Last updated July 15, 2021

Iowa LLC
Business Licenses and Permits

After you form your Iowa LLC, you’ll need to comply with local government (county and city) license and permit requirements.

Your requirements are determined by the industry you are in and where your business is located.

Not complying with license and permit requirements is risky and can result in penalties and fines, or worse, not being able to conduct business in Iowa.

Types of licenses & permits you may need in Iowa

Below are some license and permits examples:

• City business licenses/tax permits
• Building permit
• Health permit
• Occupational permit
• Signage permit
• Alarm permit
• Zoning permit
• Alcohol & tobacco permit
• Liquor license
• Sales and use tax permit
• Seller/reseller permit

Do it yourself in Iowa

Depending on your business, you may need licenses and permits at the city and/or county, level. You can contact your city/county directly or use some of the links below.

City/County Finder
https://connect.iowaleague.org/iloc/Contact_Management/CityDirectory.aspx

Iowa Source Link
You can also access Iowa Business License Information Center’s Licensing Resources for Small Business guide. It has information on the different licenses and permits you may need and how to contact the state’s departments and agencies.

Sales Tax Permit and Tax ID Number
For a Sales Tax Permit or Tax ID Number, you can contact the Iowa Department of Revenue at idr@iowa.gov or 515-281-3114.

If You Have Employees
Please see page 2 of this IA Source Link Guide.

Small Business Development Centers
You can also contact your regional Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for assistance: http://www.iowasbdc.org/regional-centers/

Our Recommendation

There are nearly 20,000 licensing and permit jurisdictions in the United States and each has its own rules and regulations.

If you want to save time, we recommend hiring a professional service company (like IncFile) to do the research and prepare your applications.

They will provide you with a comprehensive package of all the licenses, permits and tax registrations required for your Iowa LLC, as well as the necessary application forms.

Next Step

After you’ve researched and obtained the proper licenses and permits for your Iowa LLC, you can then proceed to the next lesson: Iowa LLC Taxes.

Matt Horwitz

Founder & Educator, LLC University®

Matt Horwitz has been the leading expert on LLC education for the past decade. He founded LLC University in 2010 after realizing people needed simple and actionable instructions to start an LLC that other companies weren't offering. He's cited by Entrepreneur Magazine, Yahoo Finance, and the US Chamber of Commerce, and was featured by CNBC and InventRight.
 
Matt holds a Bachelor's Degree in business from Drexel University with a concentration in business law. He performs extensive research and analysis to convert state laws into simple instructions anyone can follow to form their LLC - all for free! Read more about Matt Horwitz and LLC University.