Forum Moderators: LifeinAsia
Anyway, I live in Michigan and lately I've been giving some thought to doing some freelance website design/graphic design/illustration work. I plan to work from home so it's nothing fancy. Now, I did a little checking and there don't appear to be any licensing requirements for this kind of work so I'm good with that.
What I'm not sure about is the DBA. If I set up a website and named it, say, "Widget Design" and had a domain of www.widgetdesign.com, would I need a DBA? I have a strong feeling I would, but I can't find any real information anywhere. I know that, obviously, if I were renting out an office and wanted to hang a sign out front that said "Widget Design" that I would need a DBA, but I'm not so sure about doing something like this on the internet.
I also know that if I wanted to accept checks made out to "Widget Design" that I'd need a DBA to open a business account with a bank. However, I'd be taking payments through PayPal mostly, which I signed up for using my own name, and any checks I receive would be made out to me personally rather than being made out to "Widget Design."
Basically what I guess I'm asking is, do I have to name my website using my full name (i.e. "John Doe Design") like I would a real world business in order to not need a DBA, or can I essentially name my website anything I want (barring calling it Microsoft or something) without getting a DBA?
Thanks in advance for any help.
Sorry about the misunderstanding, ebound. There's too many acronyms floating around I guess. ;)
It's bothersome paperwork that may or may not need to be filed, which is what I'm trying to figure out.
... and, Welcome to WebmasterWorld!
The best thing we ever did was open a business account and register a DBA at the same time. It is great at tax time and for when you do want step up and either get a merchant account or accept checks written to your business name.
The benefits far outweigh the minimum amount of paperwork involved.
I would also suggest setting up a partnership and getting an EIN to use instead of your SSN.
A partnership gets you all of the tax benefits of registering as a company without all of the extra hassle.
This is just from my experience, you might want to have a chat with your accountant.
What country are you in? This sounds like a geography-specific question.
I believe Michigan is in the US. DBAs are a very common practice all across the US as far as I know.
I'm pretty sure it doesn't make any difference if you have a store front or if it's on the net...if you're doing business under a name that's not your legal name, you need a dba...this allows people to find you if they wanna sue you. ;-)
It would seem on the surface it is not necessary, unless you want to open a checking account, accept checks in that name (which you don't need a special checking account for - you can just deposit them in your personal account - but - you need a DBA to do that), etc.
But, if your domain name is widgets.com... are you then "doing business" as widgets.com?
I have to think the answer is no. What if you have 50 domains? Would you need 50 DBAs?
As I understand it, the purpose of DBA laws is to make sure people you do business with know who you are and can locate you and hold you legally responsible. If you just hang out a shingle "Widgets, Inc." without any kind of registration, how does anybody find out who is to blame when their widget breaks?
To be on the safe side, you'd probably have to be careful that if you advertise any goods or services for sale, you need to do so under your personal name. At least make sure your name is plainly displayed. And no anonymous domain registration.
Safer yet - ask an attorney.
jtara: You've pointed out what, essentially, I was wondering. If someone has a domain called widgets.com are they in fact "doing business" under that name simply because they call their site "Widgets"? What if it's simply a personal site that someone called "Blue Moon", for no other reason than the fact that they liked the name? If a random internet visitor sees the layout and asks the site owner to design a site for them is the site owner then "doing business" as "Blue Moon" simply because the website has that name?
On one hand I wish the government, federal or local, would make this clear. On the other hand I dread government interference as it usually leads to overly complex rules and regulations and more paperwork than what you're after is worth.
Your suggestion to ask an attorney is, of course, the best advice. Of course this could turn out to be one of those questions that gets a different answer from everyone you ask.
By the way, thanks for the replies everyone. They're appreciated. If anyone else has any thoughts I'd be glad to hear them.
When I decided to start doing web design for others for money, I created a name for that business. I registered as an LLC, which eliminated the need to file for a separate dba, but serves essentially the same function in terms of people being able to find the legal owner.
Just writing a website isn't doing business. Contracting with advertisers (Adsense, for instance) is.
If I wanted to run Adsense on my web design website, I'd have to open a separate account to do it, because the web design company is legally distinct from me.
I don't know if I'm making this clear...my regular sites are publications...the domain names are titles of those publications, but any business I do related to those sites is done in my name.
For my web design company I am offering services in the name of the company, which also happens to be the domain name. Therefore a dba or other legal entity is required.
I have two businesses...one is a sole proprietorship in my legal name, the other is a LLC. Separate checking accounts, accounting and tax papers for both.
In the US, dba laws are state laws, so your state law applies, not mine and not anyone else's. There is no exemption for online businesses -- the laws apply online and offline.
I'm not clear on whether the dba requirement kicks in if you were to use John Doe Web Design.
In California, that's the one exception. You do not need a DBA (in fact, you cannot *get* one) if your full name is part of the name you do business as.
"Sam Smith Painting" does not require a DBA. "Smith Painting" does.
