What is a numbered company in Ontario and should I use one?
A numbered company is an Ontario corporation that uses its assigned corporate number as its legal name, for example "1234567 Ontario Inc." It has no word name. When you file Articles of Incorporation without specifying a name, the province assigns the next available number and that becomes your legal name.
The main advantages are speed and simplicity. Because there is no word name, you skip the NUANS name search entirely, which saves time and a modest fee. The corporation is incorporated on the spot, and you can always register a trade name under the Business Names Act if you want to operate publicly under a different name. The numbered company and the trade name coexist: the legal entity is the numbered corp, and the trade name is what customers see.
A numbered corporation works well as a holding company, a family trust vehicle, or any structure that will not interact with customers under its corporate name. It can also be a practical choice when you are in a hurry to incorporate but have not yet settled on a name — you can amend your articles to add a word name later by filing Articles of Amendment.
Key takeaways
- A numbered corporation uses its assigned number as its legal name.
- No NUANS search is needed, which saves time and cost.
- You can register a trade name separately and operate under that name.
- Word names can be added later by filing an amendment to your articles.