Hawaii Business License in 2026: The GET Licence, BREG Filings and Honolulu Rules

Hawaii does not issue a single all-purpose business licence, and that confuses a lot of new owners, because almost everyone still needs one particular licence: the general excise tax (GET) licence. Hawaii has no sales tax. Instead, the GET applies to the gross income of nearly every business activity, so freelancers, landlords, consultants and online sellers register alongside shops and restaurants. On top of that sit entity and trade name filings with the Business Registration Division, professional and contractor licences, and a short list of county licences. This guide covers each layer, with fees checked in October 2026.

Quick answer

Hawaii has no general business license, but anyone doing business in the state needs a general excise tax (GET) licence from the Department of Taxation: a one-time $20 on Form BB-1. LLCs and corporations also register with BREG, regulated professions and contractors are licensed through PVL, and Honolulu licenses only a listed set of activities.

• GET 4.5% on Oahu and in every county, with a 4.712% maximum pass-on

• LLC: $50 + $1 to form, $12.50 a year online

• Trade name: $50 for five years

• Contractor licence needed above the $1,500 handyman limit

Does Hawaii have a general business license?

Not as such. There is no state or county licence that every business must hold just to exist. What Hawaii has instead is a GET licence that the Department of Taxation requires of anyone doing business in the state, which in practice makes it the licence nearly every business needs. A massage therapist in Kailua, a web designer in Hilo, a landlord renting one condo in Kihei and a mainland company shipping goods into Honolulu above the nexus threshold all need one.

Beyond the GET licence, a Hawaii business deals with a few separate offices. The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) runs the Business Registration Division (BREG), which registers LLCs, corporations, partnerships and trade names, and the Professional and Vocational Licensing Division (PVL), which licenses regulated professions and contractors. The Department of Health permits food establishments. The counties license a short list of activities, run liquor commissions, issue building permits and set zoning, including the rules on vacation rentals.

So the answer to "do I need a business license in Hawaii?" is almost always yes, but the licence is usually the GET licence. Whether you need anything more depends on your activity: a professional title, construction work, food, alcohol or one of the county-listed trades.

The GET licence: who needs it and how to apply

Anyone doing business in Hawaii needs a GET licence, whatever their structure: corporations, LLCs, partnerships, sole proprietors working from home, landlords and out-of-state businesses with Hawaii nexus. Out-of-state sellers have nexus once their Hawaii sales reach $100,000 or 200 transactions in a year. There is no minimum income before the requirement applies, and nonprofits are not automatically exempt.

You register on Form BB-1, the State of Hawaii Basic Business Application, through Hawaii Tax Online (hitax.hawaii.gov). The same form registers you for withholding if you have employees, and for the transient accommodations tax if you rent rooms or homes to visitors. There is one application per taxpayer, not per activity, so you list all your activities on the same form. Registering for GET also registers you for use tax.

The fee is a one-time $20, with no renewal fee. Online applications get a Hawaii Tax ID in about five to seven business days, paper forms take about four weeks, and applying in person at a district tax office gets you the ID the same day. If you only work a single event, such as a trade show or concert, you can register as a one-time event and file a single return for it.

Once licensed, you display the licence at your place of business. A second location or a second trade name needs a branch licence on Form G-50, which is free. Licences can't be transferred, so if you buy an existing business you register in your own name. A cancelled licence can't be reactivated, so you would pay the $20 again, but you can put a licence on inactive status for up to two years if you pause trading.

The tax itself is 4.5% on most retail sales and services, including the 0.5% county surcharge that all four counties levy through December 31, 2030. Because GET is a tax on the business, not the customer, you may pass it on visibly, up to 4.712% in every county. Our Hawaii general excise tax guide covers rates, wholesale rules, filing frequencies and penalties in depth.

BREG: entities and trade names

The Business Registration Division handles the legal side of your business. An LLC costs $50 to form plus the $1 State Archives fee, and then files an annual report each year in the quarter tied to its registration date, for $12.50 online. Corporations and partnerships have their own filings and fees. On July 6, 2026, BREG moved from Hawaii Business Express to a new computer system and portal at hbe.dcca.hawaii.gov, and as of October 2026 it said expedited handling was not yet available there, so allow extra time if you are working to a deadline. Our Hawaii LLC guide covers the steps and filing quarters.

