Consider The Permits For Your At-Home Business
If you have started your business working from home or from your own personal office, you need to consider the permits for your at-home business. It is very important to do this, because even though your business is at home, it is still subject to permit and license laws. Knowing where to get started might seem a bit daunting but these tips will help.
There are a few different reasons that business permits are required for at-home business owners, but first and foremost would be that you need to make the public aware of your business in order
to hold you accountable for your actions. It also makes it easier to protect public safety and health.
Another reason a business owner is required to carry a license is so that revenue can be tracked for taxation purposes. The IRS definitely does not license your business. It does however require that certain businesses register with them and in return you will receive a federal tax identification number, or EIN. You also will in turn want to check to see what you need to register at your local and at your home state levels to make sure you have all of your bases covered.
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration if a business sells taxable goods or services they need to have a sales tax permit. There are also specific licenses and permits that are required in federally regulated industries such as aviation and alcohol businesses.
For example, certain permits may be required if you run an in home beauty shop. If you have a permit, it could represent that you are licensed to perform the type of work that you are providing to customers at your home based business. It signals to the public that you know what you are doing and will be held accountable.
The permits that you need to consider for your at-home business also depend on where exactly your business is located. If you are living in an apartment, you might need a permission to run your business for the fact of the increased foot traffic – which might be considered a nuisance for your neighbors – that setting up a business there might involve. If you live in your own home, you might need to look into zoning permits for your locality or you may need to check with your home owners association (HOA) for certain regulations and restrictions.
Once you have read through this article, hopefully you have considered the permits for your at-home business. While your business might be run completely online from your home, you still need to make sure you are checking for permits that you might need with your local and state governments. Making sure that your taxes are taken care of in the right way is especially important. No one wants the IRS to come along and ruin your at home party with additional penalties. You also want to make sure that if you have any foot traffic from your business that you check with where you are currently residing so as to avoid issues down the road.
Zane Schwarzlose is a writer at Colley and Colley, LLP, a personal injury law firm in Austin, Texas. Zane hadn’t considered the role of permits if he wanted to open an in-home business.
