Starting a service business in Georgia

Form your business in Georgia

File Articles of Organization with the Corporations Division through its online eCorp system or on paper. Under the Division's fee schedule effective September 6, 2025, the fee is $100 plus a $10 service charge, $110 total either way, as listed in October 2026. The Division says online filings are generally processed within 7 to 10 business days and paper filings within 15, with longer waits from late December through January and at the end of each quarter. Expedited review costs extra: $120 for two business days, $275 same day, or $1,200 within one hour.

Ongoing state filings

Georgia LLCs file an annual registration, due by April 1 each year it is due and accepted from January 1. The fee is $50 plus the $10 service charge, $60 total, as listed in October 2026, and filing late adds a $25 penalty. Online annual registrations are processed immediately. Confirm on the Secretary of State's site whether your entity's registration is due in the current year before you pay, because fees are non-refundable.

Using a business name (DBA)

Trade names are not filed with the Secretary of State. Under O.C.G.A. § 10-1-490, you file the registration with the clerk of the superior court of the county where the business is chiefly carried on, and the registration must be published once a week for two weeks in the newspaper that prints the sheriff's advertisements. The clerk's fee is set by O.C.G.A. § 15-6-77, so call your county clerk for the current amount and the paper they use.

Not sure whether you need an LLC at all? Read LLC vs sole proprietor for contractors, then get your free EIN from the IRS.

Licensing for service trades

Contractor licensing runs through the Secretary of State's Licensing Division. The State Licensing Board for Residential and Commercial General Contractors says you must be licensed to perform or offer residential or commercial general contractor services for compensation, under four categories: Residential Basic, Residential Light Commercial, Commercial General Contractor, and Commercial General Contractor Limited Tier (capped at $1 million per project). Each requires general liability insurance, starting at $300,000 per occurrence for Residential Basic. Specialty contractors working only within their specialty do not need a residential or general contractor license under O.C.G.A. § 43-41-17, and the board publishes policy statements listing those specialties. Electrical, plumbing, conditioned air, low voltage and utility work have their own boards under Title 43, Chapter 14. Cities and counties may require their own business licenses and permits.

• Georgia State Licensing Board for Residential and Commercial General Contractors: Residential Basic, Residential Light Commercial and commercial general contractor licenses
• Georgia State Board of Electrical Contractors: Electrical contractors
• Georgia State Division of Master and Journeyman Plumbers: Master and journeyman plumbers
• Georgia State Board of Conditioned Air Contractors: Heating, air conditioning and ventilation contractors

Workers' compensation

The State Board of Workers' Compensation says that if you regularly employ three or more people in your Georgia business, you must provide workers' compensation benefits. Regular part-time workers count, including weekend-only staff and the seasonal hires you bring on every busy season. If the business is a corporation or LLC, its officers or members count toward the three, and an officer who waives coverage still counts. Sole proprietors and partners are treated as employers, not employees, though they can choose to be covered by notifying their insurer in writing. Most employers buy a policy from an insurance carrier; the Board's Licensure and Self-Insurance office handles self-insurance.

More on coverage: business insurance for contractors.

Sales tax on services

The Georgia Department of Revenue says sales and use tax generally covers tangible goods sold at retail, plus retail sales of taxable services performed within the Atlanta city limits. Contractors are a special case: the Department defines a contractor as anyone who contracts to furnish tangible property and perform services in constructing, altering, repairing or improving real property, and its Tax Guide for Contractors says all contractors must register for a sales and use tax account number (STN) through the Georgia Tax Center. Out-of-state contractors must also post a performance tax bond. The Department points contractors to Rule 560-12-2-.26 for the full rules.

Recording business calls in Georgia

O.C.G.A. § 16-11-66(a) lets a person record a phone or in-person conversation they are part of, or one where a party gave prior consent. Georgia callers can be recorded on that basis, but customers in all-party states may not be, so a short recording notice on every call is the simple fix; our call recording guide covers it.

See our guide to recording business calls before you turn on call recording or an AI receptionist.

How the seasons shape the work

Georgia's long, humid summers keep air conditioning, lawn and pest crews busy from April well into October, and warm-season turf in metro Atlanta and South Georgia stretches the mowing season. Spring pollen turns decks, siding and cars yellow and fills pressure washing calendars, while severe thunderstorms and the occasional tornado bring tree and roof work. The coast around Savannah and Brunswick watches hurricane season, and North Georgia's mountains see winter ice storms.

Your crew count includes you if you are an LLC member

The State Board of Workers' Compensation counts corporate officers and LLC members toward the three-employee threshold, and says an officer's waiver of coverage does not lower the count. A two-member LLC with one regular part-time helper has three, so price a policy before you hire that third person.

Then set up the back end that gets you hired

The paperwork makes you legal. Customers still have to find you, reach you and pay you. Before your first job, set up a business phone number, email on your own domain, a Google Business Profile, a simple website, and a way to send quotes and take card payments. The launch checklist lays out the order.

Georgia questions