Trade names are registered with BREG under HRS chapter 482. The application costs $50, plus the $1 archives fee, and expedited review adds $20 when it is offered. A registration lasts five years, and you renew in the six months before it expires. Registration puts the name on the public record against your business, which helps when you open a bank account in the name or need to show who is behind a brand. Our DBA guide compares the rules in other states.

Remember to tell the Department of Taxation too. If you trade under a name other than the one on your GET licence, each extra trade name gets its own free branch licence, so your returns and licence display match the name customers see.

Registrations vs operating licences in Hawaii

	What it does	Lets you run a regulated activity?
BREG entity registration	Creates the legal entity	No
Trade name registration	Records the name on the state register	No
GET licence	Lets you do business and pay GET	No — but required of nearly everyone
PVL licence	Authorizes a profession or contracting	Yes
DOH food permit or liquor licence	Authorizes food service or alcohol sales	Yes

BREG entity registration

What it does

Creates the legal entity

Lets you run a regulated activity?

No

Trade name registration

What it does

Records the name on the state register

Lets you run a regulated activity?

No

GET licence

What it does

Lets you do business and pay GET

Lets you run a regulated activity?

No — but required of nearly everyone

PVL licence

What it does

Authorizes a profession or contracting

Lets you run a regulated activity?

Yes

DOH food permit or liquor licence

What it does

Authorizes food service or alcohol sales

Lets you run a regulated activity?

Yes

Professional and vocational licences (PVL)

DCCA's Professional and Vocational Licensing Division supports the boards and programmes that license dozens of regulated occupations, from real estate, cosmetology and barbering to accountancy, engineering, architecture and massage therapy. If your work uses a protected title or involves public safety, check PVL before you take clients, because the GET licence and BREG registration do not authorize regulated work.

Contracting is the PVL licence that catches most small businesses. Hawaii's Contractors License Board licenses general engineering contractors, general building contractors and specialty contractors, and a licence generally requires experience, an examination, and proof of financial standing and insurance. Contracting without a required licence is an offence, so check the board's licence classifications before you bid.

The main exception is the handyman exemption in HRS 444-2. Act 283 of 2019 raised it from $1,000 to $1,500: a person may do a job without a contractor licence only if the total for labour and materials is under that amount and the work needs no building permit. Electrical and plumbing work never qualifies. A bill to raise the limit to $2,500, HB846, was carried over into the 2026 session, but we found no record that it passed as of October 2026, so plan on the $1,500 limit.

Can I take this job without a contractor licence?

Step 1

Electrical or plumbing? → licence needed

Step 2

Building permit needed? → licence needed

Step 3

Labour + materials under $1,500?

Step 4

Handyman exemption

otherwise get a PVL contractor licence

Food, alcohol and vacation rentals

Restaurants, food trucks, markets, caterers and other food establishments need a permit from the Hawaii Department of Health's Food Safety Branch, which plans, reviews and inspects food businesses statewide. Alcohol is licensed by each county's liquor commission or liquor control department; on Oahu, that is the Honolulu Liquor Commission. Plan both early, because premises often need inspections or approvals before the permit or licence is issued.

Vacation rentals carry an extra tax and a zoning question. Hosts pay GET on rental income and also the separate transient accommodations tax, both registered through Form BB-1. Each county regulates short-term rentals through its own zoning and registration rules, and those rules are stricter in some places than others, so check with your county planning department before you list a property.

Honolulu: licences for listed activities

The City and County of Honolulu has no general business licence. Its Department of Customer Services runs a Business License Section that licenses a specific list of activities: auctioneers, electric guns, firearms sales, refuse collection, glass recyclers, pawnbrokers, peddlers, pedicabs, pepper spray sales, scrap dealers, secondhand dealers, tear gas and similar substances, used vehicle parts, and wrecking and salvage. Each licence has its own application packet, and you can drop packets off at the Kapalama Driver Licensing Center, Window 17, at 925 Dillingham Boulevard, without an appointment.

