Business License

[JEccles]

Do I need a business license to do online sales?

[The Old Sarge]

It depends on your state/province and local regulations.

For instance, here in Idaho, all I need to any sort of retail business is to register with the Sec. of State as a business entity and with the State Tax Commissison to get a (sales tax) Reseller's Permit. With those. I'm all set to operate online, out of an office or bricks and mortar store.

If I want to do business under a different name, I just go to the county court house and file a DBA (Doing Business As) form and pay the small fee ($10?). I can operate my business under any name/combination of names I wish ... as long as I've done the two things in paragraph 1 and am not trying to hide anything or defraud anybody.

Your laws/regs are probably different and may be far ore complicated. Start by calling your sec. of state's office, state tax commission, dept. of commerce and labor, etc ... or your equiv.

[JEccles]

Thanks Sarge - I just want to make sure I have all my ducks in a row before I actually start this thing up.

[xsdepot.com]

Not all wholesalers require you to have a resale certificate, especially if you don't live in the same state they are based in, but you still need to protect your self by abiding by the laws of your state. Here's a handy reference we put together for our resellers (these are all links, hoping they paste across that way
· Alabama · Alaska · Arizona · Arkansas · California · Colorado · Connecticut · Delaware · Florida · Georgia · Hawaii · Idaho · Illinois · Indiana · Iowa · Kansas · Kentucky · Louisiana · Maine · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Minnesota · Mississippi · Missouri · Montana · Nebraska · Nevada · New Hampshire · New Jersey · New Mexico · New York · North Carolina · North Dakota · Ohio · Oklahoma · Oregon · Pennsylvania · Rhode Island · South Carolina · South Dakota · Tennessee · Texas · Utah · Vermont · Virginia · Washington · West Virginia · Wisconsin · Wyoming

http://www.xsdepot.com/

[lhagedorn]

Hello,

ATTENTION MICHIGAN LLC'S

I hope and plead with getting the right answer, Please!

Quick background,

I retired from the auto industry last February. (see, that was quick!) I started an LLC to have an Ecomm Store. I now have my Company name registered with the state of Michigan.
So I now have my EIN and a Company number.

I joined the WorldWideBrands site. Some Wholesalers ask for two numbers, the EIN and the State or Local "Sales and use tax number" and if I can't produce them, they won't do business with the applicants.

I have asked a few online retailers about this and they state it's my EIN number.

I am not a sole proprietor, I'm an LLC.

I went to the Michigan.Gov site and started to get into the Sales and tax area and seen a form to fill out. well, My wife and I lost it (totally confused) because toward the last few pages, it started asking about money I made?,how much taxable income I will make? ( silly ) how many employees I have? and there is no way to say, "I'm just starting now"

I just need to know if I need that number and how to get it?
I live in Macomb, Michigan.


Help Please!

edit by admin: no contact info permitted on the forum please, thank you

[Chris_WI]

I do business in Wisconsin, and yes you need a "Sellers Permit" to do business regardless of how you run your business. If you will be be drop-shipping only and NEVER selling to someone in Wisconsin, then I don't believe you need the "Sales & Use Tax permit" but how would you know you wouldn't ever get a Wisconsin customer.

The WI Law basically says that if you operate your business in Wisconsin (BTW, if your website is hosted out of state, but the desk you sit at to manage your website is in Wisconsin, then you DO operate in Wisconsin) and sell products to other residents of Wisconsin, then you need to collect sales tax and remit the proceeds to the state. If you don't, and they find out, they will STILL BILL YOU for the tax even if you didn't collect it from your customers!

[xsdepot.com]

It seems more complex than it is. You just put a small estimate, like $50. They know that you are new and can't be held to it. If things should dramatically change with your business, then you would just contact them back to say so. It's because they either don't charge you a fee if you're small, or they charge you a lot less (all states are different) to sign up. When you get your permit you'll also get all the info you need on how to report and pay your state taxes.
Usually you'd get a little booklet with monthly statements you fill out and then send in quarterly.

[Vossman]

All information that has been posted to your question is correct.

My only comment is that an EIN and Sales Tax Permit are two seperate identification numbers:

EIN (Employer Indentification Number or Federal Tax Indentification Number) - Federal Level - usually given to a company to identify it on federal tax returns. Check with your state to see if you need a state number or charter

Sales Tax Permit - State Level - usually issued to a business to identify it on sales tax reports for the state.

These are just brief explanations and how they are actually used by you.

Keep us informed!

[lhagedorn]

I don't know if the replies were addressed to me or the thread starter.
I have filed for the state permit.

thanks for the reply's

[SeattleCPA]

Can I make a suggestion? Why not consult a local accountant about this stuff?

I don't do this anymore, too busy to take on new clients, but I used to regularly sell an hour of time to a new small business person. In that meeting, we'd go over all of these sorts of questions.

Again, I don't even do this anymore so I'm not trying to gin up business, but I think you'll get excellent value for your $200 (or whatever) investment.

[dvdtvshows]

When you are setting up a business, check with your local professionals.
1. stop by your village hall and get their local check-off list for starting up a business so as to comply with local law.
In our case, in Illinois, it was simple:
a. run a 'doing business under an assumed name' ad in the local newspaper
b. bring an actual page of the newspaper with the ad in it to the County courthouse, fill out a form, pay a small fee and get a registration with the county seal.
c. fill out another form for the state and get a 'retailer sales tax number' so you can collect sales tax and send it to the state for in-state customers.
d. fill out another form and pay another small fee to get a local business license to operate a home based business with no street traffic.
2. talk to your accountant (CPA) to find out if he or she wants you to quickly incorporate. Do this before you actually run any ads or fill out any forms.
3. talk to your lawyer to see if he or she recommends anything not on the list from the village hall. Your lawyer will also be the one to file the forms if your accountant says you need to incorporate for tax or other reasons.
4. talk to your business banker and set up a business checking account after steps 1 through 3. Also talk to your business banker to setup a credit card clearing house account so you can accept MasterCard, Visa, Discover, American Express. We also set up another debit card bank account to pay Google ads with (we never kept too much money in that one).

It all sounds like a lot, but it goes quickly, does not really cost that much, and keeps you legal, getting your credit card sales directly into your business bank account, and paying reasonable taxes.

Best Wishes,
dvdtvshows of http://www.dvdtvshows.com

[seabreezeh]

Hello ALL,
This is JUST what I need , many many thanks to you so much DVDTVSHOWS for a such a valuable information .
Best Regards

[JEccles]

Yes you do.