Inyo Source

File a DBA (fictitious business name) in Big Pine, CA

A DBA ("doing business as"), also called a fictitious business name or FBN, lets a business operate under a name other than its owner's legal name.

California requires a sole proprietor who does business under a name other than their own to file that name. The filing goes to the Inyo County Clerk-Recorder in Inyo County. State law requires a newspaper notice of the name.

How to file in Inyo County

1. Where it goes

The filing goes to the Inyo County Clerk-Recorder.

2. How the office takes it

It takes the filing online.

3. What to bring

The office asks for: “Signed FBN Statement; hard copies need an original signature”

4. The newspaper notice

Once a week for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in Inyo County; publication must begin within 30 days after filing (read from the office's page on 2026-11-03).

5. File it

The office's own page is the place to do it.

File with the Inyo County Clerk-Recorder

What it costs and how long it takes

The filing fee is $26.00 (one name, one registrant); $4.00 each additional, read from the office's own page on 2026-11-03. How long it takes is not recorded here either; the Inyo County Clerk-Recorder publishes both on its own page.

After you file

Two things usually follow, and the Inyo County Clerk-Recorder handles neither: opening a bank account in the business name, and any city business licence. Big Pine's own licensing page is not recorded here — ask the city clerk.

Renewal and changes

The filing lasts 5 years, read from the office's own page on 2026-11-03. Renewing is a new filing.

Questions

Do I need an LLC instead?

A DBA is a name, not a company. It does not separate your business debts from your own; that is what forming a company does.

What if someone already trades under the name?

A filed name is on the public record, so the office's own name search is the place to check before you file.

Does the notice really have to run in a newspaper?

Yes. State law requires a newspaper notice of the name, and the Inyo County Clerk-Recorder states which papers qualify and for how long it must run.

Source: sos.ca.gov, calosba.ca.gov. Checked 2026-10-28.