California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA). Apply for a business license, permit, or account. You can obtain a California business license by accessing CalGold to find the right licensing office for your location and type of business. Once you have identified your licensing office, fill out and submit an application for a business license.
The California Government Online to Desktops offers CalGold Business Permit Assistance, which is a database of regulated industries. If your company carries out activities regulated by the federal government, you will need to apply for the appropriate license or business permit. The answers below will help you submit the necessary documents, pay the appropriate fees, and understand the basics of starting a business in California. If you're a small business owner in California looking for resources to help you move forward, here are some organizations you might want to learn more about.
Small businesses represent 99.8% of all businesses within the state and employ 48.8% of the state's workforce, making them a vital part of the Golden State economy. California is generally referred to as a relatively high-tax state, something that business owners universally recognize. Some businesses need to obtain special licenses and permits from the state, but most only need a general business license from their local county and perhaps their city. States, counties and municipalities apply sales and use taxes to California businesses on transactions.
The Golden Bear State is home to many entrepreneurs who must figure out how to get a small business license in California. That's true even if you're a one-member company, in which case you'll form a single-member LLC in California. The inclusion of links to other websites does not constitute an approval of those sites by the Secretary of State of California, the State of California, or the federal government. If you are a sole proprietor and do business under your own name, you can simply use your name as the name of the business entity.
That means you don't need to have a license from the State of California just to run your business in the state. The California Business Investment Services unit offers customized site selection services for businesses, real estate executives, and site selection consultants. You can obtain a business license online by applying to the right regulatory or licensing agency for your company. The business licenses your company requires depend on where you are located and the type of services you provide.
