Starting a service business in Maine

Form your business in Maine

File a Certificate of Formation (Form MLLC-6) under 31 MRSA 1531 with the Secretary of State's Division of Corporations. The Secretary of State's LLC fee table lists it at $175 in October 2026. The division's LLC forms page lists corporate filing processing at 40 to 55 business days, and it publishes separate rules for expedited service, so plan ahead or ask about expediting if you need the LLC in place before a contract starts.

Ongoing state filings

Maine LLCs file an annual report every year, due June 1. A domestic LLC pays $85, per that same fee table in October 2026. LLCs can file online through the Secretary of State's annual report service. If you mail a paper report close to the deadline, the Secretary of State suggests getting a manual postmark or using certified mail so you can prove it was mailed by June 1.

Using a business name (DBA)

A sole proprietor using a business name other than their own must, before starting business, file a sworn certificate with the clerk of the city or town where the business is carried on, under 31 MRSA 2. An LLC that wants to do business under another name files a Statement of Intention to do Business under an Assumed Name (Form ASUM-5) with the Secretary of State, $125 as listed in October 2026.

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

Maine's Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (OPOR) licenses electricians through the Electricians' Examining Board, plumbers through the Plumbers' Examining Board, and oil, solid fuel, propane and natural gas technicians through the Maine Fuel Board. OPOR also registers door-to-door home repair sellers, which matters if you sell washing, sealing or repair work by knocking on doors. The Board of Pesticides Control requires a commercial applicator license for anyone using any pesticide as a service for pay, including lawn care, tree and shrub care, and home pest control. For general carpentry, remodeling and handyman work, check with the code enforcement office in each town where you work.

• Maine Electricians' Examining Board (OPOR): Electrician licenses
• Maine Plumbers' Examining Board (OPOR): Plumber licenses
• Maine Fuel Board (OPOR): Oil and solid fuel, propane and natural gas technician licenses
• Maine OPOR: Door-to-door home repair sellers: Registration of home repair sellers who solicit door to door
• Maine Board of Pesticides Control: Commercial pesticide applicator licenses

Workers' compensation

Under 39-A MRSA 401, every private employer in Maine, including an independent contractor who hires and pays employees, is subject to the Workers' Compensation Act and must secure payment of compensation for all employees, either by buying a workers' comp policy or by self-insuring. The Workers' Compensation Board administers the system. Buy the policy before your first employee starts, and if you hire subcontractors, ask for their coverage certificates.

More on coverage: business insurance for contractors.

Sales tax on services

Maine Revenue Services administers a sales and use tax on goods and a separate service provider tax on a specific list of services, which on its current page includes rental of video media and equipment, certain rent-to-own furniture and equipment, telecommunications services, installation, maintenance or repair of telecommunications equipment, extended cable and satellite TV, and fabrication services. Common home services such as mowing, cleaning and washing are not on that list. If you sell goods or a listed service, register with Maine Revenue Services before you collect tax, and ask the agency how materials you buy for jobs should be taxed.

Recording business calls in Maine

Maine is one-party consent. Under 15 MRSA 709, intercepting a call means recording it by anyone other than the sender or receiver or a person given prior authority by one of them, which leaves a Maine business free to record its own calls. Callers from all-party states are covered in our guide to recording business calls.

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

How the seasons shape the work

Maine's mowing season is short and its winter is long. Plowing, roof raking and snow removal carry many crews from December through March, and spring mud season can stall heavy equipment on soft roads. Summer brings a burst of demand along the coast, where seasonal homes need opening, cleaning, washing and yard work all at once, and salt air wears on siding and decks. Heating systems drive steady fall work for licensed fuel technicians.

Written contracts over $3,000

Under 10 MRSA 1487, any home construction contract for more than $3,000 in materials or labor must be in writing and signed by both the contractor and the homeowner or lessee, and each must get a copy. Use a written contract for decks, roofs, additions and other construction jobs above that line.

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.

Maine questions