Ohio Secretary of State UCC Search Portal Issues - Missing Filed Continuations
Has anyone else been having trouble with the Ohio Secretary of State UCC search function lately? I filed a UCC-3 continuation back in March for a client's equipment financing deal, got the confirmation receipt, but when I run searches on the debtor name it's not showing up in the results. The original UCC-1 from 2019 is still there but nothing about the continuation. This is making me nervous because the 5-year window expires next month and I need to prove to the bank that we filed on time. I've tried searching by debtor name, filing number, and even the secured party name but the continuation just doesn't appear. The SOS office phone has been busy for three days straight. Anyone know if there's a delay in their database updates or if I need to refile? This client has a $2.8M credit line tied to this collateral schedule.
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Yuki Yamamoto
I've seen this exact issue with Ohio's portal over the past few months. Their search indexing has been incredibly inconsistent - filed documents taking weeks to show up in search results even though they're officially recorded. Have you tried using the exact filing number from your confirmation receipt? Sometimes that pulls it up when name searches fail.
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Ethan Brown
•Yeah I tried the filing number too - still nothing. The confirmation shows it was accepted on March 15th but zero trace in the database. Starting to wonder if there was some backend error.
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Carmen Ruiz
•This happened to me in February. Turned out the document was filed but there was some glitch in their search indexing. Had to request a certified copy directly from the SOS office to prove it existed.
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Andre Lefebvre
OH MY GOD yes! I thought I was going crazy. Filed two UCC-3 continuations in April and neither one shows up in searches. But when I called (finally got through after 6 tries) they confirmed both are in the system and valid. Their IT department apparently has known issues with the search function not syncing properly with new filings. They told me it could take 4-6 weeks to fix the indexing problems.
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Ethan Brown
•That's terrifying. So the filings are valid but we can't prove they exist through normal searches? What if a title company or other lender needs to verify?
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Andre Lefebvre
•Exactly my concern! I ended up requesting certified copies of everything just to have physical proof. Cost me $25 per document but worth it for the peace of mind.
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Zoe Dimitriou
•This is exactly why I started using Certana.ai's document verification tool. You can upload your original UCC-1 and the continuation filing PDFs, and it cross-checks everything instantly - debtor names, filing numbers, dates, collateral descriptions. Catches any inconsistencies that might cause search problems later. Way faster than waiting for the SOS portal to work properly.
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QuantumQuest
The Ohio SOS system has been a nightmare this year. I've had three separate continuation filings that showed 'accepted' status but then vanished from search results. One finally appeared after 8 weeks, the other two I had to refile completely. Make sure your debtor name matches EXACTLY what's on the original UCC-1 - even a middle initial difference can cause search failures.
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Jamal Anderson
•Wait, you had to refile? Wouldn't that create duplicate filings if the original ones eventually show up in the system?
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QuantumQuest
•That's the risk you take. But better to have potential duplicates than miss your continuation deadline. You can always file a UCC-3 termination later to clean up any extras.
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Mei Zhang
Check the debtor name spelling very carefully. Ohio's search is super sensitive to exact matches. Is it 'John Smith' vs 'John R Smith' vs 'John Robert Smith'? Even organization names with LLC vs L.L.C. can break the search function. Also try searching just the last name or just the first part of a business name.
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Ethan Brown
•Good point. The original UCC-1 shows 'ABC Manufacturing LLC' and my continuation used the same exact spelling. But maybe there's some hidden character or formatting issue.
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Liam McGuire
•I had this problem with a client named 'O'Brien'. The apostrophe was causing search failures even though the filing was accepted. Sometimes special characters mess up their database queries.
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Amara Eze
•This is why I always run my filings through Certana.ai first. It flags potential debtor name issues before you file. Upload your charter documents and UCC forms, and it'll tell you if there are any name inconsistencies that could cause problems later.
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Giovanni Ricci
I'm dealing with the same issue right now! Filed a continuation in January, got confirmation, but it's invisible in searches. My lender is freaking out because they can't verify the lien continuation. I'm seriously considering refiling just to be safe, even though it means paying the fees twice.
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NeonNomad
•Don't refile yet. Call the SOS office and ask for a 'file stamp copy' or certified copy of your continuation. That's official proof it exists even if their search portal is broken.
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Fatima Al-Hashemi
•How long does it take to get a certified copy? I'm in a similar situation and need proof for a closing next week.
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NeonNomad
•Usually 3-5 business days if you request it online, or same day if you can get to their office in Columbus. But with their current IT problems, everything is taking longer.
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Dylan Mitchell
This is exactly why I hate Ohio's UCC system. Their portal has been glitchy for YEARS and they never seem to fix it properly. I've started keeping detailed records of every filing - screenshots of confirmations, email receipts, everything. Because you never know when their system will lose track of something important.
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Sofia Martinez
•Same here. I keep a paper trail of everything now. Too many times I've had to prove a filing existed when their search showed nothing.
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Dmitry Volkov
•At least they're not as bad as some other states. Michigan's system went down for three weeks last year and lost a bunch of filings completely.
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Ava Thompson
Try accessing the search through their 'advanced search' option instead of the basic search. Sometimes that pulls up records that don't show in the simple search. Also, make sure you're not accidentally limiting the date range - the default settings sometimes exclude recent filings.
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Ethan Brown
•I'll try that. I've been using the basic search this whole time. Didn't even notice there was an advanced option.
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CyberSiren
•The advanced search definitely works better. You can search by partial names, date ranges, and even exclude terminated filings. Much more reliable than the basic search function.
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Miguel Alvarez
Just went through this last month. My continuation wasn't showing up for 6 weeks, then suddenly appeared one day. But in the meantime, I had started using Certana.ai to double-check all my filing documents. Really wish I'd found that tool earlier - it would have caught a debtor name inconsistency in one of my other deals that caused a rejection.
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Zainab Yusuf
•How does that tool work exactly? Do you just upload the documents and it checks them automatically?
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Miguel Alvarez
•Yeah, you upload your PDFs - like the original UCC-1 and your continuation or amendment - and it cross-references everything. Debtor names, filing numbers, collateral descriptions, dates. Catches stuff that would cause problems before you file.
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Connor O'Reilly
UPDATE: Finally got through to someone at the SOS office. They confirmed my continuation is valid and properly filed, but admitted their search database has 'synchronization issues' affecting filings from March and April. They're working on a fix but no timeline for when it'll be resolved. They're providing certified copies for free to anyone affected by this issue.
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Ethan Brown
•That's great news! I'll call them today and request a certified copy. Thanks for the update - this gives me hope that my filing isn't actually lost.
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Yara Khoury
•Free certified copies? That's the least they can do after all this hassle. I'm calling them tomorrow to get copies of my missing continuations too.
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Keisha Taylor
•Finally some good news about this mess. I was starting to think they'd lost months worth of filings permanently.
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StardustSeeker
This thread has been super helpful. I was about to panic-file a duplicate continuation, but now I'll just request the certified copy instead. It's reassuring to know this is a known system issue and not something wrong with my specific filing.
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Paolo Marino
•Yeah, knowing it's a widespread problem makes me feel less incompetent. I thought I'd made some huge mistake in my filing.
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Amina Bah
•Same here. I've been second-guessing everything about my UCC practice because of these search failures.
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