How to Get a Business License in Illinois

Business registration in the state of Illinois is subject to the Assumed Business Name Act.

In the state of Illinois, you must register your business name with your local county clerk’s office if you are going to operate your business under a name other than your own. This includes adding words to your name such as 'company' or adding any additional letters to your name. The registration process is referred to as operating under an assumed name. Ownership structures include corporation, general partnership, limited partnership, limited liability companies and sole proprietorship. You are required to publish a legal ad indicating notice of intention to operate a business under an assumed name as part of the business registration process.

Things You'll Need

• Assumed business name act
• Assumed name certificate of intention
• Public notary signature
• Clerk filing fee
• Filing receipt
• Certificate of publication

Instructions

1. Find your local county clerk's office by searching the list of offices available from the State of Illinois Business Portal website. Visit your county clerk’s office for an application for an Assumed Name Certificate Intention form. Search the Assumed Names Database at your county clerk's office to ensure that the assumed name you have chosen for your business is available. Complete the form and get a public notary to sign the appropriate areas of the form. The filing period required to complete the form varies by county.

2. File your business registration application along with the clerk filing fee. If you are registering a sole proprietorship or general partnership, you are required to file at your county clerk’s office. Incorporated or limited business registrations must be filed at your local secretary of state office. Bring the receipt for filing to a county newspaper that runs the state-mandated legal ads. You are required to complete this step as part of the Assumed Business Name Act.

3. Publish the intention to operate your business under an assumed name. An ad must be published in the legal section of a county newspaper within fifteen days of filing for your Assumed Name Certificate of Intention in the county clerk’s office. This ad must run once a week for three consecutive weeks. After three weeks, the newspaper will provide you with a Certificate of Publication.

4. Provide the Certificate of Publication to your county clerk’s office or secretary of state, depending on your type of business. The registration process is complete upon receipt of your Publication Certificate by the clerk’s or state office. You must provide this certificate within fifty days of filing your Assumed Name Certificate of Intention; otherwise you will have to file again. Once you have completed this process, you will receive a Certificate of Ownership via U.S. mail.

Tips & Warnings

• Check your local county for information on public notaries as not all county clerk’s offices have public notaries available to notarize forms.

• The State of Illinois Business Portal website provides a list of county clerks.

• A Supplemental Certificate (Notice of Change form) needs to be filed if you change the type of business your are operating. The form is available from your local county clerk’s office.

• Make sure that you keep your filing receipts; you will need them to complete each step of the registration process.

• If you do not publish your legal ad within fifteen days you will have to refile for an Assumed Name Certificate of Intention.

References

• Business.illinois.gov: State of Illinois Business Portal
• Mcleancountyil.gov: Information about assumed names

Resources

• The Official Business Link to the U.S. Government
• Assumed Business Names Act