Hawaii LLC Business Licenses — Step 7 of 8
Hawaii has no general state business license — but almost every business needs a General Excise Tax (GET) license, which functions as the closest thing Hawaii has to one. It's broader than a typical sales tax permit, and it's easy to get wrong.
Hawaii has no general state business license. Instead, nearly every business needs a General Excise Tax (GET) license — a one-time $20 registration (Form BB-1) with the Department of Taxation. Unlike a typical sales tax, the GET applies to gross receipts from almost all business activity, including many services, not just goods sold. The base rate is 4% statewide, rising to 4.5% in counties with the standard 0.5% surcharge (Honolulu, Kauai, and Hawaii County).
- General state license
- None required
- GET license
- $20 one-time
- GET base rate
- 4%
- With county surcharge
- 4.5%
- Applies to services?
- Yes
- Filed with
- DOTAX / Form BB-1
- Next step
- Step 8 →
Hawaii's Licensing Landscape
Hawaii's system is fundamentally different from mainland states because of the GET — here's the shape of it:
- No general state business license — Hawaii doesn't require every LLC to hold a separate statewide operating license.
- The GET license functions as the de facto general license — the DCCA's Business Action Center itself describes it as "a general business license."
- GET is not the same as a sales tax — it's a tax on the business itself for the privilege of doing business in Hawaii, applied to gross receipts, and it covers most services in addition to goods.
- You'll also need an EIN before applying, since your GET application asks for your federal tax ID.
- Some professions need separate state or county licensing — contracting, cosmetology, real estate, food service, and similar regulated fields need licensing beyond GET.
GET Rate Finder
Select where your business is located to see your combined GET rate:
Getting Your GET License
- Register through Hawaii Tax Online (hitax.hawaii.gov) — or complete and mail Form BB-1, the State of Hawaii Basic Business Application.
- Pay the one-time $20 fee — this is a single registration cost, not an annual renewal.
- Get your Hawaii Tax ID — online applications typically issue this within 5–7 business days.
- File and remit GET periodically — monthly, quarterly, or semiannually, depending on your business's revenue volume, plus an annual GET reconciliation return.
- GET applies even at a loss — because it's based on gross receipts, not net profit, you can owe GET in a year your business didn't turn a profit.
The GET applies to nearly everything, including servicesComing from a mainland state, it's easy to assume the GET only applies if you sell physical goods. In reality, it applies to almost all gross business income — consulting fees, freelance work, rent you collect, commissions, and most other services. Factor GET into your pricing from day one; most Hawaii businesses build it into the price they charge customers, similar to how sales tax works elsewhere.
- ✓Forms your Hawaii LLC for $39 + the $51 state fee
- ✓Tracks your quarterly Annual Report deadline for you
- ✓Free Hawaii registered agent the first year
- ✓No upsells · No data selling · Privacy by Default
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Hawaii Business Licenses — FAQ
Ahmad Adil is the founder and CEO of LLC School. The guidance here — the absence of a general state license, the GET license and rate structure, and the gross-receipts basis of the tax — reflects current Hawaii Department of Taxation guidance. This is educational information, not legal or tax advice.
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