Important Notice About Changes to the Clerk's Information System

The Clerk's Information System (CIS) has undergone some changes. You can continue to access CIS as you have in the past. Most of the changes will enhance accessibility and reliability, and you will also notice changes in the way you interact and navigate through the system. We hope that you find these changes beneficial when using CIS.

Clerk's Information System

The Office of the Clerk provides Internet access to the Clerk's Information System, an electronic database that contains general information on file at the Commission for Virginia and foreign corporations, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, and business trusts. Images of business entity documents are not currently available for electronic or online viewing, except for Corporate Annual Reports.

Internet access to CIS performs optimally when using Internet Explorer 7. Other browsers may produce unpredictable results. Scripting options for your browser must be enabled to use CIS. First-time users are encouraged to review the user documentation.

Name Availability

The business entity Name Search function in CIS should not be used to determine if a prospective business entity name is distinguishable upon the records of the Commission. To receive a preliminary determination of the availability of a business entity name, contact the Clerk's Office at (804) 371-9733 or toll-free in Virginia at (866) 722-2551. For information regarding the criteria for name availability in Virginia, see the Frequently Asked Questions regarding Business Entity Names.

Insurance Companies

CIS may not include certain insurance companies that are licensed in Virginia as reciprocal insurers, such as United Services Automobile Association (USAA). The names of these companies often include the word "reciprocal," "interinsurer," "interinsurance," "exchange," "underwriters," or "underwriting." However, you may be able to obtain information about such companies from the Commission’s Bureau of Insurance.

Limited Access

The maximum number of customers that can simultaneously access CIS is 125. An attempt to access CIS while the maximum number of customers is being served will result in an error message saying "Initiating connection failed Service connection timeout". Customers are most likely to receive this message on a business day between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. when usage is highest. If you receive this message, please continue your attempts to access the system or try accessing outside of the aforementioned hours.

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