(a) A foreign corporation may register its corporate name, or its corporate name with any change required by Code Section 14-3-1506, if the name does not in any instance exceed 80 characters, including spaces and punctuation, and is distinguishable upon the records of the Secretary of State from:

(1) The corporate name of a nonprofit or business corporation incorporated or authorized to do business in this state; and

(2) A corporate name reserved under Code Section 14-3-402 or Code Section 14-2-402 or registered under this Code section, or a limited partnership name reserved or filed under Chapter 9 of this title.

(b) A foreign corporation registers its corporate name, or its corporate name with any change required by Code Section 14-3-1506, by delivering to the Secretary of State an application:

(1) Setting forth its corporate name, or its corporate name with any change required by Code Section 14-3-1506, the state or country and date of its incorporation, and a brief description of the nature of the activities in which it is engaged; and

(2) Accompanied by a certificate of existence (or a document of similar import) from the state or country of incorporation.

(c) The name is registered for the applicant's exclusive use upon the effective date of the application.

(d) A foreign corporation whose registration is effective may renew it for successive years by delivering to the Secretary of State for filing a renewal application which complies with the requirements of subsection (b) of this Code section in accordance with the filing requirements of the Secretary of State. The renewal application renews the registration for the following calendar year.

(e) A foreign corporation whose registration is effective may thereafter qualify as a foreign corporation under that name or consent in writing to the use of that name by a corporation thereafter incorporated under this chapter or by another foreign corporation thereafter authorized to transact business in this state. The registration terminates when the domestic corporation is incorporated or the foreign corporation qualifies or consents to the qualification of another foreign corporation under the registered name.