Georgia Business Licenses: How the Local Occupation Tax Works

It's a tax, and it's local

Georgia law defines an occupation tax as "a tax levied on persons, partnerships, corporations, or other entities for engaging in an occupation, profession, or business and enacted by a local government as a revenue-raising ordinance or resolution" (O.C.G.A. § 48-13-5). Counties may levy it on businesses with a location or office in the unincorporated county, and cities on businesses with a location or office inside city limits (§ 48-13-6). Levying it is optional, so requirements and rates vary.

Separately, a local government may charge a regulatory fee only where it actually regulates or inspects the business, and "the amount of a regulatory fee shall approximate the reasonable cost of the actual regulatory activity" (§ 48-13-9). Building contractors, food service, and hotels are examples of businesses that can face regulatory fees.

How the amount is calculated

Each local government picks its method from a statutory list and applies it uniformly (§ 48-13-10). Options include the number of employees, the profitability ratio for your type of business based on nationwide averages, gross receipts combined with that ratio, or a flat fee. If your city or county uses gross receipts, the information you provide is confidential and exempt from open-records requests (§ 48-13-15).

A 2026 change: HB 141, effective July 1, 2026, lets a business give the local government an affidavit from a certified public accountant instead of tax returns to support the gross receipts figure.

Contractors: you pay where your office is

The tax attaches to a business's "location or office," which the statute says does not include "a temporary or construction work site which serves a single customer or project" (§ 48-13-5). A roofer based in Jefferson who does a job in Athens generally owes occupation tax where the office is, not to Athens because of that one job site. A home office is still a location, so a home-based contractor typically owes tax where the home is: to the city if it's inside city limits, otherwise to the county.

That doesn't mean you owe nothing where you work. Building permits, inspections, and regulatory fees can still apply in the jurisdiction where the project is.

Out-of-state businesses

A business with no office in Georgia can still owe occupation tax if it has employees or agents working substantially in Georgia or owns income-producing property here. It pays "only one local government in this state," the one where it does the largest dollar volume of business (§ 48-13-7), and can be exempt if it pays a similar tax in its home state.

What you'll need when you apply

• An E-Verify affidavit. Every applicant files one: employers with more than ten employees attest that they use E-Verify and give their user number, and smaller employers file the exempt version (O.C.G.A. § 36-60-6). See E-Verify requirements.
• Proof of state licensure if your trade or profession is licensed under Title 43. "No business license, occupational tax certificate, or other document required to operate a business shall be issued to any person subject to licensure under Title 43 without evidence of such licensure being presented" (§ 36-60-6(c)). That includes state-licensed contractors. Giving false proof is a misdemeanor.
• Your entity's exact legal name and registration with the Georgia Secretary of State.
• Whatever the local office asks for to calculate the tax: employee count or gross receipts, depending on its method.
• Zoning approval, which some cities require for home-based businesses.

State licenses are a separate requirement

The occupation tax certificate doesn't authorize you to perform licensed work. Residential and general contractors, plumbers, electricians, HVAC contractors, and many other trades need a state license from the appropriate board. Note that Georgia repealed and reenacted the electrical, plumbing, conditioned-air, low-voltage, and utility contractor licensing chapter effective July 1, 2026 (SB 553), so older references to specific section numbers may be outdated. See Georgia contractor license requirements and licensing and compliance.

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