Name Guidelines

The first and perhaps most important part of starting your business is choosing your name. Your name should distinguish you from other businesses in the same field and geographical area, and should describe the basic type of business you are doing.

Before a name can be registered, either as a sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation, it must be approved by Corporate Affairs' staff. Corporate Affairs applies name granting policies derived from the Business Corporations Act and Federal guidelines. To increase the likelihood of your name being approved, keep the following basic principles in mind:

Your name must be distinctive. The more unique the name, the more likely it is to be approved.

Your name should describe the basic type of business you are in. Please remember that words like "Enterprises" and "Ventures" are not descriptive and are generally not allowed to stand on their own due to overuse.

Name Restrictions:

Business names may not suggest a connection with the Government,

Business names may not suggest a connection with the Crown,

Business names may not suggest a connection with a First Nation, without the approval of the First Nation,

The following words or expressions shall not be used in a name:

"Amalgamated" unless a corporation is the result of the amalgamation of two or more corporations,

"College", "Institute" or "University" unless written consent is received from the Department of Education,

"Engineer" or "Engineering" or any variation thereof, except with the consent of the Association of Professional Engineers of Yukon.

"Royal" where used as a prefix except with the consent of the Crown through the Secretary of State,

Numerals indicating the year of incorporation unless the corporation is a successor to a corporation with a similar name,

Initials unless followed by a surname or other distinctive element.

Names of Corporations

Before incorporating in the Yukon, a Federal NUANS search is required. These may be obtained from Corporate Affairs, or any other authorized agent.

The basic principles used in approving corporate names are the same as those used in approving sole proprietor and partnership names, but a corporation must also have a legal element.

The names of all Yukon corporations must end with one of the following legal elements:

Limited or Ltd.,

Incorporated or Inc.,

Corporation or Corp.

The French facsimiles may also be used.