Business Name Registration in Ireland: Forms, Fees and Timing

If you trade in Ireland under any name other than your own true name, you must register it with the Companies Registration Office (CRO). The CRO sets the test by the name you use to carry on business: if it differs from your surname, all your partners' true names or your company's full corporate name, you register. The filing costs €20 online, you have one month from adopting the name, and the certificate can take longer than you expect.

This guide covers who needs to register, which form to use, how to check a name, what it costs, how long it takes and what you still have to do afterwards with Revenue and your books.

TL;DR

• You must register a business name if you, your partnership or your company trades under a name that is not your own true name or the company's full corporate name, and you have a place of business in Ireland.
• Use RBN1 (individual), RBN1A (partnership) or RBN1B (company). The fee is €20 online or €40 on paper.
• File within one month of starting to use the name. Do not assume the certificate arrives instantly: plan for delays.
• Registration is a public disclosure. It does not give you exclusive rights to the name, and it is not tax registration.
• Once the name is registered, sort out Revenue registrations and your bookkeeping in the right order.

Table of Contents

• Do you need to register a business name?
• What registration does and does not do
• Which form to use
• How to check whether a name is available
• Step by step: registering the name
• What it costs
• How long it takes, and why the deadline is different
• After the name: tax, VAT and payroll
• Changing or closing a business name
• Our perspective: registration is the first filing, not a standalone task
• Getting the set-up right with Stratancy
• FAQ
• Sources

Do you need to register a business name?

The rule comes from the Registration of Business Names Act 1963. The CRO explains that it applies to individuals, partnerships and companies that have a place of business in the Republic of Ireland and use a name that is not their own true name or names. The purpose is transparency: the public record shows who is behind a trading name.

The size of the business and how informal the name feels make no difference. What matters is whether the name you use matches the legal owner.

The first and last rows follow the examples the CRO and gov.ie guidance give. The partnership rows apply the same principle: a partnership must register where its name is not made up of all the partners' true names.

Sole traders: one detail that catches people out

A sole trader trading only under their own true surname does not need a business name registration. But if the name differs from the surname in any way, you must register. Adding a first name or initials does not change the CRO test, so check the exact wording you use on invoices, your website and your signage.

Companies trading under a different name

A limited company has a legal name on the CRO register. If you trade as something else, for a second brand or a product line, that other name is a business name and needs an RBN1B. Many directors miss this because the company itself is already registered.

What registration does and does not do

This is the point most guides blur, so it is worth being direct.

It does: put the name, and the identity of the individual, partnership or company behind it, on the public record. It also keeps you on the right side of the law.

It does not:

• Give you ownership of the name. The CRO states that registration does not prevent duplication and does not confirm that trade mark or other rights are clear.
• Guarantee that the same name will later be accepted as a company name.
• Create a separate legal entity or tax identity. A trading name is just a label for the person or company behind it.

If the brand matters commercially, because you will spend money on a logo, packaging or a domain, treat trade mark protection as a separate decision.

Which form to use

Choose the form by the legal owner of the name, not by how you describe the business. The CRO lists these forms:

• RBN1: registration by an individual.
• RBN1A: registration by a partnership.
• RBN1B: registration by a body corporate (a company).
• RBN2, RBN2A, RBN2B: changes in the particulars of a registered name, for an individual, partnership or company respectively.
• RBN3: notice that the business has stopped trading under the name.

If you are still deciding between trading personally and setting up a company, settle that first, because it determines the form and the tax route. Our guide to sole trader versus limited company in Ireland sets out the practical differences.

How to check whether a name is available

Here is the catch: gov.ie warns that the CRO does not check a proposed name against the company, business name or trade mark registers on your behalf. A name that looks free may still cause you trouble.

Do these checks before you commit to the name, in this order:

1. Search the CRO registers. The company and business name searches on the CRO site are free. Search the exact name and close variants: plurals, spelling changes, punctuation, and the name with and without common words such as "group" or "services".
2. Search the trade mark database. The Intellectual Property Office of Ireland runs a searchable Irish trade mark database. Search by name and, if you can, by the goods and services classes that match your trade. Look for similar-sounding marks as well as identical ones.
3. Check domains and social handles. These are not legal clearance, but a name you cannot use online costs you customers.
4. Search the way a customer would. Type the name into Google. If a similar business in your sector already ranks, think again.

None of this amounts to a full legal clearance. If you are building a brand you expect to scale, ask an intellectual property professional to review the name before you invest in it.

Step by step: registering the name

The process follows the gov.ie guidance:

1. Create a CORE account. CORE is the CRO's online filing system.
2. Run your searches. Do the CRO and trade mark checks described above.
3. Select the right form. RBN1, RBN1A or RBN1B, depending on who owns the name.
4. Complete the form and pay. Enter the name, the business address and the details of the owner or owners, then pay the fee online.
5. Complete any print, sign and return step if the filing requires it.
6. Watch the email address you gave. The certificate is issued by email, so use an address you check daily, and not an old one.

Keep the certificate with your business records. Banks, platforms and some customers ask for it.

What it costs

The CRO's published fee schedule is short:

The CRO also lists a business name printout or paper file search at €3.50 and an image of a document at €2.50. Filing online is both cheaper and, under the CRO's standards, faster.

Be wary of sites that charge several times the official fee to file the form for you. If you prefer to hand the paperwork over, that is a legitimate choice, but make sure you know the official fee and what you are paying on top of it.

How long it takes, and why the deadline is different

Two separate clocks apply, and they are easy to mix up.

