How to start a lawn care business in Kentucky: 6% tax, Category 3 and lawn markers

Kentucky looks light on licensing until you apply something to a lawn. Mowing and cleanup have no state trade license. Weed control, insect control and fertilizer with a pesticide in it fall under the Department of Agriculture, with written disclosures, markers on the grass and a records list that is longer than most owners expect. This page covers only what is different in Kentucky. For the national steps, read our main lawn care startup guide. For formation fees and annual reports, use the Kentucky startup page.

The 6% sales tax names landscaping and snow plowing

KRS 139.200 imposes the 6% sales tax on retail sales of goods and on a list of services. Landscaping services are on that list, defined to include lawn care and maintenance, tree trimming, pruning or removal, landscape design and installation, landscape care and maintenance, and snow plowing or removal. Janitorial services and pet care are named in the same subsection, which matters if you add cleaning or other services to a route business. If you sell a listed service, register with the Department of Revenue for a sales and use tax permit before you invoice. That includes plowing, so a mow-and-plow company collects tax all year.

Build the tax into quotes from the start. Our mowing pricing guide shows how to price a route so tax and fuel do not eat your margin, and sales tax on services explains the mechanics of collecting and reporting.

Category 3 covers ornamental, turf and lawn care

Under 302 KAR 26:020, anyone applying a pesticide must be certified and licensed in a category that matches the work. The regulation lists thirteen categories, and Category 3 is "Ornamental, turf and lawn care." A Category 3 license also qualifies the holder for interior plantscapes, sports turf and golf courses. The requirements, as printed in the regulation read in October 2026:

• Applicants are at least 18 and pass a written, proctored exam in the matching category. The passing score is 70 percent.
• The exam fee is $25 per attempt, whether you pass or fail. The license fee is $25 for applicators and $100 for operators, due within 30 days of the test date. If unpaid, you retake the exam.
• Licenses expire December 31 each year. If you have not renewed by January 31, you retest as an initial applicant after paying any fines.
• Renewal takes at least 12 continuing education units in the three years before the renewal application, including at least one core-standards topic and, for each license category you hold, at least one specific-standards unit. Falling short means no new license until you pass the exam for the deficient category.

A University of Kentucky newsletter reported that the older lawn and ornamental, golf course, interior plantscape and athletic turf categories were merged into a single Category 3 for 2023. Some older materials still use the earlier names, so check the Department's current forms. The regulation does not list a general liability insurance requirement for applicators, so confirm with the Department's Division of Environmental Services whether your license or your customers' contracts call for one.

Crew members who apply under your supervision are covered by a separate path. Failure to directly supervise a trainee on the job is a listed ground for the Department to suspend, revoke or modify a license under 302 KAR 26:080. Before you let a new hire handle a sprayer, read the Department's trainee registration and supervision rules at 302 KAR 26:050, which set a 90-day registration period and a $25 fee and name structural pest management companies by name. The rule does not mention lawn care, so ask the Department how it treats a lawn crew trainee.

Regulation 302 KAR 26:080 sets markers, written notices and records

This is the Kentucky rule that shapes your day-to-day paperwork. Effective October 20, 2022, 302 KAR 26:080 covers lawn, turf, ornamental and interior plantscape notices. For a lawn:

• At contract signing, the operator or applicator gives the customer written information on the pesticides or pesticide-impregnated fertilizers, application procedures and general safe-application guidelines.
• Immediately after each application, you place a marker at a prominent point in the lawn. It is a white sign at least 4 by 5 inches on a dowel or support at least 12 inches long, with contrasting lettering at least 3/8 inch tall that reads "LAWN CARE APPLICATION - PLEASE STAY OFF GRASS UNTIL DRY." You may add your name, logo or symbol. Residential properties of three families or fewer get one marker per property, and other properties get markers at the primary points of entry. The owner, a resident or someone they authorize may remove it the day after.
• At application, you give the customer, homeowner or landlord the written information for each product used.
• On request, a customer, employer or adjoining neighbor can ask for notice 24 to 48 hours ahead. You give the date and approximate time in writing, in person or by phone. If you cannot reach them, you leave written notice at the residence.

Section 5 of the regulation lists the information you record for each pesticide used and keep at your business address, available to anyone who requests notice. It runs to thirteen items: brand or common name, pesticide type, fertilizer rate and analysis, reason for use, concentration of the end-use product, application rate, total gallons of end-use product, label special instructions for the treated area, other label precautions, the applicator's name and license or certificate number, the customer's name, address and application date, the location treated, and the total area treated. Under 302 KAR 26:030, application records are kept at least three years from the date of application, and available to the Department on request.

The Department can assess civil penalties and suspend, revoke or delay a license for failing to keep these records, failing to provide written information before application, failing to place the marker, using a marker that does not meet the minimum requirements, or failing to give requested prior notice. Service vehicles used for pesticide application must be marked with either the company name registered with the Department or a recognizable logo, under 302 KAR 26:060.

That is a lot to remember on a six-property afternoon. Many small companies solve it with a custom CRM that prints a product sheet and application record for each stop and holds neighbor requests in one place.

Employees, workers' compensation and local licenses

Under KRS 342.630, any employer with one or more employees in Kentucky, other than one engaged solely in agriculture, is subject to workers' compensation. The Department of Workers' Claims runs an online coverage lookup, which helps when a subcontractor says they are covered. Kentucky has no state trade license for mowing or cleaning, but the Secretary of State's startup checklist points owners to local occupational license fees set by counties and cities. Ask each place you work.

Season and first steps

Long, humid summers stretch the mowing season from spring into late fall. Louisville and northern Kentucky see regular snow events, while the south and west see more freezing rain, so plow and salt contracts are real but irregular, and they are taxable.

1. Form the LLC and calendar the June 30 annual report, using our Kentucky page.
2. Register with the Department of Revenue for a sales and use tax permit.
3. Decide whether to sell pesticide or pesticide-fertilizer programs. If yes, take the Category 3 exam and print the customer information sheet and markers before the first visit.
4. Buy equipment using the lawn care equipment list.
5. Check city and county occupational license rules where you work.

Get it confirmed

Consider this general information as of October 2026, and not legal or tax advice. Fees and rules change, so ask the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Revenue before you act.

Frequently asked questions