Starting a Business in New Jersey Checklist

Check business name availability with the Division of Revenue You can search online to see if your business name is available: https://www.njportal.com/DOR/businessrecords/EntityDocs/BusinessCopies.aspx Division of Revenue Department of Treasury Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services Corporate Filing Unit 33 West State Street, 5th Floor Trenton, NJ 08608 P.O. Box 308 Trenton, NJ 08646 P: (609) 292-9292 F: (609) 984-6851
File paperwork to create your legal business Now that your business has a name, it is time to register your business with the New Jersey Division of Revenue. Completing the “Public Records Filing” section of the NJ Registration Packet gets you registered as a New Jersey corporation or LLC. You can file by mail, fax, in person or online at https://www.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/treasury/revenue/dcr/filing/page1.cgi. The filing fee for a new corporation or LLC is $125. If you mail your registration it will take the state about 4 weeks to process. Faxed filings are auto expedited so it is much faster. Pay an extra $15 (corporations) or $25 (LLCs) to get filed within 8.5 business hours. Pay $50 for same day processing. If you are in a mad rush, you can pay $500 for 2 hour processing or $1000 for one hour processing. Online filings are processed in 3-10 days. If you don’t want to do the filing, you can incorporate in New Jersey with Northwest Registered Agent. Corporate Filing Unit Department of Treasury Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services Corporate Filing Unit 33 West State Street, 5th Floor Trenton, NJ 08608 P.O. Box 308 Trenton, NJ 08646 P: (609) 292-9292 F: (609) 984-6851
Register for NJ taxes Once you have completed the Public Records Filing section, complete the tax section of the NJ Registration Packet or online registration. If you indicate on your registration forms that you will be collecting sales tax, the state will send you a sales tax permit. Sales Tax: New Jersey state sales tax is 7%. Income Tax: Use the NJ tax tables if your income is less than $100,000. If your income is over $100,000 you have to use the NJ tax rate schedule to calculate the income tax due. The Corporate Business Tax rate is 9% on your corporation’s net income. Division of Revenue Department of Treasury Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services 33 West State Street, 5th Floor Trenton, NJ 08608 P.O. Box 308 Trenton, NJ 08646 P: (609) 292-1730 F: (609) 984-6851
Do I need a business license? There is no general state business license but you may need a business license based on your occupation. http://www.state.nj.us/njbusiness/licenses/ Any other registration requirements? Some cities and counties require a local business license. If your city does not require a business license, you still want to check to see if you need any other licenses or permits. For example, Trenton, NJ requires businesses to have a city license. You can download the license application on the city’s website. Local License/Permit Info Jersey City City of Jersey City 280 Grove Street Jersey City, NJ 07302 P: (201) 547-5000 http://www.cityofjerseycity.com/business.aspx?id=258 City of Newark City Hall 920 Broad Street Newark, NJ 07102 P: (973) 733-6400 http://www.ci.newark.nj.us/ City of Trenton City Clerk’s Office City Hall 319 E. State Street Trenton, New Jersey 08608 P: (609) 989-3187 http://www.trentonnj.org/Cit-e-Access/webpage.cfm?TID=55&TPID=11571
Collect and Charge Sales Tax Do I need to collect New Jersey sales tax? You need to register to collect sales tax if you make retail sales or rentals of tangible personal property, including food and beverages sold by restaurants or caterers. What is the New Jersey sales tax rate? New Jersey state sales tax is 7%. How do I register for New Jersey sales tax? If you will be collecting sales tax, you need to complete the registration application at least 15 days before beginning business. You can send in the NJ-REG form or register online at https://www.state.nj.us/cgibin/treasury/revenue/dcr/reg/sos_dcrnew01_page1.cgi The state will send your sales tax certificate with your id number. How much does a sales tax permit cost? There is no fee. Division of Revenue Division of Revenue Client Registration PO Box 252 Trenton, NJ 08646-0252 33 West State Street, 3rd Floor Trenton, NJ 08608 (609) 292-9292 http://www.nj.gov/treasury/revenue