What You Need to Know Before Ordering an New Brunswick Name Search Report

By Holly Crosgrey

A New Brunswick Nuans Name Search Report is a seven page report which is generated from the Canadian Nuans name search system. The Nuans database compares a proposed corporation name or trade-mark with a database of existing names that have already been registered in a province or territory across Canada with a few exceptions.

Before incorporating in New Brunswick you must obtain a New Brunswick Nuans search report. The New Brunswick government compares the proposed company name that you wish to use to the names on the New Brunswick Nuans name search report to be sure that the name you wish to use is available and not in use by another company.

If you wish to register a New Brunswick partnership or a New Brunswick sole proprietorship or a business name on behalf of a New Brunswick company already registered in that province, you will also be required to provide a Nuans name search report. The New Brunswick government is much more stringent at accepting names and it is therefore important that you have the name checked thoroughly before you register to ensure it is available. This can be done by doing a preliminary name search against your proposed name. A preliminary name search can let you know whether the business name you are thinking of registering is available for use before ordering a full New Brunswick Name Search for the proposed name you wish to use. Without first checking to see if the name is available and just ordering a full New Brunswick name search without a preliminary name search, this could result in your obtaining a New Brunswick name search for a name that has too many conflicts to be used. You will then need to pick a new name and order again. The New Brunswick government will look at all names registered in New Brunswick and all names registered right across Canada when making its decision to accept your name.

Most reputable search houses will perform a preliminary name search for your proposed New Brunswick name as part of the service when you buy a New Brunswick Nuans name search from them. Beware of companies that charge an extra fee for this. The only time there should be a fee for a preliminary name search is in the case where you are registering a trade name in a province where a Nuans is not required for registration but you still want to determine the availability of the name. In New Brunswick you are required to provide a Nuans for all business names registered. In light of that when ordering a New Brunswick Nuans name search look for a service that will check your name as part of the cost and that will provide you with confirmation that you have a good chance of getting the name accepted.

It should be noted that when registering an New Brunswick corporation, it is a requirement that there be a legal element to the name (explained below) but for other registrations such as New Brunswick business names, this is not necessary.

Below is an explanation of how to pick a name for a corporation however the principles can be applied to business names with the exception of the legal element.

If the name you choose to register is “Ryan Carpentry Inc. , the distinctive element is the word “Ryan”, which is distinctive because it is a last name of a person. Another example of a distinctive element in a name might be “Owen Sound” as in “Owen Sound Garden Supplies Ltd.” which is distinctive because it describes a location. “Treetop Tree Cutting Services Corp.” has the distinctive word “Treetop” in it to make it stand out from other dental service companies.

The descriptive element describes the type of business. In “Jones Graphics Design Inc.”, the descriptive element is “Graphics Design” which describes the nature of business. In “Toronto Carpeting Ltd.” the descriptive element is “Carpeting” which describes the type of products this business sells. “House Cleaning Services” is the descriptive element for “Jenet’s House Cleaning Corp.”.

The Legal Element of Union Dental Services Corp. is the word “Corp.” which is a mandatory ending which recognizes the name as the name of a company. In Canada you can have the following endings for your company name: “Inc.”, “Incorporated”, “Ltd.”, “Limited”, “Corp.”, “Corporation” and the French equivalents of “Ltee.” “Limitee”, “Inc.” (same in English and French) or “Incorporee”, The Legal Element distinguishes your name as a company that issues shares rather than a business name or sole proprietorship which would not have a legal element.

A reputable search house will take the time to try and clear your name by performing as many preliminary name searches as are required to clear your name. Notwithstanding this, the government examiners have different points of view and different methods of clearing names which is not always evident at the time of performing a preliminary name search. Your proposed name could still be rejected even though the search house took the time to check. There is just no guarantee but performing a preliminary name search cuts down the odds that your name will be rejected by the New Brunswick government.

Resources for Canadian Business Owners provides unlimited preliminary name searchs as a free service when purchasing a NB Name Search and can assist with Business Name Registrations.