Choosing a company name - restricted words

When registering a company in Australia, the chosen name must meet ASIC’s naming rules to be accepted.

Basic Rules:

1. The name must be unique and not identical to an existing company or business name.
2. It must include a legal element eg Pty Ltd – for proprietary limited companies & Limited or Ltd – for public companies.

Restricted Words & Expressions:

Some words and phrases cannot be used without the approval of a government Minister.  

Below are some examples. For a full list, visit this link here.

Category: Government terms

Example: Commonwealth, Federal, ANZAC, Government

Approval required? Yes - Ministerial or Dept. approval needed.

Category: Royal Associations

Example: Royal, Queen, King, Crown

Approval required? Yes - Attorney-General’s Dept. approval

Category: Financial Terms

Example: Bank, Trust, Credit Union, Building Society

Approval required? Yes - APRA approval required

Category: Educational Terms

Example: University, Tertiary, College

Approval required? Yes - TEQSA or ASQA approval

Category: Misleading Terms

Example: Australian Government, Chartered, Police, Inc.

Approval required? No - Will be rejected outright

Category: Offensive or Sensitive Words

Example: Swear words, slurs, etc.

Approval required? No - Will be rejected outright

Check Name Availability:

Search ASIC's Registers to check if your proposed name is available:

Tip:

Avoid choosing names that are similar to existing ones, as they will most likely still be rejected.

You can also download the PDF below from ASIC that explains the availability of names in greater detail.

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