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Minnesota Business Entity Search

The Minnesota Secretary of State’s business search has a Business Name tab and a File Number tab. Public results and record details needed no login, payment or CAPTCHA in our review.

Official agency: Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State, Business Services

Open Official Government SearchOpens mblsportal.sos.mn.gov in a new tab. This is the official government site, not EntityLocator.

Direct links on the official site

Search methods offered

  • Business Name tabEnter all or part of a name.
  • File Number tabEnter a file number. It also shows an Advanced Options link, which we didn’t expand.
  • Search ScopeBegins With (the default) or Contains.
  • Filing StatusActive (the default) or Inactive.
  • Include Prior NamesExclude (the default) or Include.

How to search

  1. Open the Minnesota business search using the button above.
  2. On the Business Name tab, enter all or part of the name. For a file number, choose the File Number tab and enter it.
  3. For a name search, choose Begins With or Contains, and check whether the Active or Inactive and prior-name settings suit your search.
  4. Select Search.
  5. Compare the results, then select Details next to the record you want.
  6. Review Business Record Details and the Filing History tab.
  7. If a name doesn’t turn up, the official instructions suggest a shorter name, Contains, Inactive status or including prior names, as appropriate.

What you can expect to find

  • Results show the business name, Business Status, Business Type, Name Type and a Details link. They include trademarks and assumed names as well as corporations and LLCs, and different names can point to the same record, so don’t treat each name row as a separate entity.
  • A detail page can show the Minnesota business name, Business Type, MN Statute, File Number, Home Jurisdiction, Filing Date, Status, Renewal Due Date, Registered Office Address, Number of Shares, Registered Agent(s), Chief Executive Officer and Principal Executive Office Address.
  • There are Filing History and Renewal History tabs. The filing history table shows Filing Date, Filing and Effective Date.
  • The status we saw was “Active / In Good Standing”. We didn’t verify a definition for Active, Inactive or Good Standing.

Limitations, fees and notices

  • Searching and viewing details are free. Sign In and Create an Account links exist, but they aren’t needed for a basic lookup. The new-business filing area separately says an account is required and shows filing fees, which aren’t lookup fees.
  • Order Certificate and Order Copies are separate from public viewing. We could not confirm their prices or login requirements, because the official ordering help page was blocked in our browser, so no prices are listed.
  • For bank and insurance corporations, the official instructions say to get details from the Minnesota Department of Commerce.
  • The search page separates new-business and name-availability activity from ordinary record lookup. A name search is not a name-availability determination.
  • The state’s help page also links an older address on the mblsportal.sos.state.mn.us domain. We inspected the current sos.mn.gov address.

Sources and research notes

Sources reviewed: . Official sites change; always confirm current details on the government site.

Research for this guide used the official Minnesota sites in a web browser. A name search and one corporation record were tested. The copy and certificate help page was blocked during the research, so it is not used as a source for fees.

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