Licenses and permits in Nebraska

The Secretary of State filing is not a license to do the work. There is not a general business license in Nebraska¹. What you need depends on the activity and on the city and county. Start with the office that regulates the work, then the city clerk where you will operate.

What’s different in Nebraska

• No general statewide business license. Local offices can still require their own occupation tax or permit.
• Contractors register with the Department of Labor. The registration does not grade the work. Employees mean a workers’ compensation certificate.
• Cottage food is sold to the customer, not to a shop. A farmers-market exception covers some foods that do not need time and temperature control.
• Alcohol fees are a class table. A city, village, or county can add an occupation tax up to double the license.

Do this

1. Do not look for one state business license. There is not a general business license in Nebraska¹. Call the city clerk and the county clerk where you will work and ask what they require for your activity. A city occupation tax is not the Secretary of State filing.
2. If a board regulates the work, start there. The new-business page does not list every board or every board’s fee.* Use the board for your profession. That license does not replace the company filing.
3. Register as a contractor if you do that work. The contractor page says every contractor and subcontractor doing business in Nebraska. A separate registration number is required for each business name. Registration does not rate the quality of the work or protect against fraud. The annual fee is $40, effective August 1, 2026. Register the first time at the profile linked on that page. A contractor with one or more employees must file a current workers' compensation certificate². If the certificate expires, the contractor comes off the registered list until a new one arrives.
4. Selling food from home? Read the cottage food page. Register with the Department of Agriculture before selling. A producer of food that is not time/temperature control for safety food, selling it directly at a farmers market, does not have to take the course or register first. The page does not state a registration fee.* Check the form. Cottage food must be sold directly to the customer. A coffee shop cannot sell your cottage food for you. The excluded foods include any part of an animal or an animal byproduct. The excluded list is longer than that one line. Food that is not time/temperature control for safety food may be mailed. The other food is delivered by the producer in person³. A restaurant that serves meals on site is not this exemption.
5. Selling alcohol? Use the license fee chart. Class C is an annual license fee of $300. Section 53-124 describes Class C as alcoholic liquor for consumption on and off the premises, sold off the premises in original packages except as the statute provides⁵. Class L, a craft brewery, is $250. Other classes are on the chart. A city, village, or county may add an occupation tax up to double the annual license fee⁴. Some classes say no occupation tax. Read the row for the class you want.
6. Selling taxable goods? Register with the Department of Revenue: Get your tax IDs. A sales tax permit is not a city business license.

What you get back

A city or county permit where one is required, a contractor registration number if you build or repair, a cottage-food registration if you sell from home, and a liquor license if you sell alcohol. Each one renews on its own date. The Secretary of State company filing is not any of these.