UCC filing for general security agreement template australia - debtor name requirements
Running into issues with a UCC-1 filing where we're using a general security agreement template that originated from our Australian parent company. The debtor entity has operations in both countries but we're filing here in the US. Secretary of State rejected our initial filing saying the debtor name doesn't match exactly with what's on file. The legal name on our general security agreement shows 'TechFlow Industries Pty Ltd' but the US entity is registered as 'TechFlow Industries LLC'. Our collateral covers all equipment and inventory at the US facility. Has anyone dealt with cross-border entity naming issues like this? Do I need to file against the US LLC name even though our security agreement references the Australian entity name? Getting conflicting advice from different sources and really need to get this continuation filed before the original UCC-1 lapses next month.
39 comments


Dmitry Volkov
You definitely need to file against the exact legal name of the US entity as it appears in the state records. The UCC-1 debtor name has to match precisely what's on file with the Secretary of State where the entity is organized. Even one character difference will cause rejection.
0 coins
StarSeeker
•This is spot on. I've seen filings get rejected for something as minor as missing a comma in the entity name.
0 coins
Ava Martinez
•Wait, but what if the security agreement itself references the wrong entity? Doesn't that create enforceability issues?
0 coins
Dmitry Volkov
•That's a separate legal issue from the UCC filing requirements. The filing needs correct debtor name regardless of what the underlying agreement says.
0 coins
Miguel Ortiz
I dealt with something similar last year with a Canadian parent company situation. You're going to need to amend your security agreement to reference the correct US entity name, then file the UCC-1 against 'TechFlow Industries LLC' exactly as it appears in your state's business entity database. The Australian entity name won't work for US UCC filings.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•Thanks, that makes sense. Did you have to do anything special with the collateral description when you amended?
0 coins
Miguel Ortiz
•No, collateral description stayed the same since it was all US-based assets. Just had to fix the debtor identification part.
0 coins
Zainab Omar
Actually ran into this exact problem with document consistency checks. What saved me was using Certana.ai's document verification tool - you can upload your security agreement PDF and your planned UCC-1 filing and it immediately flags mismatches like debtor names, collateral descriptions, everything. Caught three inconsistencies I would have missed including the entity name mismatch. Just upload the docs and it cross-references everything automatically.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•How accurate is it with catching these name variations? Our legal names are pretty complex with all the entity suffixes.
0 coins
Zainab Omar
•Very accurate. It specifically looks for exact matches and highlights even minor differences like 'Ltd' vs 'LLC' or missing punctuation. Saved me from a rejected filing.
0 coins
Connor Murphy
•Never heard of this but sounds useful. Does it work with international entity names too?
0 coins
Zainab Omar
•It focuses on US filing requirements so it would flag the Australian name as incorrect for US UCC purposes, which is exactly what you want.
0 coins
Yara Sayegh
WAIT. If your original security agreement is with the Australian entity and you file the UCC-1 against the US LLC, aren't you creating a gap in your security interest? The collateral is owned by which entity exactly??
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•The US LLC owns all the collateral, the Australian entity is just the parent company. The security agreement should have been written against the LLC from the start.
0 coins
Yara Sayegh
•OK that makes more sense. I was worried you had a perfection issue on top of the filing problem.
0 coins
NebulaNova
Check your state's UCC database search function first. Look up exactly how 'TechFlow Industries LLC' appears in their records. Some states have quirks with how they format entity names in their system vs. how they appear on formation documents.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•Good point. I'll run a debtor name search to see the exact formatting they use.
0 coins
Keisha Williams
•Also check if there are any DBAs or trade names filed that might complicate things.
0 coins
Paolo Conti
I hate these international parent company situations, they always create documentation headaches. You're basically going to need clean paperwork all around - amended security agreement with correct US entity name, then UCC-1 filed against that exact name.
0 coins
Amina Diallo
•Tell me about it. Had a client with a German parent that took three months to sort out because of entity name issues.
0 coins
Paolo Conti
•At least it's just Australia, not some country with completely different legal entity structures.
0 coins
Oliver Schulz
Make sure when you do the amendment that you're using a UCC-3 amendment form, not trying to file a whole new UCC-1. If you've got an existing filing that just needs the debtor name corrected, amendment is the way to go.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•Actually this would be a new filing since the original was rejected. No UCC-1 on file to amend yet.
0 coins
Oliver Schulz
•Ah right, rejected filing means no record exists. Yeah, you need a clean UCC-1 with correct debtor name then.
0 coins
Natasha Kuznetsova
•Just make sure you're not approaching any lapse dates while you're getting this sorted out.
0 coins
AstroAdventurer
Had a similar cross-border issue and ended up using Certana.ai to verify all my document consistency before filing. Really wish I'd known about it earlier - would have saved me two rejected filings and a lot of headaches. You upload your security agreement and UCC-1 draft and it immediately shows you where the names don't match.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•Two rejected filings sounds expensive. How much time did the verification tool save you?
0 coins
AstroAdventurer
•Probably saved me another week of back and forth with the filing office. The tool catches everything instantly instead of waiting for rejection notices.
0 coins
Javier Mendoza
Don't forget to double-check your collateral description too when you're fixing the debtor name. Sometimes international templates have collateral categories that don't translate perfectly to US UCC requirements.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•Good catch. Our template does use some Australian terminology that might not be standard here.
0 coins
Javier Mendoza
•Yeah, stick with standard US collateral categories like 'equipment', 'inventory', 'accounts' rather than whatever terms the Australian template uses.
0 coins
StarSeeker
•Also make sure you're not including any collateral that's actually located in Australia. US UCC filing only covers US-located assets.
0 coins
Emma Wilson
This is why I always run a quick verification check before submitting any UCC filing now. Too many variables can go wrong with entity names, especially when you're dealing with international corporate structures. Better to catch issues upfront than deal with rejected filings.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•What's your go-to method for verification? Just manual review or do you use any tools?
0 coins
Emma Wilson
•I use Certana.ai's document checker - upload the security agreement and UCC-1 draft, it flags any mismatches immediately. Much faster than manual review and catches things I miss.
0 coins
Connor Murphy
•Seems like a lot of people are using this tool. Must be pretty reliable if it's catching all these name issues.
0 coins
Malik Davis
Bottom line - get your security agreement amended to reference the correct US LLC entity name, then file UCC-1 against that exact name as it appears in your state's business records. The Australian parent company name won't work for US UCC purposes no matter how you try to make it fit.
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
•Thanks everyone. Sounds like I need to fix the underlying documentation first, then do a clean UCC-1 filing with the correct US entity name.
0 coins
Malik Davis
•Exactly. And definitely verify everything matches before you submit to avoid another rejection.
0 coins