Delaware Business Search

How to read the official business-entity file, and a way to have the search run for you.

Delaware Business Search

Delaware file number

Quick answer. Every Delaware entity has a file number issued by the Division of Corporations. The tax portal accepts a number up to nine digits. Search by name if you lost it, then use the number for tax, annual reports for corporations, and certificate orders.

Official office

Delaware Department of State, Division of Corporations

Open the official search

Phone: (302) 739-3073

John G. Townsend Building, 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, Dover, DE 19901

General information is (302) 739-3073 option 2. Franchise tax is option 3. In-person visits are by appointment at (302) 739-3077.

Steps

  1. Find it on the name search

    Enter the legal name at the ICIS name search. The results table includes a file-number column. You can also search by the number if a contract already quotes it.

  2. Count the digits before you pay

    The tax login says the business entity file number can be up to nine digits and that the field is required. Leading zeros matter if they were part of the number you were given. Compare with the search result rather than retyping from memory.

  3. Keep the number off marketing materials if you can

    It is a public identifier, but it is also the key to the tax account. Store it with the formation receipt. Do not confuse it with the EIN from the IRS or with a registered agent’s internal client code.

  4. Use it when names were changed

    An amendment can change the name and leave the file number in place. If two documents use different names, the file number tells you whether they are the same entity.

File number versus entity name in quotes

Quoted names are for exact name matches. The file number is for exact identity. When a delaware division of corporations entity search returns several LLCs with the same first words, stop using the name and switch to the number from your stamped certificate.

Common mistakes

  • Sending the registered agent’s account number to the Division as if it were the file number.
  • Dropping digits to make the value “look like” a seven-digit number from an old form. Use the value on the current search result.
  • Assuming a new file number is issued when a corporation converts. Read the current information page.

Questions

How many digits is a Delaware file number?

The Division’s tax login says the file number can be up to nine digits. Copy it from the entity search rather than padding or trimming it.

I only have the company name. Can I still pay the tax?

Search the name, open the right row, and copy the file number into the tax portal. The portal itself links to that name search if you do not know the number.

Is the file number on the certificate of formation?

The Division stamps or returns the file number when it accepts the formation. It is also on the free search once the entity is in the database.

Sources reviewed