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In short, there is no legal difference between incorporating a named or numbered company. However, the difference lies in what you wish to do with the company.
Incorporating a Named Company
If your company deals with the general public and you plan on developing a recognizable brand name for your business, then incorporating a named company is preferable.
For example, you want to incorporate a company with the name “Peter’s Trucking Inc”.
Every named company must end with a designation as Incorporated, Corporation, Limited, Inc., Ltd., Co., or some other variation to indicate a corporation. There is no difference in which suffix you choose as you have the same rights and same status under law, with any one of these corporate suffixes.
To ensure that your company or business name will not cause confusion with other similar corporate names in the marketplace, you will need to conduct a search through the government name database prior to registering your name.
For a fee, you can submit a name request for approval to reserve your organization or business name. In BC, this can be done through BC Registry Services.
The process is quite straightforward and provides the user excellent guidance on how to build a distinctive business name.
Incorporating a Numbered Company
If you do not require brand recognition for your business and intend to have the corporation simply hold assets and not carry any ongoing business operations, then a numbered company may be more suited to your purposes.
With a numbered company, the advantage is that you do not need to perform a name search, which saves a bit of time and money on that front. In BC, the government will automatically assign a number to you and the name will be made up of its incorporation number, followed by “B.C. LTD.”
For example, the name of your numbered company would look like this: 0603933 B.C. Ltd.
However, if you ever decide to change your numbered corporation to a named one in the future, you can do so by manually filing Articles of Amendment directly with the governing ministry for a fee.
Conclusion
To summarize, numbered companies are not typically used by businesses that have ongoing business operations, but a named company is generally preferable when dealing with the public.
If you still have trouble deciding which type of corporation is best suited for your business, one of our incorporation lawyers will be able to guide you in the right direction.
Please call us directly at (778) 565-4700 or simply fill out our contact form to schedule a free consultation.
The preceding content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. To obtain such advice, please contact our offices directly.
About the author
Suprina is a business lawyer and acts on a variety of real estate, corporate and commercial matters. She assists clients with transactional work, including asset and share sales, corporate reorganizations, shareholder agreements, commercial lease agreements, and professional incorporations. Learn more about Suprina.