Pest Control Business Permit Requirements in Honolulu, HI

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you have employees or operate as an LLC or corporation. Free from the IRS.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online application)

   Free

   Immediate (online application)

1. Hawaii Department of Taxation — General Excise Tax (GET) License

   Hawaii has no sales tax. Instead the state levies a General Excise Tax on the gross income of the business itself, and unlike a sales tax it reaches services, commissions and rent as well as goods. Every business must register for a GET licence with the Department of Taxation on Form BB-1 before doing business. The rate is 4% statewide, rising to 4.5% on Oahu because of the 0.5% county surcharge, and it is owed on gross income whether or not it is passed on to the customer.

   Official government source

   $20 one-time registration fee (Form BB-1)·Hawaii Tax ID issued immediately in person, in about 5–7 days online via Hawaii Tax Online, or 4–6 weeks by mail

   $20 one-time registration fee (Form BB-1)

   Hawaii Tax ID issued immediately in person, in about 5–7 days online via Hawaii Tax Online, or 4–6 weeks by mail

2. Hawaii Pest Control Board — Pest Control Operator (PCO) License

   The pest control company itself is licensed, but by the DCCA Pest Control Board rather than the Department of Agriculture. A corporation, partnership or LLC files its own application and must designate a principal responsible managing employee who separately holds a Pest Control Operator licence in each branch the firm works in — fumigation, general pest control or termite. Applicants submit a credit report, carry public liability cover of at least $100,000 per claim and $300,000 aggregate, and pass a PSI examination. Field staff who are not the RME hold a Pest Control Field Representative licence.

   Official government source

   $30 non-refundable application fee; license and PSI examination fees are billed after the Board approves the application, and active renewal is $278 for a Pest Control Operator ($212 for a field representative)·Applications must meet the Board's filing deadlines and are acted on at a Board meeting; PSI mails exam results about three weeks after the exam, and licenses expire June 30 of each even-numbered year

   $30 non-refundable application fee; license and PSI examination fees are billed after the Board approves the application, and active renewal is $278 for a Pest Control Operator ($212 for a field representative)

   Applications must meet the Board's filing deadlines and are acted on at a Board meeting; PSI mails exam results about three weeks after the exam, and licenses expire June 30 of each even-numbered year

1. Hawaii Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity — Commercial Pesticide Applicator Certification

   Commercial applicators are certified by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity — the department was renamed and its site moved from hdoa.hawaii.gov to dab.hawaii.gov. Certification through the Pesticides Branch means passing the Core examination plus the examination for each category worked; structural and health-related pest control is its own category. This certification is separate from, and additional to, the DCCA Pest Control Board licence that the pest control firm and its responsible managing employee must hold.

   Official government source

   $50 per examination — the Core exam fee is waived when taken with a category exam, and each additional category is another $50 — plus $100 for the new certification card·Certification runs five years and is renewed either by re-examination or by accumulating the approved continuing education units for each category

   $50 per examination — the Core exam fee is waived when taken with a category exam, and each additional category is another $50 — plus $100 for the new certification card

   Certification runs five years and is renewed either by re-examination or by accumulating the approved continuing education units for each category

2. Hawaii General Excise Tax (GET) License

   The City and County of Honolulu Department of Budget and Fiscal Services issues no business licence — its divisions are accounting, real property assessment, treasury, purchasing and the liquor commission, and Honolulu has no general business licence at all, so there is nothing to renew annually or display. What a business does need is the statewide General Excise Tax licence from the Department of Taxation on Form BB-1, plus any activity-specific approvals such as building or zoning permits from the Department of Planning and Permitting.

   Official government source

   $20 one-time registration fee (Form BB-1) — there is no city business license fee·Hawaii Tax ID issued immediately in person, in about 5–7 days online via Hawaii Tax Online, or 4–6 weeks by mail

   $20 one-time registration fee (Form BB-1) — there is no city business license fee

   Hawaii Tax ID issued immediately in person, in about 5–7 days online via Hawaii Tax Online, or 4–6 weeks by mail

Official Sources

• Hawaii Department of Agriculture — Pesticide Applicator License
• City and County of Honolulu Department of Budget and Fiscal Services

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