California Secretary of State Business Search Guide 2024

The California Secretary of State provides an online Business Search portal that allows you to easily look up business information. This can be critical for due diligence and Know Your Client (KYC) purposes. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to use this resource:

1. Access the California Business Search portal.

2. On the landing page, you can perform a basic search by entering all or part of the business name. The system will display the 500 records most closely matching your search.

3. If the basic search yields too many results, use the advanced search function to narrow down the records by criteria such as business type, date of initial filing, and more.

4. The search results are presented in a table with several columns:

   - Entity Information: Displays the official business name and registration number. Click on the name for additional details, including contact information and standing with various state agencies.

   - Initial Filing Date: Shows the date when the company first filed with the Secretary of State's office.

   - Status: Indicates whether the company's registration is active or inactive (Suspended, Terminated, Forfeited, Merged Out, etc.).

   - Entity Type: Specifies the legal structure of the company (e.g., Legacy Corporation, Stock Corporation).

   - Formed In: Lists the state where the business was originally formed, as many companies operating in California were established elsewhere.

   - Agent: Provides the name of the business's registered agent, often a principal of the company. Click on the company name to find the agent's contact information.

5. Sort the search results by clicking the small arrows in the column headers to arrange the data in ascending or descending order.

California 11 Business Entity Status Definition

Note that information for Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) and General Partnerships (GPs) is currently not available online. To obtain this data, you must request hard copies by mail.

While searching for a single company is straightforward, the process can become time-consuming when dealing with hundreds or thousands of records per month. Additionally, integrating Secretary of State data from multiple states can be complex, as each state has its own unique system and data format.

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