The legal deadline: you must register within one month of adopting the name, according to the CRO.

The processing time: the CRO customer charter sets service standards of 10 working days for electronically filed business name applications and 20 working days for manual ones, provided the filing is in order. These are targets, not promises. On the CRO homepage the daily processing update on 19 October 2026 showed RBN1 applications being handled in date order, with those received on 3 October 2026 being worked on. That is a gap of more than two weeks in calendar terms. An application sent back for correction takes longer still.

What this means in practice:

• File as early as you can, ideally before you print anything.
• Do not order signage, stationery or packaging until the certificate arrives.
• If you are a contractor or startup with a client waiting, avoid promising a start date on the assumption that registration will be instant.
• Check every detail before you submit. A returned filing costs you the most time.

After the name: tax, VAT and payroll

Registering a business name is not tax registration. Revenue's guidance makes the distinction by legal form:

• Sole traders use their own Personal Public Service Number (PPSN) for tax.
• Partnerships use a partnership tax reference for returns such as employer, VAT or RCT.
• Companies need a CRO number before they can register for tax. Revenue explains that this covers Corporation Tax, employer PAYE, VAT and RCT, and that returns and payments are then made online through ROS.

So the sequence matters. A typical order for a new limited company is: incorporate, register the business name if you will trade under a different one, register for Corporation Tax, then add VAT and PAYE as the business needs them. Our guides on company formation in Ireland, VAT registration and Corporation Tax and the CT1 deadline walk through each step.

Books and records from day one

Revenue expects your records to show clearly your income, purchases, receipts and payments, with supporting documents. Its books and records guidance sets out what must be kept, and records are generally retained for six years. Setting up Xero, QuickBooks or Sage when the business starts, rather than after the first busy quarter, saves you a painful clean-up later. The legal responsibility stays with the owner, whoever keeps the books.

Changing or closing a business name

Names change. If the registered particulars change, for example a new address or a new partner, you file the matching RBN2, RBN2A or RBN2B. Online it is free; on paper it is €15. If you stop trading under the name, file an RBN3, which is free either way. Leaving a defunct name on the register is untidy, and it keeps your details public for a business that no longer exists.

If you are closing a company altogether, that is a separate process. Our company setup, changes and closure service covers it.

Our perspective: registration is the first filing, not a standalone task

We see the same pattern with new clients. The business name is registered, sometimes by the owner, sometimes by a website that did it for a fee, and then nothing else is connected to it. The VAT registration is done late, nobody has set up payroll before the first hire, and the bookkeeping starts months in with a shoebox of receipts.

That is why we treat the name as one step in a sequence. The trading name identifies the public face of the business. The PPSN, partnership tax reference, CRO number and Revenue registrations decide what you must file and when. The books show whether any of it is working. When these are handled as separate one-off events, nobody sees the whole picture, and gaps appear between them.

Our view is simple. Pick the legal form first. Check the name properly, including the trade mark register, because the CRO will not do it for you. File early, and plan around the processing queue rather than the target. Then set up your accounting software the same week so that the first invoice and the first receipt land in clean books. Our ACCA-qualified accountants work on Xero, QuickBooks and Sage, and we would rather help you set this up once than tidy it up later.

— Stratancy

Getting the set-up right with Stratancy

If you are starting out and want the name, the tax registrations and the bookkeeping to work together, we can help. Our company setup service supports Irish-resident, EU/EEA-resident and non-EEA founders. For ongoing work, our published packages start at €129 per month for Sole Trader Essential and €159 per month for LTD Essential, both listed as "from" prices. VAT registration, PAYE registration and RBO registration are each €119 one-off, and payroll is €25 per month per employee or director.

Contractors and freelancers can see how we work on our page for IT contractors and freelancers, and early-stage founders on our page for tech startups. For day-to-day records, see our bookkeeping services.

FAQ

How do I register my business name in Ireland?

Create a CORE account, search the CRO registers and the trade mark database, then file RBN1, RBN1A or RBN1B depending on whether an individual, partnership or company owns the name. Pay the fee and watch your email for the certificate. Register within one month of adopting the name.

How much does it cost to register a business name in Ireland?

The CRO charges €20 for an electronic filing and €40 on paper. Changes are free online and €15 on paper, and cessation is free. Any additional amount a third party charges is for their service, not the CRO's fee.

Does a sole trader need a business name?

Not if you trade only under your own true surname. If the name differs from your surname in any way, including a first name or initials added to it, or a trading style like "Murphy Builders", you must register it. Check the exact wording you use on invoices and signage.

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

Search the free CRO company and business name registers, then the IPOI trade mark database for identical or similar marks. The CRO does not run these checks for you, and a clear search is not full legal clearance. If the brand is important to you, take advice before you spend on branding.

Does registering a business name protect it?

No. It is a public disclosure of who is behind the name. It does not prevent others from using a similar name, and it does not settle trade mark rights. Trade mark protection is a separate application.

Sources

• Registering a Business Name, CRO
• Business Names Forms and Fees, CRO
• Registering a Business Name, gov.ie
• Customer Charter, CRO
• Companies Registration Office homepage
• Registering your business, Revenue
• How to register for tax as a new company, Revenue
• Books and Records, Revenue Tax and Duty Manual
• Irish Trade Mark Database, IPOI

Recommended

• Company Setup, Changes & Closure in Ireland
• Company Formation in Ireland: Directors, Registered Office & CRO
• Sole Trader vs Limited Company in Ireland: Key Differences