If your business is not on that list, you need no city licence in Honolulu. You still need the state GET licence, any PVL or health licence for your activity, building permits for any work, sign permits where they apply, and zoning that allows your use. Honolulu's GET is 4.5%, the same combined rate as the other counties.

The neighbour islands work in a similar way, with Maui, Hawaii and Kauai counties licensing particular activities and running their own liquor and planning departments. Ask the county before you sign a lease.

Checking a licence before you hire someone

The same records work in reverse when you are the customer. Before you pay a contractor, a property manager or another licensed professional, look them up in PVL's online licence search to confirm the licence is current and covers the work, and check whether any complaints are on record. To see whether a company is properly registered and in good standing, search BREG's business registry for its entity record and annual report status. A tradesperson quoting a large job with no licence number, or a company with no BREG record, is a warning sign worth pausing on.

If you hire employees

Hiring in Hawaii brings more mandatory coverage than in most states. You register for state income tax withholding on Form BB-1, and with the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations for unemployment insurance. Employers must also carry workers' compensation, temporary disability insurance and, under the Prepaid Health Care Act, health coverage for eligible employees. Hawaii's minimum wage is $16.00 an hour in 2026, with a $14.75 wage for tipped employees who meet the tip-credit conditions. Set these up before the first payroll.

Home-based businesses

A home business follows the same state rules as any other. You need a GET licence at your home address, a branch licence if you trade under extra names, and any professional licence your work requires. Zoning is the county question: home occupations are generally allowed within limits on customers, employees, signs and nuisance, but the rules differ by county and by zoning district. If you will cook for sale at home, check the Department of Health's rules for home-based food before you start.

Worked examples: first-year costs

A freelance designer in Hilo. Kalena works for mainland and local clients as a sole proprietor under her own name. She files Form BB-1 online and pays $20 once, then files GET returns on her fees. She needs nothing from BREG or the county. If she later trades as "Lava Rock Studio", she registers the trade name for $50 plus $1 and adds a free GET branch licence.

A café in Kaimuki, Honolulu. The owners form an LLC for $50 plus $1, register for GET and withholding on Form BB-1 for $20, and get a Department of Health food permit after plan review. If they want to serve beer, they apply to the Honolulu Liquor Commission well before opening. A $20 lunch with GET passed on at 4.712% comes to about $20.94.

A handyman on Maui. A small repair business fixes doors, decks and fences. Each job where labour and materials stay under $1,500 and need no permit falls within the handyman exemption. When a customer asks for a $6,000 deck rebuild that needs a permit, the owner must either decline or bring in a licensed contractor; doing it himself would be unlicensed contracting.

Getting legally set up in Hawaii

1. 1

   Choose your structure

   Form an LLC with BREG for $50 plus $1, or trade as a sole proprietor. Register a trade name if you use one.

   Hawaii LLC guide
2. 2

   Get an EIN

   Free from the IRS; you'll need it for Form BB-1 if you have employees or an entity.

   EIN guide
3. 3

   File Form BB-1 for your GET licence

   On Hawaii Tax Online, $20 once; add withholding and TAT if they apply. Display the licence.

   Hawaii GET guide
4. 4

   Get any PVL, health or liquor licence

   Contractors above the handyman limit and regulated professions through PVL; food through DOH; alcohol through the county.

5. 5

   Clear county requirements

   Check your county's licence list, zoning, building and sign permits, and any short-term rental rules.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

The first mistake is thinking a GET licence is only for shops. Hawaii taxes the gross income of almost every business, so freelancers, consultants and landlords need one too. If you have been working without one, register now and file the back returns; penalties grow every month a return is late.

The second is charging "no tax" or forgetting the pass-on maximum. You may pass GET on to customers visibly, but not above 4.712%, and advertising that a sale carries no tax is not allowed.

The third is stretching the handyman exemption. The exemption is meant for genuinely small jobs, so splitting a larger project into several invoices to stay under $1,500 is asking for trouble, and any job needing a permit, plus all electrical and plumbing work, needs a licensed contractor.

The fourth is trading under a brand with no paper trail. Register the trade name with BREG and add a GET branch licence for it, so your bank, your returns and your signage all match.

The fifth is leaving BREG filings to the last minute in 2026. With BREG on a new portal since July and expedited handling paused, allow extra time for formations and certificates.

