Texas Business Search

How to read the official business-entity file, and a way to have the search run for you.

Texas Business Search

Texas Comptroller entity search

Quick answer. The Texas Comptroller entity search that people mean is the franchise tax account status search. Enter the 11-digit taxpayer number or the 9-digit EIN. The result is the entity’s right to transact business in Texas as of that query. It is free. It is not the Secretary of State’s formation file.

Official office

Texas Secretary of State, Corporations Section

Open the official search

Phone: (512) 463-5555

Secretary of State, 400 W. 15th Street, Austin, TX 78701. Mail: P.O. Box 13697, Austin, TX 78711-3697.

SOSPortal is online 24/7. The Secretary of State states a $1 statutory fee for each search.

Steps

  1. Open the account-status search

    The page is comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/franchise/account-status/search. The Comptroller notes that an API exists for the same data. A human lookup uses the form on that page.

  2. Use the right identifier

    The field label asks for the 11-digit Comptroller taxpayer number or the 9-digit federal EIN. A Secretary of State file number is a different identifier. If the screen rejects what you typed, you are probably holding the SOS number. Find the tax ID inside SOSPortal or on a franchise-tax notice.

  3. Print the result if a counterparty wants it

    The Comptroller says the results can be printed and reflect the records at the time of the query. A printout from last quarter does not describe today. Rerun it when the closing date arrives.

  4. Call the Comptroller if the account is not yours and the status looks wrong

    The instructions list (800) 252-1381 and an online help form. The SOS number, (512) 463-5555, is for Secretary of State filings, not for a franchise-tax balance.

What the status is allowed to prove

The Comptroller’s instructions say the status is a summary meant to satisfy ordinary business needs, and that it was previously called good standing. If you must reinstate or terminate the entity at the Secretary of State, you need a certificate issued for that purpose, not this summary. Read that limitation before you tell a buyer the Comptroller printout is “the” Texas certificate.

Common mistakes

  • Searching a person’s name. The screen is an account-number search.
  • Assuming a clear status means the SOS annual filings are done. They are different offices.
  • Using a six-digit fragment of the taxpayer number.

Questions

Is the Texas Comptroller entity search free?

The franchise tax account status search is offered by the Comptroller without the $1 SOSPortal search fee. You need the taxpayer number or the EIN.

Can I search the Comptroller by company name?

The public status form is the taxpayer-number or EIN field. Name search of the formation record is SOSPortal, which has the $1 fee.

Does a good Comptroller status register the LLC?

No. Formation and registration are Secretary of State filings. The Comptroller status speaks to franchise tax and the right to transact business.

Sources reviewed