amounts named in the registered-agent statutes
Forfeiture for a foreign corporation transacting business while unlicensed or after cancellation without reinstatement
$250 to $10,000
○Pending review
Forfeiture an unlicensed foreign corporation must pay before maintaining an action on a cause that arose while unlicensed
$250
○Pending review
11 statutory citations and their supporting verbatim quotations sit behind this section in the record and are withheld from public display until the review pass lands, because a citation presented as authority is a verification claimed. Statutory references appearing inside the summaries above are part of the recorded text rather than an authority claim, and they are not rendered as citations, linked, or emitted in this page's structured data. How the gate works.
After administrative dissolution or revocation: the registered agent's appointment
What Ohio's own statutes do to the registered agent's appointment and authority for service of process once the state administratively dissolves a domestic entity or revokes a foreign one's authority. Continues: the statute keeps the agent of record after the state's action. Ends: a section terminates the appointment by operation of law. Statute is silent: no section speaks to it, and the nearest provision is stated instead. What any provider does about such an appointment is its own policy, not a fact recorded here. All jurisdictions side by side.
Ohio - the registered agent's appointment after the state's administrative action, by entity class
Entity class
The appointment
What the statute provides
The state's own status words
Domestic corporation
statute is silent
1701.07(M) with 1701.88(A); the section orders that 'the articles of the corporation shall be canceled' and says nothing about the agent's appointment, while 1701.07(H) lets a party serve the secretary of state where the corporation 'has failed to maintain an agent'
1706.09(L) with 1706.47(C); the LLC act orders that the articles 'shall be canceled' but says nothing about the agent, and 1706.09(H)(2) substitutes service on the secretary of state when the company has failed to maintain an agent
Canceled - 'the articles of the limited liability company ... shall be canceled' (1706.09(L))
Foreign corporation
statute is silent
1703.15 with 1703.19; cancellation of the license carries no statement about the designated agent, and 1703.19 makes the secretary of state the agent for service 'if the license of a corporation to do business in this state has expired or has been canceled'
1706.09(L); silent on the agent, while 1706.514(D), which governs the company's own certificate of cancellation of registration, provides that cancellation 'shall not terminate the authority of any statutory agent appointed by the foreign limited liability company'
Canceled - 'the registration of the foreign limited liability company shall be canceled' (1706.09(L))
Foreign nonprofit corporation
statute is silent
1703.27; the license 'shall expire' if requested information is not filed within thirty days after certified-mail notice, with no statement about the designated agent
Expired - 'the license of the corporation to exercise its corporate privileges in this state shall expire' (1703.27)
After administrative dissolution - Ohio◎Verified
Statute
Ohio Rev. Code 1701.88(A) (winding up or obtaining reinstatement); 1701.07(H), (M) (statutory agent - cancellation of articles) · official text↗ (opens the official source)
Reinstatement window
within two years of the cancellation (1701.07(M); 1706.09(L); 1703.15; 1703.29(C)); for a tax cancellation under 5733.20 no time limit is stated and 'any officer, shareholder, creditor, or receiver ... may at any time take all steps required by this section' (5733.22)
How the agent comes off the record
The agent comes off the record by filing the state's Statutory Agent Update (Form 521) with a written notice of resignation and sending a copy to the entity at the current or last known address of its principal office, the agent's authority terminating thirty days after the filing. Form: Statutory Agent Update (Form 521, Revised 10/24); for domestic partnerships the office lists it as Statutory Agent Updat.
Whether an entity formed in another state may become a Ohio entity by domestication or conversion, and whether a Ohio entity may leave the same way, as Ohio's own statutes and filing officeFiling officeThe agency that keeps the business register.Read the full entry → state it: the instrument by its exact title, the order of filings, the state fee, the filing method, whether a registered agent must be named on the inbound filing, and what the record here shows after an exit. Yes: the statute provides for the move. No: the act has no such provision. Limited: some entity types or conditions only. A cell that has not cleared independent verification reads not yet established. What any provider charges or recommends is not recorded here. All jurisdictions side by side, with the most-asked moves.
Moving the entity - Ohio◎Verified
Into Ohio (domestication in)
limited by Certificate of Conversion: for Entities Converting INTO the Records of the Ohio Secretary of State. A domestic or foreign entity that is not a domestic corporation and is not a nonprofit corporation may be converted into a domestic corporation under a written declaration of conversion if the chapter or the law under which the converting entity exists permits the conversion, and the conversion takes effect when a certificate of conversion, accompanied by the organizational document (including designation of agent) ... By entity type: corporation yes; nonprofit corporation no; LLC yes; LP yes; LLP yes; LLLP yes.
