Florida Entity Search

A field guide to the public business registry, written beside the official search.

Florida Entity Search

Florida document number

Quick answer. The Florida document number is the identifier the Division of Corporations assigns when it files an entity. It is printed on the Sunbiz detail page and on annual-report notices. LLC numbers commonly start with L. Search by that number when a name is shared by more than one company.

Official office

Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations

Open the official search

Phone: (850) 245-6052

The Centre of Tallahassee, 2415 N. Monroe Street, Suite 810, Tallahassee, FL 32303

The Sunbiz name search is online. Division phone lines are staffed on state business days.

Steps

  1. Read it off the detail page

    Run a name search, open the correct row, and copy the document number exactly, including any leading letter. That number, not the FEI number, is what the annual-report system expects if you do not remember the notice.

  2. Do not confuse it with the FEI or EIN

    A federal employer identification number is a tax number. Companies sometimes add it to an annual report, and it may appear on Sunbiz. It is not the document number, and not every entity has one on file.

  3. Use it when names collide

    A sunbiz corporation search for a common phrase can return dozens of rows. The document number is how a bank, a buyer, or the Division tells those rows apart. Put it in the subject line if you email CorpHelp@dos.fl.gov about a specific record.

  4. Keep it with the filing receipt

    The number is assigned at filing and does not change when you amend the name or file the next annual report. A reinstatement uses the same number. If someone offers you a “new” number after an amendment, compare it with the detail page before you pay them.

Letters you will see

Limited liability company document numbers commonly begin with L. Other entity types use their own sequences. The practical rule is to copy the whole value from Sunbiz rather than to guess a prefix. A number without its letter will not find the LLC.

Foreign entities qualified in Florida receive a Florida document number as well. That number is not the file number from the home state. A Delaware file number will not retrieve the Florida qualification record.

Asking the Division for copies

Plain images of filed documents are posted on the detail page once imaged. Certified copies and certificates of status are ordered and paid for under the fee schedule. Have the document number ready. The contact page lists apostilles and certificates separately from new-filing questions.

Common mistakes

  • Searching a sales-tax certificate number or a county business-tax receipt number in Sunbiz.
  • Dropping the leading letter on an LLC document number.
  • Assuming the document number encodes the year in a way you can rely on. Read the filing date instead.

Questions

Where do I find a Sunbiz document number if I never saved it?

Search the entity name on the Division’s name search and read the number on the detail page. Annual-report notices also print it.

Is the document number the same as a Florida corporation’s charter number?

Florida’s public record calls it a document number. Use that label on Sunbiz forms. Other states use “charter number” or “file number” for their own identifiers.

Can two entities share a document number?

No. The number identifies one filing record. Similar names are the thing that collides, which is why the number exists.

Sources reviewed