Delaware Business Search
Delaware business search
Quick answer. The Delaware business search is the Division of Corporations name search in ICIS. A free result shows the entity name, file number, formation date, and registered agent. It does not list members or directors. A certificate of status is a separate paid order. LLC and LP annual tax is currently $400, due June 1, on the Division’s tax page.
Official office
Delaware Department of State, Division of Corporations
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
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Open the ICIS name search
Use the entity name search. You can enter a name or a file number. The Division says results include active and inactive entities and that the list itself is not a statement of current status. Open the name to see the information page.
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Read only what the free page promises
The search page says the free information is the entity name, file number, incorporation or formation date, and the registered agent’s name, address, phone number, and residency. Anything beyond that is a paid order through a Delaware online agent or the Division’s document and certificate service.
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Copy the file number
The file number is how you pay tax and file a corporate annual report. The tax login says the number can be up to nine digits. The file number guide is the short version.
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Do not treat the agent as the owner
Delaware LLCs are often formed with a commercial registered agent and no public member list. A delaware entity search that shows only the agent is working as designed. It is not a broken page.
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Check tax on the Division’s tax page, not from memory
Corporations file an annual report and pay franchise tax by March 1. LLCs, LPs, and general partnerships do not file an annual report but pay an annual tax due June 1. The amount on the Division’s page checked October 12, 2026 is $400, not the older $300 figure still circulating in search results. Read franchise tax.
What people mean by a Delaware corporation search
A delaware corporation search, a delaware secretary of state business search, and a delaware sos business search are this same ICIS tool. The Division of Corporations sits inside the Department of State. The public counter is the John G. Townsend Building, 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, Dover. Phone: (302) 739-3073. The Division will not recite filing history over the phone. General information is option 2. Franchise tax is option 3.
The Division prohibits data mining and automated searching. A human lookup of one name is the use they describe. Do not script the form.
Status is a certificate, not a color on the list
The name-search instructions are explicit that returning a name does not tell you current status. To know whether the entity is in good standing you order a certificate of status, or you use the status service the Division offers for a fee. The good standing page explains that split. A free screenshot is not what a bank means when it asks for a certificate.
Common mistakes
- Expecting member or director names on the free Delaware LLC search. They are not part of the free record.
- Paying $300 because an old article said that was the LLC tax. The Division’s tax page now lists $400 due June 1.
- Using a Delaware file number to search another state’s registry, or the reverse.
Questions
Is the Delaware business entity search free?
The name and file-number lookup is free and shows a short list of facts. Certificates, certified copies, and fuller histories are paid.
Does a Delaware secretary of state entity search show who owns the LLC?
Not on the free page. You see the registered agent. Ownership is in the company’s private records unless a specific filing put a name on the public record.
Where is the office?
Division of Corporations, John G. Townsend Building, 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, Dover, DE 19901. Call (302) 739-3073. In-person visits require an appointment at (302) 739-3077.
Why do search results mention a $300 LLC tax?
That was the long-standing amount. The Division’s annual report and tax page currently states a $400 annual tax for LLCs, LPs, and general partnerships, due on or before June 1. Confirm the figure there before you pay.