How Do I Choose and Reserve a Corporate Name in Ontario?

The steps to choose and reserve a corporate name in Ontario

1. Decide between a word name and a numbered name.
2. Check any proposed word name against Ontario’s naming rules before you get attached to it.
3. Order an Ontario-biased NUANS report from a private search house (unless you’re going numbered).
4. Review the NUANS report yourself for conflicts, since the search doesn’t guarantee approval.
5. File the Articles of Incorporation within the report’s 90-day window.
6. Understand that the Director can still object to the name after the fact.

Each step is explained below.

1. Decide between a word name and a numbered name

A numbered name (for example, “1234567 Ontario Inc.”) is assigned by the Ministry and skips the name-search step described below. A word name lets you brand the corporation directly but must include a legal element: “Limited,” “Limitée,” “Incorporated,” “Incorporée,” “Corporation,” or the abbreviations “Ltd.,” “Ltée,” “Inc.,” or “Corp.” (Business Corporations Act, RSO 1990, c B.16, s 10(1)). The name can be set out in English only, French only, or an English and French form combined or used as equivalents (s 10(2)). Whichever form is chosen, the corporation must display that exact registered name in legible characters on all contracts, invoices, negotiable instruments, and filings sent to the Director (s 10(5)).

2. Check the name against Ontario’s naming rules

Before spending money on a search, screen the name yourself against the rules in O Reg 398/21 (Names and Filings), made under the Business Corporations Act:

• No using a real person’s name without consent. A corporate name cannot contain the full name or family name of an individual (with or without given name or initials) unless that individual, or their heir or executor, consents (O Reg 398/21, s 2(1)).
• Some words are restricted. “Engineer” needs written consent from the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario if it suggests the practice of that profession; “Veteran” needs at least 20 years of continuous prior use of the name (O Reg 398/21, s 3).
• Obscene or objectionable words are out, in any language. Ontario’s general guidance on business names confirms this applies regardless of the language used.
• Distinctiveness matters. The Director may weigh how distinctive the name (or an element of it) is, and how long it’s been used, when deciding whether it improperly conflicts with an existing name or trademark (O Reg 398/21, s 4(1)).
• Punctuation alone won’t distinguish two names. Adding or removing punctuation or symbols doesn’t make a name different from an existing one; a genuine difference requires added, deleted, or substituted words, numerals, initials, or a changed legal element (O Reg 398/21, s 6).

3. Order an Ontario-biased NUANS report

Unless incorporating with a numbered name, an original Ontario-biased NUANS name search report must be obtained from a private name search company and submitted with the Articles of Incorporation. The Ontario government doesn’t run this search itself; the Companies and Personal Property Security Branch directs incorporators to private suppliers (search houses, sometimes listed as “Searchers of Records”) or the NUANS site. A federally-biased NUANS report will not be accepted for an Ontario incorporation; it must specifically be Ontario-weighted.

4. Review the report for conflicts before relying on it

A clear NUANS report is a starting point, not a guarantee. Because the Director may still weigh distinctiveness and prior use (O Reg 398/21, s 4(1)), a name that shows up as available in the search can still draw an objection later. One specific risk: a federal corporation with an identical name may not currently be active in Ontario, but it’s entitled to begin operating there at any time, and choosing a similar name assumes the risk of a future objection and possible name hearing under section 12 of the Business Corporations Act.

If you deliberately want a name identical to another existing corporation, in Ontario that’s only permitted if a lawyer authorized to practise law in Ontario provides a legal opinion confirming narrow conditions are met, such as the two corporations being affiliated or associated, or the other corporation having dissolved or changed its name (O Reg 398/21, s 5(2)).

5. File the Articles of Incorporation within the 90-day window

The NUANS report cannot be dated more than 90 days before the Articles of Incorporation are submitted. That means the report functions as a time-limited hold on the name rather than a permanent reservation: if incorporation isn’t filed within that window, a fresh report is needed. The Ministry’s fee to file Articles of Incorporation electronically is $300, separate from whatever the private search house charges for the NUANS report itself.

6. Know that the Director can still act on the name later

If a corporation acquires a name that turns out to be contrary to the naming rules (sections 9 or 10 of the Business Corporations Act), whether through inadvertence or otherwise, the Director may, after giving the corporation an opportunity to be heard, unilaterally issue a certificate of amendment changing the name (s 12(1)). This is a real possibility even after incorporation is complete, which is part of why steps 2 and 4 above matter before filing, not just after a rejection.

Corporate name vs. trade name: a separate filing

Choosing and reserving the corporate name set out above is not the same process as registering a trade name (also called a business name). If a corporation later wants to carry on business under a name other than its registered corporate name, in Ontario that trade name must be separately registered under the Business Names Act, RSO 1990, c B.17. The general guidance for choosing any business name in Ontario, corporate or trade, recommends picking something distinctive and not misleading, and confirms that obscene or objectionable words or expressions, in any language, cannot be used either way.