Business licenses and permits in New York

New York has no general business license. What you need depends on what you do and where you do it: a state license for your profession or activity, local permits from your county, city, town or village, and zoning approval for your address. One state tool builds the list.

What’s different in New York

• No general state business license. New York issues none statewide; licenses depend on the activity and the locality. Each business’s list comes from the agencies that regulate its activity and from its locality.
• Two state licensing agencies, split by occupation. The New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions licenses the professions regulated under the Education Law, and the Department of State, Division of Licensing Services oversees 35 other occupations. Alcohol has its own agency, the New York State Liquor Authority.
• One state checklist. The New York Business Express Business Wizard turns a few questions about your business into a custom checklist of state licenses, permits and registrations, and saves it so you can retrieve it later.

Do this

1. Run the New York Business Express Business Wizard. It returns a custom checklist of the state licenses, permits and registrations for your business. Keep it; it’s also your renewal list.
2. Check your profession. The New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions lists every licensed profession and its requirements. The Department of State, Division of Licensing Services covers 35 other occupations. If your work is a licensed profession, you form a professional service limited liability company (PLLC) or a professional service corporation (P.C.) rather than an ordinary entity; see Register your business.
3. Ask the county clerk and the city, town or village clerk about local licenses and permits. The Department of State sends local questions there. In New York City, the city’s own agencies issue many licenses, including the Home Improvement Contractor license from the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, and NYC Business has a step-by-step wizard that lists the city, state and federal licenses and permits for your business.
4. Check zoning before you sign a lease. Home or rented space, ask your city, town or village planning or building office whether your activity is allowed at that address.
5. Get any license your activity needs. Anyone who makes, imports, distributes or sells alcohol needs a license from the New York State Liquor Authority; review takes about 22 to 26 weeks for most applications, and temporary permits are processed in about 30 days. Contractors doing home improvement work in New York City need a Home Improvement Contractor license from the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection.
6. Ask for help if the list gets long. The SBA’s district offices in Metro New York, Buffalo and Syracuse offer counseling and connect you to partner organizations that help small businesses: Metro New York, Buffalo and Syracuse.

What you get back

One license or permit per agency that regulates your work, plus any local ones. Each renews on its own schedule, so note the dates as you get them. There is no state business license to renew. Your Business Wizard checklist is the record of what you were told you needed.