Bookkeeping Permit Requirements in Lexington, KY

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you have employees or operate as an LLC or corporation. Free from the IRS, obtained instantly online. Sole proprietors without employees may use their SSN, but an EIN is recommended for privacy and professional credibility.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online application)

   Free

   Immediate (online application)

2. IRS Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN)

   Required for any paid preparer who prepares or assists in preparing federal tax returns for clients. If your bookkeeping practice includes any federal tax return preparation, you must obtain and renew your PTIN annually. Bookkeeping-only services (no tax return preparation) do not require a PTIN.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online at IRS.gov)

   Free

   Immediate (online at IRS.gov)

1. Kentucky Business Registration

   Bookkeeping and accounting service businesses in Kentucky organized as an LLC, corporation, or limited partnership must file organizing documents with the Kentucky Secretary of State and file an annual report each year. Any business — including a sole proprietorship — that operates under a trade name other than its real name must also file a certificate of assumed name under KRS 365.015. A sole proprietor files that certificate with the county clerk of the county where the principal place of business is located; an LLC, corporation, or limited partnership files it with the Secretary of State and then records a file-stamped copy with the county clerk. An LLC is commonly chosen for liability protection.

   Official government source

   $40 to file LLC articles of organization or for-profit articles of incorporation (corporations also owe organization tax, $10 minimum); $15 annual report; certificate of assumed name $20 at the Secretary of State, or the county clerk's KRS 64.012 recording fee ($33 for five pages or fewer; the Jefferson County Clerk publishes $46) for a sole proprietor·Secretary of State filings are effective on the date filed; the assumed-name certificate runs five years and is renewable

   $40 to file LLC articles of organization or for-profit articles of incorporation (corporations also owe organization tax, $10 minimum); $15 annual report; certificate of assumed name $20 at the Secretary of State, or the county clerk's KRS 64.012 recording fee ($33 for five pages or fewer; the Jefferson County Clerk publishes $46) for a sole proprietor

   Secretary of State filings are effective on the date filed; the assumed-name certificate runs five years and is renewable

2. Kentucky Sales and Use Tax Permit — Bookkeeping Services Are Not on the Taxable List

   Kentucky taxes services only where they appear in the enumerated list in KRS 139.200(2). Accounting and bookkeeping services are not on that list, so a bookkeeper's fees for recordkeeping, payroll processing, reconciliation, financial statement preparation and tax return preparation are not subject to the 6% sales tax. The list is what matters, not a general professional-service theory, and several adjacent lines do reach work a small bookkeeping firm often sells: KRS 139.200(2)(v) website design and development services, (w) website hosting services, (ax) prewritten computer software access services, (ay) data brokering services (added effective August 1, 2026), and marketing services. KRS 139.200(1)(a) also taxes retail sales of tangible personal property, so if the firm sells software on physical media, printed binders, forms or manuals, those sales are taxable and require a permit even though the bookkeeping fee is not. KRS 139.200(1)(b) taxes digital property regardless of whether the purchaser's right of use is permanent. A bookkeeper who sells nothing on that list needs no sales and use tax account. One who does must apply under KRS 139.240(1) for a permit for each place of business, and KRS 139.250 requires the permit to be conspicuously displayed there, makes it nonassignable, and makes it valid only for the person named. Kentucky's rate is a flat 6% of gross receipts and there are no local sales and use taxes.

   Official government source

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes any charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop. There is no $25 or other registration charge·Not published by the Department of Revenue. If the firm sells anything on the KRS 139.200 list, KRS 139.240(1) requires the permit application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer; electronic registration needs no written signature under KRS 139.240(4)

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes any charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop. There is no $25 or other registration charge

   Not published by the Department of Revenue. If the firm sells anything on the KRS 139.200 list, KRS 139.240(1) requires the permit application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer; electronic registration needs no written signature under KRS 139.240(4)

1. Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government — Occupational License

   Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government requires every person and business entity engaged in any business in Fayette County to obtain an initial occupational license before starting business and to pay an annual minimum license fee every year after. The license is administered by the LFUCG Division of Revenue, 218 E. Main St., (859) 280-8300 — not a "City Clerk's Office." The initial license fee is $100, due at registration, and the annual minimum license fee is $100, due on the same date as the net profit license fee return (Form 228). The LFUCG Charter sets the occupational license fee at 2.25% of individual compensation and net profits; the annual minimum fee is credited against the occupational license fee owed for that year and never generates a refund. Individuals and sole proprietorships reporting gross receipts of $4,400 or less for a tax year do not owe the minimum license fee for that year or the next. For a bookkeeping or accounting service this is a straightforward registration; no specialized local certification applies.

   Official government source

   $100 initial license fee and $100 annual minimum license fee, plus the 2.25% occupational license fee on compensation and net profits. Sole proprietors with gross receipts of $4,400 or less are exempt from the minimum fee·Not published by the Division of Revenue; the initial license must be obtained before the business starts, and the annual minimum fee is due with the Form 228 net profit return

   $100 initial license fee and $100 annual minimum license fee, plus the 2.25% occupational license fee on compensation and net profits. Sole proprietors with gross receipts of $4,400 or less are exempt from the minimum fee

   Not published by the Division of Revenue; the initial license must be obtained before the business starts, and the annual minimum fee is due with the Form 228 net profit return

2. Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government — Home Office Certificate

   A bookkeeping business run from a Fayette County residence obtains a Home Office Certificate rather than a commercial Certificate of Occupancy. It is applied for and paid online at lexingtonky.gov/permits through the LFUCG Division of Building Inspection, 101 E. Vine St., (859) 258-3770 — not Planning and Preservation. The step is not required if the home or office is outside Fayette County. The home-based business separately owes the LFUCG occupational license, and specific limits on client traffic, signage and storage come from the LFUCG Zoning Ordinance for the property's zone, which the Division of Planning can confirm for a given address.

   Official government source

   $10 for the Home Office Certificate, plus the LFUCG occupational license ($100 initial fee and $100 annual minimum, with the 2.25% occupational license fee)·Not published by the Division of Building Inspection; the certificate is applied for and paid online

   $10 for the Home Office Certificate, plus the LFUCG occupational license ($100 initial fee and $100 annual minimum, with the 2.25% occupational license fee)

   Not published by the Division of Building Inspection; the certificate is applied for and paid online

Official Sources

• Lexington Business Licensing
• IRS PTIN Requirements for Tax Return Preparers
• IRS EIN Application

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