Out of Ohio (domestication out)
yes by Certificate of Conversion: for Entities Converting WITHIN or OFF the Records of the Ohio Secretary of State. The directors must approve the declaration of conversion and the shareholders must adopt it by at least two-thirds of the voting power (or a different proportion in the articles, not less than a majority); a certificate of conversion is then filed with the secretary of state, and upon the conversion becoming effective the converting entity is continued in the converted entity, the converted entity exists and the ... By entity type: corporation yes; nonprofit corporation yes; LLC yes; LP yes; LLP yes; LLLP yes.
Order of filings
The statute and form set no order. The converting foreign entity first adopts a written declaration of conversion that sets out the articles (or other organizational document) of the Ohio entity it will become and everything its own law requires; it then files with the Ohio Secretary of State a Certificate of Conversion: for Entities Converting INTO the Records of the Ohio Secretary of State, signed by an authorized representative, stating the converting entity's name, form and home state, that it has complied with all of the laws under which it exists and that those laws permit the conversion, the person who will furnish a ...
After an exit, what Ohio's record shows
Ohio's statute provides that upon the conversion becoming effective the converting entity is continued in the converted entity, the converted entity exists and the converting entity ceases to exist, so the certificate of conversion filed here ends the departing entity's Ohio existence by itself and the Secretary of State's own form for it is titled for entities converting 'WITHIN or OFF the Records of the Ohio Secretary of State'. No separate withdrawal or termination filing is owed here.
yes - any organizational document, including a designation of agent, that would be filed upon the creation of the new entity shall be filed with the certificate of conversion; and if the converted entity ...
Conversion between entity types within Ohio
Within Ohio an entity of one form may convert into an entity of another form under a written declaration of conversion followed by a certificate of conversion filed with the organizational document of the new form, except that a domestic for-profit corporation may not convert into a nonprofit corporation or into another domestic corporation and a domestic nonprofit corporation may not convert into a for-profit corporation.
7 governance rules are recorded for Ohio - the organizational and annual meetings, action by written consent, and whether bylaws or an operating agreement are mandatory. Each verified rule links to the statutory text it was verified against, quoted verbatim below.
Organizational meeting required · applies to
corporations ·
yes
If the initial directors are named in the articles, the initial directors shall hold an organizational meeting... to complete the organization of the corporation by receiving subscriptions, appointing officers, adopting regulations...
Annual meeting required · applies to
corporations ·
yes
An annual meeting of shareholders for the election of directors... shall be held... When the annual meeting is not held or directors are not elected thereat, they may be elected at a special meeting called for that purpose.
Action by written consent allowed · applies to
corporations ·
yes
any action that may be authorized or taken at a meeting of the shareholders... may be authorized or taken without a meeting with the affirmative vote or approval of, and in a writing or writings signed by all the shareholders...
Regulations for the government of a corporation, the conduct of its affairs, and the management of its property... may be adopted... (a) Within ninety days after the corporation is formed, by the directors...
Operating agreement required · applies to
LLCs ·
no
"Operating agreement" means any valid agreement, written or oral, of the members, or any written declaration of the sole member, as to the affairs and activities of a limited liability company...
Any matter requiring the consent of members may be decided without a meeting, and a member may appoint a proxy or other agent to consent or otherwise act for the member...
Action by written consent allowed · applies to
LLCs ·
yes
a matter in the ordinary course of activities of the limited liability company may be decided by a majority of the members... The consent of all members is required to... Amend the operating agreement...
$39 (ORC 111.16(S): trade name or fictitious name registration or report)
Term
5 years from date of filing (ORC 1329.04)
Renewal
Renewable for successive 5-year terms within the 6 months before expiration; renewal fee $25 (ORC 111.16); SOS sends renewal notice in the final 6 months. Partnerships must also re-file when a listed partner leaves
Ohio runs a two-track statewide system through the secretary of state. Any person may register a trade name (a name to which the user asserts a right to exclusive use). A person doing business under a fictitious name who has not registered it, does not wish to, or cannot because the name is unavailable, must instead report the fictitious name to the secretary of state within 30 days after first use.
Where it is filed
The Ohio secretary of state receives both trade name applications and fictitious name reports, on forms it prescribes, and keeps a public record of all registered trade names and reported fictitious names.
Term and renewal
Registration of a trade name or report of a fictitious name is effective for five years from the date of registration or report, renewable for successive five-year terms on application filed within six months before expiration. A general partnership must renew whenever any partner named on its registration or report ceases to be a partner. The secretary of state mails or emails renewal notices during the final six months.
Name restrictions
The secretary of state shall not file a trade name application that indicates or implies a connection with a government agency when none exists, or that implies the applicant is incorporated when it is not, or a trade name not distinguishable on the secretary of state's records from previously registered trade names, corporate names (domestic or authorized foreign, profit or nonprofit), registered LLC, LLP, or LP names, or filed trademarks or service marks, unless the holder's written consent is filed.
