Business Licenses and Permits

On Answerpress.com an individual that will be selling candles from home recently asked, “What business licenses would I need for a DBA home retail business?” Fortunately for this person, this type of business is pretty straightforward and should not have a lot of licensing requirements.

One of the first things this entrepreneur should consider is the entity type they would like to operate as. Certain entities such as corporations and LLCs will need to register with the Secretary of State. Further since this business will be a DBA, this individual should also check with the Secretary of State to see if they handle DBA registrations. Sometimes the state handles DBA applications, while other times the county handles DBA name registrations.

Since this type of business is typically not regulated, so there should not be any industry related licenses required from any jurisdictions. However, there will most likely be some type of general business license required. Depending on the address of the business there could be a municipal license required, a county license required, both could be needed or there may be nothing needed at all. General business licenses really depend on each individual city and county.

Along with the possibility of needing a general business license, a home occupation permit could be required. Many cities and counties issue separate permits for home based businesses. The best thing this person could do would be to contact the department that handle business license issues or the planning and zoning department, as often times they issue home occupation permits.

Someone in this type of business should find it pretty easy to determine all of the licenses they will need for their business. Unfortunately, there are many types of businesses that are heavily regulated and have much more complicated licensing requirements.

Ryan Julson, Business License Research Analyst, Corporation Service Company

Tags: business license, candles, Corporation Service Company, DBA, home occupation permit