Most common forms of business structure are sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company (LLC), small business corporation, or regular corporation. You should discuss the features of each type of legal entity with your legal advisor. An overview of this topic is available here.

If you decide on a limited liability company, small business corporation, or regular corporation, you will need to register your business’s name with the Georgia Secretary of State (SOS) office.

When you decide on a name, contact the Secretary of State’s office at (404) 656-2817 to see if any other entity is using this name. If not, then you can reserve the name by filing a “Name Reservation Request” form with the SOS. There is a $25 nonrefundable fee to reserve a name. You can obtain the reservation request form here.

After deciding on your business structure and name for your business, you will need to prepare or have someone prepare your business formation documents. Again, you need to consult with your legal advisor on the types of documents required. An overview of this topic is available here.

Once the business formation documents have been prepared, you need to file the appropriate registration form and business formation documents with the SOS.

• You can file your domestic corporation online here.
• A partnership or limited liability partnership may not be filed online.

Sole proprietorships are not required to register with the state, but all other businesses must register with the state.

Partnerships, LLPs, LLCs, and all types of corporations may need to register with the local government where their business is located. Contact the local government office, i.e. county office or city hall, etc., in the location where your business will be located to see if you need to register your business.

To pay Federal taxes on income and employees. 

Apply for a federal Tax Employer Identification Number (EIN) with the IRS at no cost to you. If your business is a sole proprietorship, you can use your SSN in lieu of an EIN and thus you don’t need to apply for an EIN.

• You may apply for an EIN online here. The IRS will assign you a number immediately while you are still online. Be sure you can access a printer while online so that you can print out a copy of your EIN. You can use this EIN as verification of your business when completing other business formation tasks.
• For other IRS matters, visit www.irs.gov.

To pay State taxes on income and employees, and also submit all sales tax that you’ve collected from goods and services. 

You will need to submit a “State Tax Registration” application (Form CRF-002) with the State of Georgia to register your business. This will also automatically register you for a Georgia sales tax number and withholding tax number, as well as other tax registration numbers that might be applicable for the type of business you will operate.

• List of Georgia tax forms
• Instructions on filing Form CRF-002
• For assistance, call Taxpayer Registration at 877-423-6711, visit the Georgia Department of Revenue’s website, or visit the GA Dept. of Rev. Atlanta Regional Office at 1800 Century Blvd. NE, Suite 12000, Atlanta, GA 30345 or call them at 404-417-6605.

Employers and certain agricultural recruiters are required to verify on Employment Eligibility Verification form (Form I-9) the employment authorization and identity of each individual they hire (or recruit for employment in the United States).

• More information about the I-9 Form
• Obtain the I-9 Form online

Form I-9 is the core of E-Verify. E-Verify is an Internet-based system that compares information from the Form I-9 to government records to confirm that an employee is authorized to work in the U.S.

• Visit the E-Verify website for more information.

You will need to provide the bank with identity information about yourself, i.e. driver’s license number and SSN, etc. as well as proof that your business has been registered with the city, county, or state. It is a good idea to keep your business finances separate from your personal finances; thus, the need for a business bank account.

For other information on starting a business, the Georgia SOS provides many helpful documents including:

• First Stop Business Information Center
• First Stop Business Guide

For more helpful brochures and information, visit the SBDC website.