Business license · Virginia

Does Your LLC Need a Business License in Virginia?

The short answer. Virginia does not issue a general state business license. According to Virginia Business One Stop, general business licenses are issued locally. A business in Virginia may still need a license from its city or county, or from a state board if its trade is regulated.

Virginia Business License at a Glance

General state business license	No general state license
City or county licenses	Local governments may require one (see Local licenses)
Trade and professional licenses	Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation

Read from the government sources listed at the foot of this page, last checked September 30, 2026. See the sources.

Does Virginia Require a State Business License?

Virginia does not issue a general state business license. According to Virginia Business One Stop, general business licenses are issued locally.

A business in Virginia may still need a license from its city or county, or from a state board if its trade is regulated.

Virginia's own guide to business licenses and permits is Virginia Business One Stop.

City and County Business Licenses

Virginia law lets counties, cities and towns charge a license fee and levy license taxes on businesses, trades, professions, occupations and callings, and makes it unlawful to do business without a local license that an ordinance requires. Virginia Business One Stop says business licenses are issued by the city or county where the business is based.

Where Virginia points businesses for local requirements.

Professional and Trade Licenses

Virginia's Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation regulates more than 30 occupations and professions through 19 boards, licensing or certifying individuals and businesses from architects and contractors to cosmetologists. Other state agencies license other regulated activities. Look up Virginia license requirements.

Our verified guides for specific trades in this state:

See trade and business license requirements by state for every trade we cover.

Other Virginia Registrations to Check

Virginia articles of organization, the filing that creates the LLC itself.
Virginia Certificate of Registration, for a business that sells taxable goods or services.
Virginia resale certificate, to buy inventory for resale without paying tax on it.
How to get an EIN, the federal tax ID most LLCs need to open a bank account or hire.

Frequently Asked Questions

: Virginia does not issue a general state business license. According to Virginia Business One Stop, general business licenses are issued locally. A business in Virginia may still need a license from its city or county, or from a state board if its trade is regulated.
: Virginia law lets counties, cities and towns charge a license fee and levy license taxes on businesses, trades, professions, occupations and callings, and makes it unlawful to do business without a local license that an ordinance requires. Virginia Business One Stop says business licenses are issued by the city or county where the business is based.
: Virginia's Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation regulates more than 30 occupations and professions through 19 boards, licensing or certifying individuals and businesses from architects and contractors to cosmetologists. Other state agencies license other regulated activities.

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It reports what each state's law and agencies say about a general state business license, with the sources this page cites. It cannot tell you which licenses your own business needs: that turns on what the business does, where it operates, and what its city or county requires, and fees and exemptions change between our reviews. Confirm your own position with the state agency named on this page, the city or county where the business is located, and any state board that licenses your trade before you open.

Sources

Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified Virginia sources, and each entry says what the document is. Some statutory text is read from an accurate mirror rather than from the state's own host, and those say so.

bos.sbsd.virginia.gov/Home/FAQVirginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity, Business One Stop FAQ
bos.sbsd.virginia.govVirginia Business One Stop home page
bos.sbsd.virginia.gov/Home/AspiringEntrepreneurVirginia Business One Stop, Aspiring Entrepreneurs
sbsd.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/VSBFA/VAHandbook/Virginia-Handbook-for-Success-v2.pdfVirginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity, The Virginia Handbook for Success
law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title58.1/chapter37/section58.1-3703/Va. Code 58.1-3703, Counties, cities and towns may impose local license taxes and fees
law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title58.1/chapter37/section58.1-3700/Va. Code 58.1-3700, License requirement
dpor.virginia.gov/applicantsVirginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Applicants

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Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC

Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.