Licensing Information

Licensing Information - Business License Application Form

For your convenience, the City of Seattle business license application form is now available in PDF format. The City of Seattle currently cannot accept electronic forms. The business license form must be filled out, signed, and sent via regular mail or brought to the address listed on the application. Please do not send cash. Make your check or money order payable to the "City of Seattle."

Effective for the 2005 license, a two-tier business license fee was implemented for small businesses. The City of Seattle 2005 business license fees are based on the entity's projected worldwide annual gross income and/or value of products.

The City of Seattle standard business license fee for 2005 is $90 and $10 for each additional branch location. New businesses opening after June 30, 2005 will be charged a half-year fee of $45. The reduced half year rate only applies when the start of business is July 1st or later of each year.

A small business that estimates $20,000 or less in worldwide annual gross income and/or value of products will pay $45 for the 2005 license fee. The half year fee is $22.50. If this threshold applies to your business, you will need to indicate by agreeing to the declaration on the back side of the application in order to pay the reduced fee for 2005. Should the “entity” exceed the $20,000 amount in 2005, the business will be required to pay the additional license fees retroactively.

If you were in business in 2004 or prior but did not obtain the license previously, you should include payment for past license fees. The 2003 and 2004 license fee was $80 and the half year fee was $40. For prior years, 1997 through 2002 the license fee was $75 and the half year fee was $37.50. The special small business license fee does not apply to any year prior to 2005. The Seattle business license expires at the end of the calendar year for which it is issued.

Please print the form on white paper to help us process your application in a timely manner:

Download in PDF

You can read and print the application form in a portable document format (PDF). In order to do this you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader which you can download free. Complete instructions are contained within the download file:

• Instructions for Completing the Business License Application Form
  
• Business License Application Form
  
• Online Seattle Business License Application

City of Seattle
Department of Finance and Administrative Services
700 Fifth Ave., Suite 4250
PO Box 34214
Seattle, WA 98124-4214
Telephone: (206) 684-8484
Fax: (206) 684-5170
Contact us at: rca@seattle.gov

The material in this site is intended for general informational purposes only. While it is current at the time of publication, changes to the Seattle Municipal Code (SMC) or state law may invalidate some of this information. In the event of a conflict between this guide and the SMC, the SMC prevails.