Ohio Business Entity Search
Ohio business records live with the Ohio Secretary of State, on the site people call Ohio Business Central.
Ohio at a glance
About Ohio business records
Ohio requires no annual report from corporations or LLCs; professional associations and LLPs file biennial reports and nonprofits file a Certificate of Continued Existence. The agent who receives legal papers is called a statutory agent, and it cannot use a P.O. box or a mail drop address.
The Ohio Secretary of State, Business Services Division keeps these records; many people call its search Ohio Business Central.
What Ohio calls the registered agent, the person or company that accepts legal papers for the business: Statutory Agent. (source, checked 2026-10-26)
Statuses you may see in Ohio
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Active | The entity is registered and holds the exclusive right to its name. |
| Hold | The entity's registration was cancelled, but its name is held for it for a period (generally one year) before anyone else can use it. |
| Cancelled | The registration was cancelled and the entity no longer has an exclusive right to its name. |
| Dissolved | The entity was dissolved and its name is available to others on a first come, first served basis. |
Source, checked 2026-10-26. Words other states use are in the business entity status guide.
Starting an LLC in Ohio?
An LLC here starts with the Articles of Organization ($99), with no yearly state fee after that, though the Commercial Activity Tax (CAT) can still apply. The steps and the official links are in one guide.
How to start an LLC in OhioQuestions
Is this the official Ohio business search?
No. Open State Index is independent of every state and federal agency. It explains Ohio records and sends you to the official search (Ohio Business Search), where the state answers it.
What is Ohio Business Central?
Ohio Business Central is what many people call the Ohio Secretary of State's online business records. The official search linked on this page, Ohio Business Search, is part of the same system.
How do I check if a business name is available in Ohio?
Search the name in the Ohio Business Search. A new name must be distinguishable upon the records from names in active or hold status; names of cancelled or dissolved entities are generally free to use.
Does Ohio charge a franchise tax or a similar yearly tax?
Ohio's Commercial Activity Tax is 0.26 percent of Ohio taxable gross receipts, and for tax years 2025 and later only businesses with more than $6 million a year in those receipts owe it.
More about an Ohio business
- How to find a business's EIN
- Check if an LLC name is available
- What each entity status means
- What a registered agent is
- Business lookup in other states
Every fee and rule above links to the official page it came from. How we check our facts · Report an error