(a) A foreign corporation may register its corporate name, or an assumed corporate name under which it transacts business, or its corporate name with any addition pursuant to § 48-25-106, if the name is distinguishable upon the records of the secretary of state from the corporate names that are not available under § 48-14-101(b).
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 48-14-103

  • Business: includes every trade, occupation, profession, investment activity and other lawful purpose for gain or the preservation of assets whether or not carried on for profits. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Document: means :
    (A) Any tangible medium on which information is inscribed, and includes any writing or written instrument. See Tennessee Code 48-11-201
  • domestic corporation: means a corporation for profit, which is not a foreign corporation, incorporated under or subject to the Tennessee Business Corporation Act, compiled in chapters 11-27 of this title, as amended. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Foreign corporation: means a corporation for profit incorporated under a law other than the laws of this state. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Month: means the time from any day of any month to the corresponding day of the succeeding month, if any, and if none, the last day of the succeeding month. See Tennessee Code 48-11-201
  • Secretary: means the corporate officer to whom the bylaws or the board of directors has delegated responsibility under §. See Tennessee Code 48-11-201
  • Secretary of state: means the person who holds the office of secretary of state of Tennessee. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) A foreign corporation registers its corporate name, or its assumed corporate name, or its corporate name with any addition pursuant to § 48-25-106, by delivering to the secretary of state for filing an application:

(1) Setting forth its corporate name, its assumed corporate name, or its corporate name with any addition pursuant to § 48-25-106, the state or country and date of its incorporation, and a brief description of the nature of the business in which it is engaged; and
(2) Accompanied by a certificate of existence (or a document of similar import) from the state or country of incorporation, which certificate shall bear a date of not more than one (1) month prior to the date the application is filed in this state.
(c) The name is registered for the applicant’s exclusive use upon the effective date of the application and until the end of the calendar year in which such registration occurs.
(d) A foreign corporation whose registration is effective may renew it for successive years by delivering to the secretary of state for filing a renewal application, which complies with the requirements of subsection (b), between October 1 and December 31 of the preceding year. The renewal application renews the registration for the following calendar year.
(e) A foreign corporation whose registration is effective may thereafter qualify as a foreign corporation under that name or consent in writing to the use of that name by a corporation thereafter incorporated under chapters 11-27 of this title or by another foreign corporation thereafter authorized to transact business in this state. The registration terminates when the domestic corporation is incorporated or the foreign corporation qualifies or consents to the qualification of another foreign corporation under the registered name.
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