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Pennsylvania Business Entity Search

Pennsylvania’s Business Filing Services site has a business search by name or file number, with advanced filters for filing type, status and filing date. Basic searches, results, details and history worked without a login, payment or CAPTCHA in our review.

Official agency: Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations

Open Official Government SearchOpens file.dos.pa.gov in a new tab. This is the official government site, not EntityLocator.

Direct links on the official site

Search methods offered

  • Search by name or file numberOne main input, used with the Execute search button.
  • Advanced: matching modeContains or Starts with.
  • Advanced: Filing TypeIncluding domestic and foreign business corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, nonprofit corporations, fictitious names and name reservations, among others.
  • Advanced: StatusOptions begin with Active or Inactive, such as Active-Pending Merger or Inactive-Administratively Dissolved. The default is [Select a Status].
  • Advanced: Filing DateA start and end date in MM/DD/YYYY format.

How to search

  1. Open the official Pennsylvania business search using the button above.
  2. Enter a business name or file number.
  3. To refine the search, expand Advanced. Choose Contains or Starts with, a Filing Type, a Status, and optionally a Filing Date Start and End. Use Clear Filters to reset.
  4. Select Execute search on the basic form, or Search in the expanded advanced form.
  5. Select a business name or file number in the results to expand its detail panel.
  6. Review the registered office and other details, then select View History to see filing events.
  7. The Business Search Info link opens the system’s accuracy and reliance disclaimer. Read it before relying on a result.

What you can expect to find

  • The results table has the columns Filing Information (name and file number, with a former name where applicable), Initial Filing Date, Status, Entity Type, Formed In and Address.
  • The expanded detail can show the initial filing date, status, formed-in jurisdiction, filing type and subtype, annual report due status, and the registered office and county.
  • View History opens a window listing the Initial Filing, Amendment Type, Control ID and Date for each event.
  • The search covers many filing types, including fictitious names and name reservations. Separate tabs on the site cover UCC, Trademark and CROP.

Limitations, fees and notices

  • The online lookup is free, but other services are separate and paid. The official fee schedule lists a written record search at $15, a domestic subsistence certificate or foreign certificate of registration at $40, plain copies at $15 plus $3 per page, certified copies at $55 plus $3 per page, name availability for three names at $15, and name reservation or registration at $70.
  • A registered office is not necessarily an operating address. Some Address cells show the name of a commercial registered-office provider instead of a street address, so don’t read the Address column as the business’s own location or an owner address.
  • Official guidance says records are accessed by name or entity number, not by owner or officer name, federal or tax ID, business purpose or address. We saw no other search inputs.
  • We did not confirm a separate registered-agent field, or officer or owner details, in the record we reviewed.
  • The live form and record show the status Active. An older official page says corporations do not have an “active” status. We use the live labels, and Active should not be read as a tax or compliance certification.
  • The system disclaims guaranteed accuracy, reliability and timeliness. A lookup is not a guarantee that a name will be approved.

Sources and research notes

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

Research for this guide used the official Pennsylvania site in a web browser. A name search, one corporation record and its history were tested; no certificate or filing flow was tested.

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