Official Hawaii links

• Department of Taxation — GET informationWho needs a licence, rates, forms
• Hawaii Tax OnlineFile Form BB-1 and returns
• DCCA Business Registration DivisionEntities and trade names
• DCCA Professional and Vocational LicensingContractors and professions
• Honolulu — Business License SectionCity-licensed activities
• Honolulu Liquor Commission

What to do next

File Form BB-1 for your GET licence first, since almost every Hawaii business needs it, and read our Hawaii general excise tax guide before you set your prices. If you are forming a company, follow our Hawaii LLC guide and check the name with the LLC name checker. Use the sales tax calculator to check GET pass-on amounts and the startup cost calculator to budget your launch. For other states, see our Alaska guide or the business licenses overview.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice — confirm on the official source or with a professional.

Frequently asked questions

Does Hawaii require a general business license?

Hawaii has no all-purpose business licence, but almost every business needs a general excise tax (GET) licence from the Department of Taxation. Anyone doing business in Hawaii needs one, including freelancers, landlords and online sellers with Hawaii nexus. On top of that, LLCs and corporations register with BREG, regulated professions and contractors are licensed through PVL, and the counties license specific activities.

How much does a Hawaii business license cost?

The GET licence is a one-time $20, with no renewal fee. An LLC costs $50 plus a $1 archives fee to form, then $12.50 a year online. A trade name registration is $50 plus the archives fee. Professional and contractor licences through PVL cost more and vary by licence type.

How do I get a GET license in Hawaii?

File Form BB-1, the Basic Business Application, through Hawaii Tax Online and pay the one-time $20 fee. Online applications get a Hawaii Tax ID in about five to seven business days, while applying in person at a district tax office gets it the same day. Display the licence where you do business, and add a free branch licence for extra locations or trade names.

Do I need a business license in Honolulu?

Not a general one. The City and County of Honolulu's Business License Section licenses a specific list of activities, such as auctioneers, pawnbrokers, peddlers, secondhand and scrap dealers, firearms sellers and used vehicle parts dealers. Liquor is licensed by the Honolulu Liquor Commission. Most shops, offices and online businesses in Honolulu need only the state GET licence and any professional licence.

Do I need a contractor's license in Hawaii?

Generally yes. Hawaii's Contractors License Board, part of DCCA's Professional and Vocational Licensing Division, licenses contractors. The handyman exemption covers only small jobs where labour and materials total under $1,500, with no building permit, and it doesn't extend to electrical or plumbing work. Anything larger needs a licence, and a 2025–2026 bill to raise the limit had not passed as of October 2026.

Do I have to register a trade name in Hawaii?

Registration with the Business Registration Division is how you put a trade name on the state record, and it costs $50 plus the $1 archives fee. It lasts five years, and you renew in the six months before it expires. The Department of Taxation also needs to know: each additional trade name you trade under gets a free GET branch licence.

Sources & verification

Figures on this page were checked against the sources below when it was last reviewed on 13 October 2026. Each rate and limit is stored once with its own official source and review date, and official update channels are monitored daily so changes are picked up. How we verify

1. 1.General Excise Tax (GET) Information — Hawaii Department of Taxation · accessed 13 October 2026
2. 2.General Excise Tax brochure — Hawaii Department of Taxation · accessed 13 October 2026
3. 3.County Surcharge on General Excise and Use Tax — Hawaii Department of Taxation · accessed 13 October 2026
4. 4.Form fee schedule — DCCA Business Registration Division · accessed 13 October 2026
5. 5.Form TN-INFO: Trade names, trademarks and service marks — DCCA Business Registration Division · accessed 13 October 2026
6. 6.Business Registration Division — DCCA Business Registration Division · accessed 13 October 2026
7. 7.Business License — City and County of Honolulu, Department of Customer Services · accessed 13 October 2026
8. 8.HB846 (2025–2026) — Relating to contractors — Hawaii State Legislature · accessed 13 October 2026
9. 9.Bill status: HB846 (Hawaii) — LegiScan (secondary) · accessed 13 October 2026
10. 10.Honolulu Liquor Commission information system — City and County of Honolulu · accessed 13 October 2026