Assumed names for registered entities
A foreign for-profit corporation licensing in Ohio states in its application 'the name of the corporation and, if its corporate name is not available, the trade name under which it will do business in this state' (R.C. 1703.04(B)(1)). If the application is unacceptable solely because the corporate name is not distinguishable from another entity or registered trade name, the corporation may be licensed under an assumed business name by filing an officer-signed statement that it will transact business in Ohio only under that assumed name.C. 1703.31 area, per chapter text).
Penalties
No person doing business under a trade name or fictitious name may commence or maintain an action in that name, or on account of contracts made or transactions had in that name, in any Ohio court until it has complied with § 1329.01 (and, for partnerships, § 1777.02); upon compliance the action may proceed even on pre-compliance contracts. Suits against the user are allowed whether or not the name was registered or reported. The attorney general, on the secretary of state's request, shall bring an action for an injunction against any person who violates § 1329.01 or § 1329.07 and who, after proper notification by the secretary of state, refuses or fails to comply.
Ohio Rev. Code § 1329.01(C) ('The trade name application shall be accompanied by a filing fee of thirty-nine dollars, payable to the secretary of state.')
◎Verified
Report of use of a fictitious name filing fee
$39
Ohio Rev. Code § 1329.01(E) ('The fictitious name report shall be accompanied by a filing fee of thirty-nine dollars, payable to the secretary of state.')
◎Verified
Known gaps in the record
Fees: renewal, assignment, and address-change fees are set by R.C. 111.16 divisions (S)(3) and (S)(4), which chapter 1329 cross-references but which is not in the corpus; only the two $39 figures are printed in the act
Publication: no newspaper-publication requirement appears in R.C. 1329.01 to 1329.10 as captured; absence not separately citeable
§ 1329.05 does not exist in the current chapter as published (chapter jumps from 1329.04 to 1329.06)
Entityassumedname: (removed from summary; verify R.C. 1703.31 before citing)
Common questions
What is the difference between a trade name and a fictitious name in Ohio?
R.C. 1329.01(A) defines a trade name as 'a name used in business or trade to designate the business of the user and to which the user asserts a right to exclusive use,' while a fictitious name is a business name 'that the user has not registered or is not entitled to register as a trade name.' Trade name registration blocks later indistinguishable filings (§ 1329.02); a fictitious name report is notice only.
Do I have to file anything with Ohio if I operate under a DBA?
Yes. If you do business under a fictitious name and have not registered it as a trade name (or cannot because the name is unavailable), R.C. 1329.01(D) requires you to report the use of the fictitious name to the secretary of state within 30 days after the date of first use. Both the trade name application and the fictitious name report carry a $39 filing fee stated in the statute.
How long does an Ohio trade name registration or fictitious name report last?
Five years from the date of registration or report, renewable for successive five-year terms on an application filed within six months before expiration (R.C. 1329.04). A general partnership must renew whenever a partner named on its registration or report ceases to be a partner.
What happens if I do business under an unregistered name in Ohio?
Under R.C. 1329.10(B), no person doing business under a trade name or fictitious name may commence or maintain an action in that name in any Ohio court, or on contracts made in that name, until it complies with R.C. 1329.01; once it complies, it may sue even on contracts entered into before compliance. The attorney general may also seek an injunction against a person who refuses to comply after notice from the secretary of state (§ 1329.10(A)).
Recurring entity-level tax
No franchise or privilege tax in this jurisdiction
◎Verified
Administering agency
Ohio Department of Taxation (administered the former franchise tax; administers the CAT)
Stored as a delta against the federal baseline:
0 days this state closes that the
federal government does not, and 0 federal
holidays its filing office works through.
Verified empty delta. This jurisdiction observes exactly the federal calendar - a positive finding, not a missing record.
Provenance - Ohio 2026 closures◎Verified
Citation withheld: this record did not clear the publication gate.
8 restricted entity-name word entries
are recorded for Ohio - 1 prohibited outright,
the rest requiring an agency's consent or licensure before the word may appear in a name.
Governing law: Ohio Rev. Code § 1701.05 (corporations) and § 1706.07 (LLCs); word restrictions in ORC §§ 1101.15, 1729.04, 1733.44.
