Does My Company Need a Business License?Getting a local, county or state business license can be a complicated, time-consuming task. There are over 19,000 separate licensing jurisdictions in the United States, and each has its own particular licensing requirements. That can mean hours spent on the phone or online chasing down the right department, getting the right forms, learning the submission rules, etc.
After you've registered your company as either a Partnership, Corporation or LLC, the next big business issue to tackle is this: does my city, county or state require my business to have a license to operate?
Here's the easy way to find that answer: search the Business Licenses database.
The Difficulties of Obtaining Business Licenses
Sometimes the process of obtaining business licensing can be nothing short of maddening. First you must search for license applications, not always knowing who to call or where to browse; then you must try to find the appropriate department, the right person, and the correct forms. The Web is usually of little help, since most local authorities don't post their business license applications on the Web (and even those applications that are posted are not fillable). Then you must wait and hope that you will get the forms promised to you, or you have to arrange to pick them up yourself from numerous government offices.
When you finally receive the license forms you've requested, you have to fill them out manually, calculate all the pertaining fields by hand, make changes it if you didn't get every field right the first time, and then file away copies in file cabinets for later reference. To top it all off, you have to mail these applications or deliver them yourself in hopes that they arrive safely. And you have to go through this process for every license or permit required for your business!
Licensing difficulties can be summarized as follows:
- Which licenses apply?
- Who administers it?
- How do I obtain the application?
- Filling it out, filing it, and saving it
Corporate entities have additional concerns:
- Separate check requests have to be made for every application
- Licensing might be dispersed among different departments and locations
Say goodbye to all these hassles: for a minimal fee per license -- or for a full-access subscription for all available licenses for your location-- the easiest route is the Business Licenses system.
The Need to Re-Apply for Business Licenses
Even if you are firmly established, you still may have a need to re-apply for licenses. Some of those occasions are:
- A change in corporate structure
- Adding a location
- Putting up a sign
- Adding a service, item, or, structure, such as an: elevator, alarm, boiler, shed, etc.
- Delivering into new areas
- Moving to a different location
- Closing a location
Pitfalls of Not Being Licensed
With pressure against raising traditional taxes, municipalities are always on the lookout for alternative revenue streams. Typically, this means ever-increasing vigilance for business license evaders. Many local governments even resort to hiring third party collectors.
The pitfalls of not being licensed include:
- You cannot open your new location
- You cannot add items, services, or structures
- Your location might be padlocked if found in non-compliance
- You may be hit with costly penalties and interest, or even personal liens
You can now steer clear of such issues and be in compliance easily -- all with the click of a button.
Saving Time and Money
The South Carolina Chamber of Commerce estimates that it takes the typical new business in that state 47 hours to fill out the government's paperwork.
Our customers estimate that they spend 50% of their time on research.
It takes approximately ½ hour per license or permit just to fill out each form by hand.
Plus there is additional time spent to research, acquire, send out, and store each form.
According to Benchmark Consulting International, workers spend 500 hours a year (a quarter of each day!) searching for files and information. Additionally, a misplaced document costs $120 in expenses and lost productivity.
It costs large businesses anywhere from $15 to $50 to complete an internal check request. Priority requests can cost up to $75.
Using the traditional method of manual licensing applications forces a business person to:
- Spend hours acquiring the forms
- Spend hours filling out the forms
- Re-submit any rejected applications because of errors
- Mail, fax, or hand deliver the application to the licensing authority
- Search file cabinets to find a copy of a filed application at a later date
- Spend time and money for each check request related to the filing
We estimate that the Business Licenses service will save filers 90% of the time spent per form. Save time and money, and improve efficiency and enhance productivity!
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