Last Updated on March 16, 2023
How To Do A Kentucky Business Lookup Using The Kentucky Entity Registry Database
The Business Services Division of the Kentucky Secretary of State registers and records all business entities registered with the state. Any information you want regarding the formation and status of any registered business entity in the state can be found in the database of the Division. The types of business entities whose information you can access include Corporations, Limited Liability Companies, and Limited Partnerships.
See: How to start an LLC in Kentucky
Kentucky Business Search Instructions
The online search tool provided by the Kentucky Secretary of State lets you search through the Division’s database for details on registered business entities in the state. To start your search, you must know the entity’s Business Name or Business Number.
Read our simplified step-by-step guide below to make the search process easier :
Step 1. Click to visit the Kentucky Secretary of State’s website to go to the Search Page (it will look similar to the screenshot below).
Step 2. Enter the entity’s full or partial name (if partial, it must contain a minimum of four characters). You can also enter the Business Number if you have it. For this example, let’s type “Omnicare” into the name field.
Step 3. Click on the “Continue” button, and the Results Page will then appear (it will look like the screenshot below).
Step 4. You can click on the entity’s name to access more information, such as:
- Organization number
- Entity Name
- Profit of Non-Profit
- Company Type (domestic or foreign entity and corporation or Limited Liability Company)
- Good Standing
- Filing Date
- Date the last Annual Report was received
- Principal Office
- Registered Agent
In addition, the company’s Annual Reports, Articles of Organization (LLC), and Articles of Incorporation (Corp) are available to download.
*The Division allows you to form new entities online or file online reports (if you already own an existing entity.
Registered Agent
In Kentucky, one of the requirements for a registered business is that a Registered Agent has to be named. This agent is a single point of contact in case the business needs to be served with legal papers or contacted by the state. One of the business owners often files as the entity's Registered Agent. When they file, their home address is often used (PO Boxes aren’t allowed), and the owner's name and address are now a public record that can be looked up by anyone. This can be a big concern, especially for home-based businesses. Using a commercial Registered Agent service like Northwest Registered Agent will keep their personal address from being public record.
Kentucky Business Licenses
The business name registration is different from business licensing in Kentucky. The Kentucky One Stop website has more information regarding Kentucky business licenses.
Also see: How to do a Kentucky UCC search
Information on the Kentucky (KY) SOS
Secretary of State Contact Information
700 Capital Ave., Ste. 152
Frankfort, KY 40601
P: (502) 564-3490
F: (502) 564-5687
Office:
An elected constitutional officer, the Secretary of State of Kentucky exercises a wide variety of roles in the affairs of the state.
Currently, the officeholder is Michael Adams.
Functions:
The Secretary of State of Kentucky is the guardian of the Great Seal of the State. Apart from taking care of public records and archives, she is in charge of the following five divisions:
- The Elections Division
- The Business Services Division
- The Administrative Services Division
- Kentucky Land office
- Executive Branch of the office of the Secretary of State