Licenses and permits in Louisiana

Forming the company is not permission to do the work. Louisiana does not issue one statewide license for every business. It does require a credential when the work is regulated, and a city or parish may add an occupational license tax of its own.

What’s different in Louisiana

• There is no general state business license. The local occupational license tax is optional for each city and parish, and it takes a vote.
• Contractor thresholds depend on the work. New residential construction reaches the license threshold at $50,000 and commercial construction at $50,000. Home-improvement registration applies from $7,500 inclusive to less than $50,000³, and does not authorize structural work.
• Residential roofing has its own 2026 rule. For residential roofing projects worth $7,500 or more, a contractor who bids, advertises, or performs the work must hold a Residential Roofing or Residential Construction classification⁴.
• The statute caps contractor fees. It does not say the board charges the cap. Check the application.
• Home food is a statute, not a health-department permit you apply for first. The exemption stops at $100,000⁸ of gross annual sales, and some foods cannot be resold.
• Alcohol is one permit per address, from the Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control, with a fee that depends on the class.

Do this

1. Start with the permit list geauxBIZ builds. It can produce a list of possible federal, state, and local licenses and permits². Use that list to see which boards might apply. This guide does not list every professional licensing board.* Use the board for your profession. The Secretary of State filing is not that board’s license.
2. Ask the city and the parish about an occupational license tax. A municipality or parish may impose an occupational license tax on a business inside its territory, only if two-thirds of the elected governing body approves it after at least three public hearings¹. The statute sets maximum rates for the businesses it lists. It does not impose the tax by itself, and it does not print one statewide price. A city and a parish can each act. Check both. This tax is not a contractor license and not a sales tax certificate. Sales tax registration is on Get your tax IDs.
3. If the work is contracting, check the license category before bidding. Under R.S. 37:2150.1, new residential construction of $50,000 or more requires an appropriate residential license, and commercial projects of $50,000 or more require a commercial license. Home improvement on an existing residence of at least $7,500 but less than $50,000 needs a home improvement registrant or appropriately licensed contractor. A home-improvement-only registrant cannot perform work integral to structural integrity, including roofing systems. Effective January 1, 2026, R.S. 37:2156.4 adds a specific roofing rule: For residential roofing projects worth $7,500 or more, a contractor who bids, advertises, or performs the work must hold a Residential Roofing or Residential Construction classification⁴. Electrical, mechanical, and plumbing projects at $10,000 or more require the relevant licensing classification, including residential work; asbestos, hazardous waste, lead paint abatement, and underground storage tank work needs a license at a project value of one dollar or more³. Check the board’s license categories for your scope before submitting a bid.
4. Plan on the fee cap, then read the application. The contractor statute says license fees shall not exceed the amounts in its table. The license fee cap is $100. The home improvement fee cap is $50⁵. The requirements sheet lists insurance, exams, and net worth. It does not print the dollar the board charges on the application.* Use the amount on the application you submit.
5. Selling low-risk food from home? Read R.S. 40:4.9 before you treat it as a permit you apply for. The sanitary-code equipment and facility rules do not apply to low-risk foods prepared at home for sale, inside the limits below. The section stops applying at $100,000⁸ of gross annual sales, raised from thirty thousand dollars by Act 801 of the 2026 Regular Session, which rewrote R.S. 40:4.9(B)⁷. The online text of R.S. 40:4.9 still shows the old limit. The text of Act 801 is what applies. The foods are baked goods, candies, cane syrup, dried mixes, honey and honeycomb, jams, jellies, preserves, pickles and acidified foods, sauces, syrups, and spices. None of it may include animal muscle protein or fish protein. Put a label saying the food was not produced in a licensed or regulated facility on the food. You also need a current sales tax certificate from the parish collector where the sales happen. Breads, cakes, cookies, and pies cannot be sold to a retail business or to anyone for resale. The home exemption does not cover a preparer of breads, cakes, cookies, or pies who employs anyone to help make that food⁶. The statute adds building rules for breads, cakes, cookies, and pies. A business outside this list is not in the exemption.
6. Selling alcohol? Apply through the Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control. The permit is for anyone who, as a business, makes, holds, sells, serves, or transports alcoholic beverages. The office issues one alcoholic beverage permit per physical address. It has 35 calendar days to issue or deny a complete application, and it says it tries to finish in 10 days or less. A restaurant permit needs food and nonalcoholic drinks to be more than 50%⁹ of average monthly revenue from food, nonalcoholic drinks, and alcohol. This guide does not list the permit fees.* Use the fee for the class you are applying for. A local permit can sit on top of the state permit. Ask the parish.
7. Keep each expiration on its own line. An occupational license, a contractor credential, and an alcohol permit do not share a renewal date with the Secretary of State annual report. The company anniversary is on Stay compliant.

What you get back

A permit list from geauxBIZ, an occupational license only if the city or parish imposes one, a contractor credential if the work crosses the threshold, a home-food exemption only while you stay inside the statute, and an alcohol permit if you sell alcohol. Each one stands on its own. None of them is the LLC filing.