Maryland Business Entity Search

Check whether a Maryland company exists, and whether it is in good standing, in the state's own records.

Maryland only answers searches on its own site. Search opens the official Maryland search in a new tab and copies your search term, so you can paste it into the business name field there.

Maryland at a glance

LLC filing fee $100 Source, checked 2026-10-26
Corporation filing fee $120 Source, checked 2026-10-26
Annual Report and Business Personal Property Return (Form 1) $300, every year Source, checked 2026-10-26
Name reservation $25, held 30 days Source, checked 2026-10-26
Certificate of Good Standing $20 Source, checked 2026-10-26

How Maryland keeps its business records

Maryland business entities are registered by the Department of Assessments and Taxation, not the Secretary of State, and every entity is identified by its SDAT Department ID. The $300 annual report is combined with the business personal property tax return and is waived for employers enrolled in MarylandSaves.

Filings in Maryland go to the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT), Charter Division, which keeps the official record (often searched as SDAT).

What Maryland calls the registered agent, the person or company that accepts legal papers for the business: Resident Agent. (source, checked 2026-10-26)

Statuses you may see in Maryland

Status	What it means
Active	The entity exists and may conduct business in Maryland.
In Good Standing	An active entity that is in compliance with the Maryland laws that apply to it, such as filing its annual report.
Not in Good Standing	The entity is out of compliance, most often for a missing annual report, an unpaid late penalty, a bounced payment, no resident agent, or an issue with the Comptroller or Department of Labor; a voluntarily terminated entity also shows this.
Forfeited	The entity has lost the right to do business in Maryland and to use its name, usually after a period not in good standing; a forfeited domestic corporation has no legal existence until revived.
Inactive	The registration is no longer active.
Cancelled	The registration was cancelled and is no longer active.
Merged	The entity merged into another entity and no longer exists separately.
Dissolved	The entity has been dissolved and is no longer active.

Source, checked 2026-10-26. Words other states use are in the business entity status guide.

Questions

Is this the official Maryland business search?

No. This is an independent site, not run by or affiliated with the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. The search itself runs on the state's own site (Maryland Business Express Entity Search), which this page links to.

What is SDAT?

SDAT is what many people call the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation's online business records. The official search linked on this page, Maryland Business Express Entity Search, is part of the same system.

How do I check if a business name is available in Maryland?

Search the proposed name in the Maryland Business Express Entity Search. SDAT makes the final decision when it reviews the formation filing, so a name can be reserved for 30 days if you are not ready to file.

More about a Maryland business

Every fee and rule above links to the official page it came from. How we check our facts · Report an error