Using a Fictitious Name, aka d/b/a

[tonym]

Hi. I do the "Zogonia" comic in Dragon, and the "Mount Zogon" comic in Dungeon. I have a question and I haven't been able to find any useful information on the 'net to answer it.

What kind of business-stuff is a d/b/a good for?

After registering a Fictitious Name with the county, I can open a Bank Account under the Fictitious Name, right? And then I can get checks with "My Name d/b/a Fictitious Name" printed on them, right?

And I can then cash checks made-out-to the Fictitious Name, right?

What else is there?

(I already know the process of registering a Fictitious Name in my state, by the way.)

Thanks!
Tony M

 

[jmucchiello]

What kind of business-stuff is a d/b/a good for?

After registering a Fictitious Name with the county, I can open a Bank Account under the Fictitious Name, right? And then I can get checks with "My Name d/b/a Fictitious Name" printed on them, right?

And I can then cash checks made-out-to the Fictitious Name, right?

What else is there?

That's about it. I think. If you want more you have to move up to SP, LLC or Incorporation (yes, there are other esoteric options too). The question is, what do you need that a d/b/a doesn't give you? Or, do you even need the d/b/a?

 

[tf360]

Hi. I do the "Zogonia" comic in Dragon, and the "Mount Zogon" comic in Dungeon. I have a question and I haven't been able to find any useful information on the 'net to answer it.

What kind of business-stuff is a d/b/a good for?

After registering a Fictitious Name with the county, I can open a Bank Account under the Fictitious Name, right? And then I can get checks with "My Name d/b/a Fictitious Name" printed on them, right?

And I can then cash checks made-out-to the Fictitious Name, right?

What else is there?

(I already know the process of registering a Fictitious Name in my state, by the way.)

Thanks!
Tony M

Technically, a dba should only be used by a sole proprietorship, i.e. a business owned by one individual. The individual and the business are separate entities; however unlike a partnership or a corporation, creditors can pursue the business AND the individual for any debts. Furthermore, the business' income is taxed on the individual level. That means that the business is required to file a Schedule C on an income tax return and any net profit made by the business is subject to Social Security Tax, currently 15.3%.

T/A or trading as is generally used by partnerships and corporations to distinguish themselves as a different entity. In some instances, creditors can pursue individual partners for the debts of the partnership, all depending upon the type of partnership established, i.e. general partnership, limited partnership, etc. You as an individual receive income from the partnership through a K-1, a schedule reporting the net profit of the partnership which is in its simplest terms divided up between the partners according to their ownership percentage.

The last entity is a corporation. Unlike the preceding two entities, the individual is not responsible for the debts of the corporation, except in some certain circumstances, such as committing fraud or non payment of payroll taxes. The officer of the corporation, i.e. its president is treated and paid as an employee, unless you have an 1120S corporation which is geared for small businesses that gross under $5 million in receipts on an annual basis. In the latter instance, the individual is entitled to the benefits of incorporating but is taxed as an individual.

Hope that helps without being too technical.

 

[Pielorinho]

Technically, a dba should only be used by a sole proprietorship, i.e. a business owned by one individual.

Tom, are you sure that's right? I work for a nonprofit corporation with multiple DBAs, and we've got them to allow our different divisions (the animal shelter, animal control, and educational department) to accept and write checks under different names. We don't want, for example, people who receive animal control citations to think their citation payment is going to fund adoptions at the shelter.

Daniel

 

[The Sigil]

IANAL, TINLA.

Keep in mind that a business/corporation is ALSO considered a "person" in the eyes of the law, and that the business/corporation, is thereby entitled to work under a d/b/a. AFAIK, you can do business under any number of d/b/a names (provided you go through any steps necessary in your jurisdiction; e.g., filing a fictitious name statement in a local newspaper, etc.)

Thus, the non-profit you describe could well be d/b/a multiple names and they're still just fine.

Hope that explained enough despite its brevity.

--The Sigil

 

[tonym]

...
Hope that helps without being too technical.

Thanks MUCH, everybody! It was just the information I needed to hear.

I consider this question answered!



Tony M

 

[tf360]

Tom, are you sure that's right? I work for a nonprofit corporation with multiple DBAs, and we've got them to allow our different divisions (the animal shelter, animal control, and educational department) to accept and write checks under different names. We don't want, for example, people who receive animal control citations to think their citation payment is going to fund adoptions at the shelter.

Daniel

From a taxation standpoint, yes. From a usage standpoint, no. DBA is often intertwined with T/A, trading as, but few people get that technical on the differentiation between the two. For all practical purposes the two terms mean the same thing.

 

[RangerWickett]

Um . . . just so I know what the heck you're talking about, what's a DBA?

 

[Mytholder]

Paging John Nephew, John Newphew to the courtesy white telephone please...

 

[tf360]

Um . . . just so I know what the heck you're talking about, what's a DBA?

Doing business as, for instance John Smith dba Quick Stop Coffee Mart.