Ohio restricted entity-name words
Treatment
Word or phrase
Authority
Citation
Status
License required
Bank
Superintendent of Financial Institutions (Ohio Division of Financial Institutions)
Ohio Rev. Code § 1101.15 - only a bank operating under authority of the superintendent, another state's chartering authority, the OCC, or a foreign chartering authority may use 'bank', 'banker' or 'banking'; others only if the superintendent determines the name is not misleading and authorizes it
◎Verified
License required
Banker
Superintendent of Financial Institutions
Ohio Rev. Code § 1101.15
◎Verified
License required
Banking
Superintendent of Financial Institutions
Ohio Rev. Code § 1101.15
◎Verified
License required
Trust
Superintendent of Financial Institutions
Ohio Rev. Code § 1101.15 - only licensed trust companies, national banks with trust powers, or federal savings associations with trust powers may use 'trust' in a business name; others only with superintendent authorization
◎Verified
Prohibited
credit union
Ohio Rev. Code § 1733.44 - no person other than credit unions and associations of credit unions shall use any name or title containing the words 'credit union'
◎Verified
Restricted
Benefit
Ohio Rev. Code § 1701.05(A)(2): shall not include the word 'benefit' or 'b-' as a prefix to 'company', 'corporation', 'incorporated' etc. unless the corporation is a benefit corporation
◎Verified
Restricted
Cooperative
Ohio Rev. Code § 1729.04 - no corporation or other person shall use 'cooperative', 'coop', 'co-operative', or 'co-op' in its name unless organized under ORC ch. 1729, organized cooperatively under ch. 1702, under another state's/federal cooperative law, or a chartered credit union
◎Verified
Restricted
State
Superintendent of Financial Institutions
Ohio Rev. Code § 1101.15 - no bank or trust company shall use 'state' in its name unless doing business under authority of the superintendent or another state's chartering authority
● accepted · ○ not accepted · ? unknown or conditional (hover for the recorded condition). Channel data covers 54 jurisdictions (2026-08-15 wave). Source links render on verified rows only.
Contact the filing office
Verified against the agency's own contact page
2026-08-13 - office hours: Office hours 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday-Friday.
Source links render on verified rows only.
No published address - use the Business Services contact form https://sosforms.ohiosos.gov/forms/ContactUs/Business
Mailing address
P.O. Box printed on the specific form (regular filings historically P.O. Box 670, Columbus, OH 43216); expedites to P.O. Box 1390, Columbus, OH 43216
Courier / walk-in
180 Civic Center Dr., Columbus, OH 43215 (current Client Service Center) - the published overnight instruction (22 N. Fourth St.) predates the move; confirm by phone before first use
Where to search Ohio's UCC (Article 9) financing statements, on what terms, and what the office charges to file one. Verified against the filing office's own pages 2026-09-11. UCC division contacts are listed with the other filing-office contacts above.
UCC records - Ohio◎Verified
Filing office
Ohio Secretary of State - Business Services (UCC Online Services / Ohio Business Central: UCC Filing Portal)
Filing-office statute
ORC 1309.501(A)(2) (UCC 9-501): 'the office of the secretary of state or any office duly authorized by the secretary of state' in all other cases - https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-1309.501; OAC 111:1-3-01: 'The filing office means the office of the Ohio secretary of state.'
$12 per record, filed online through the UCC Filing Portal
Searching the UCC index, as the office states the fee
The fee for responding to a request for information from the filing office, including for communicating whether there is on file any financing statement naming a particular debtor, is twenty dollars if the request is communicated in writing and twenty dollars if communicated by another medium authorized by filing office rule, five dollars if the request is limited to communicating only whether the
Search fee amounts
certified search $20.00 per debtor name; online search free
Filing channels
online only - paper is not accepted; Ohio Business Central: UCC Filing Portal (ucc.ohiosos.gov). OAC 111:1-3-02 lists only (A) electronic XML transmission and (B) direct on-line web data entry; (D) hardship delivery by another method onl
Filing expedite
Expedited services are not available for UCC records
UCC-3 amendments, as the office states the fees
$12 for any UCC-3 record (amendment, continuation, termination or assignment); no separate UCC-3 fee line is published
Effective for
5 years from filing - Ohio Rev. Code 1309.515(A)
Bulk data
bulk data by quote only - unpublished - by request; statutory formula for commercial extraction = actual cost + special extraction costs + 10% (ORC 1309.523(F)(2))
Whether Ohio requires a general state-level business license, and on what terms. A "None" is a verified finding cited to the agency's own pages, not a gap. Which of the state's filings ask for an industry code is in the next section.
State business license - Ohio◎Verified
General state license
None - the state issues no general business license; licensing is occupation-specific and local
Which of Ohio's business filings ask the filer for an industry classification, and in what form. "No industry information" is a positive finding cited to the form. Where the state uses its own category list and the list was captured, it is expandable below. The NAICS and SIC reference lists are on their own page.
Industry code on Ohio filings, 8 of 8 rows verified
Filing
Entity scope
Asks for
Required
Where on the form
Source
Formation
domestic for-profit corporation
no industry information
not asked
Form 532A - only an 'Optional: Purpose:' free-text box; no NAICS/SIC field
Ohio has 88 county-equivalents: 88 countyies. Names and codes are the U.S. Census Bureau's (2020 national county codes); county seats and official sites are not yet published here.
These come from a research pass its own author graded CANDIDATES. They are shown because they are useful and withheld from every ranking on this site because they are not ratified.