The Registration of Business Names Act 1963 requires any individual, partnership or body corporate which trades under a name other than their own true names to register their business name with the Registrar of Companies. The Act aims to provide transparency for those doing business by making the legal identity behind a business name public.
Section 12(1) of the Act requires any person, partnership or body corporate (including the liquidator of the body corporate) to notify the Registrar in the prescribed form, Form RBN3, if they cease to trade under the registered business name. The Act does not require the presenter of the Form RBN3 to provide a reason for ceasing to trade under a business name and therefore this information is not available to the Registrar.
The table below provides the number of Form RBN3 registered by the Companies Registration Office for the years 2020, 2021 and 2022 (up to and including 6th November 2022).
County
|
2020
|
2021
|
2022 (YTD)
|
Total
|
Carlow
|
17
|
27
|
19
|
63
|
Cavan
|
25
|
15
|
29
|
69
|
Clare
|
37
|
62
|
30
|
129
|
Cork
|
219
|
207
|
168
|
594
|
Donegal
|
49
|
44
|
48
|
141
|
Dublin
|
857
|
934
|
821
|
2,612
|
Galway
|
97
|
135
|
101
|
333
|
Kerry
|
59
|
48
|
51
|
158
|
Kildare
|
118
|
108
|
110
|
336
|
Kilkenny
|
47
|
37
|
34
|
118
|
Laois
|
24
|
28
|
24
|
76
|
Leitrim
|
16
|
8
|
9
|
33
|
Limerick
|
61
|
54
|
73
|
188
|
Longford
|
9
|
13
|
10
|
32
|
Louth
|
63
|
45
|
67
|
175
|
Mayo
|
43
|
53
|
34
|
130
|
Meath
|
100
|
83
|
84
|
267
|
Monaghan
|
18
|
17
|
28
|
63
|
Offaly
|
24
|
30
|
26
|
80
|
Roscommon
|
20
|
18
|
11
|
49
|
Sligo
|
17
|
19
|
31
|
67
|
Tipperary
|
52
|
51
|
54
|
157
|
Waterford
|
54
|
40
|
44
|
138
|
Westmeath
|
45
|
31
|
43
|
119
|
Wexford
|
59
|
72
|
83
|
214
|
Wicklow
|
77
|
82
|
44
|
203
|
Total
|
2,207
|
2,261
|
2,076
|
6,544
|