What type of business license you get may depend on the type of business entity you have.
In every state within the United States, one or more federal, state and local licenses are required to legally operate a business. Business licenses are issued by the state in which a business operates; the issuing agency varies by state. In certain states, business licenses are issued by the Department of Revenue, Department of Finance or various other departments. You must first determine the issuing entity in the county in which the business is located to verify the business.
Instructions
1. Contact the chamber of commerce in your area to find out which agency in the county or city in which the business is located issues business licenses.
2. Contact the business license-issuing agency to indicate that you'd like to verify a business license. Provide the agency with the name of the business and the address if you have it. Providing the address ensures that you're given the correct information in the event there are other businesses with similar names.
3. Inquire with the your state's Secretary of State's office if the business isn't listed with the business license-issuing agency. Each business that is an LLC, partnership, sole proprietorship, LLP, C-Corp or S-Corp is registered with the Secretary of State in each state.
4. Confirm the legal name of the company by contacting the business if neither the Secretary of State nor the agency that issues business licenses has a listing. It's possible that the business may be listed under the name of a corporation that may be different from the business name.
Tags: Secretary State, which business, business license, business license-issuing, business license-issuing agency