Minneapolis Business License Guide: Categories, 2026 Fees, Home Occupation and City Taxes

Minneapolis does not issue a general business license. If you search for one, you will not find it, because the city licenses by category. Each activity you perform may need its own license, and some activities need none at all. This guide shows you how to sort out which licenses apply, what the 2026 fees look like, how home-based businesses are treated, and which city taxes can sit on top of state sales tax. Minnesota has 87 counties and about 853 cities, so local rules vary from one city to the next.

This article is informational, not legal or tax advice. Fees, thresholds and rules change, and some 2026 fee relief was time-limited. Confirm current figures with the city and the named state agencies, and talk with a qualified attorney or CPA before you sign a lease, buy equipment or set a launch date.

What you need before you start

Gather these items first. Having them ready keeps the application moving.

• A written list of every activity the business will perform, such as selling prepared food, serving beer or liquor, cutting hair or doing electrical work. Categories follow the activity, not the business name.
• The address where you will operate, and whether you will work from a home.
• The square footage of the space, if you will serve food or run a restaurant or hotel. Restaurant fees are set by floor area.
• Your entity details. If you have formed an LLC or corporation, have your exact legal name and Secretary of State filing information ready.
• Your Minnesota tax registration details, if you will make taxable sales.
• The current year's License Fee Schedule from the city.

Step 1: Find your categories in the License Fee Schedule

The city's 2026 License Fee Schedule lists more than 600 license types grouped into categories. Search it by activity rather than by business name, and write down every category that matches. A restaurant that also serves beer and wine may need a food-related license plus a separate alcohol license, and a sidewalk cafe adds its own line item. Keep a dated copy of the schedule in your file. The city proposes no fee increase for 2027, but confirm that before you apply.

Step 2: Decide whether to form an entity

A sole proprietor can operate without a state filing. Many owners form an LLC to separate personal and business liability, which is a question to settle with an attorney. An entity filing is not a city license.

Forming an LLC means filing Articles of Organization with the Minnesota Secretary of State at mblsportal.sos.mn.gov. The fee is $155 online or in person, which includes expedited service, or $135 by mail, which is not expedited. Corporations file Articles of Incorporation for the same $155. Neither entity type requires a newspaper publication.

An LLC name must include the words limited liability company or the abbreviation LLC. It may not include corporation or incorporated, or their abbreviations, and it must be distinguishable from every entity already on file in Minnesota. If you need time to decide, a name reservation costs $55 and lasts 12 months.

Minnesota requires a registered office, which must be a Minnesota street address. A PO box by itself is not accepted. Naming a registered agent is optional for a domestic entity. The registered office does not have to match your principal place of business.

Entities also have an annual renewal due December 31 each year. The renewal fee is $0 if the entity is active and in good standing. Miss it and an LLC is terminated, with reinstatement at $65 by mail or $85 online or in person. A corporation that misses it is dissolved, with reinstatement at $65 by mail or $85 online or in person on the current Secretary of State fee schedule.

Step 3: Register with the Department of Revenue

Before you make taxable sales, register with the Minnesota Department of Revenue for a Minnesota Tax ID and a Sales and Use Tax account. This registration is not a license, but you need it to collect and remit sales tax. Start at revenue.state.mn.us or use the new business registration page at mndor.state.mn.us.

The state sales tax rate is 6.875 percent. The combined general sales tax in Minneapolis is 9.025 percent from October 1, 2026, which means local tax sits on top of the state rate. Confirm the rate on the Revenue site before you set prices or configure a point-of-sale system.

Step 4: Check zoning and the home occupation rule

Zoning controls where a business can operate, and it is separate from licensing. In Minneapolis, a home occupation is a zoning matter only. There is no home occupation permit. You do not apply for a permit to work from home, but your activity must still fit the zoning rules for your address. Ask about zoning before you sign a lease or start operating from a residence, because a home business that does not meet zoning may have to change how it runs.

Home-based status can also change a license fee. The massage establishment license is $163, or $63 for a home-based or single-operator business. Check each category for a home-based rate instead of assuming you qualify.

Step 5: Get state licenses for regulated trades

Minneapolis does not license individual barbers, cosmetologists, body artists, electricians, or residential roofers and remodelers. Those are state licenses. Search for them on License Minnesota at mn.gov/elicense, which lets you browse by topic, by agency or through an A to Z index. Licensing agencies include the Department of Labor and Industry, the Minnesota Department of Health, the Department of Agriculture, the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division, the Office of Cannabis Management, DCYF, MnDOT, DVS and several professional boards. Confirm which agency issues your license before you pay anything.

A personal state license does not cover a business location. The city still licenses some establishments, such as a massage establishment or a tattoo establishment, so you may need a state license for yourself where one applies, and a city license for the shop. Massage therapy, for example, has no state license.

Step 6: Apply for city licenses

Apply through Business Licenses and Consumer Services at 505 Fourth Ave S, Room 220, Minneapolis, or call 612-673-2080 before you visit. Bring your activity list, your address and your square footage. Some categories include an inspection. A mobile food vehicle, for example, carries a $74 inspection on top of its license fee. The city's processing time is not stated here, so ask when you call.

The table below shows 2026 examples from the license fee schedule. Confirm each figure on the current schedule before you budget.

License category	2026 fee
Restaurant, by square footage	$431 (1,000 square feet or less) to $1,706 (15,001 square feet or more)
Food truck (Mobile Food Vehicle Vendor)	$719, plus $74 inspection
Sidewalk cafe	$389 (30 seats or fewer), or $567 for the larger tier
Hotel	$336 to $1,276
Massage establishment	$163, or $63 home-based or single operator
Tattoo establishment	$231
Tobacco dealer	$347
Pawnbroker	$3,775, plus $1,500 investigation
Peddler	$210
Beer on-sale	$1,318 to $5,061
Liquor on-sale	$7,124 to $11,807, depending on live entertainment
Liquor off-sale	$1,500
Innovative and Emerging Small Business Pilot Permit	$210

Alcohol licenses are among the largest fees in the schedule. Ask the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division whether a state license also applies to your alcohol sales.

Step 7: Plan for city taxes

Minneapolis adds taxes beyond state and general sales tax. A 3 percent citywide entertainment tax applies to covered entertainment. Downtown locations may also face a 3 percent downtown liquor tax and a 3 percent downtown restaurant tax. Minnesota Department of Revenue Fact Sheet 164M explains these rules, and the Department of Revenue can confirm which apply to your location and activity. Build these rates into your pricing from the start, not after your first quarter of sales.

Step 8: File an assumed name if you need one, then set your calendar

If you operate under a name other than your legal name, file a Certificate of Assumed Name with the Secretary of State, Business Services. The fee is $50 online or in person, or $30 by mail. After filing, publish the certificate for two consecutive issues in a qualified legal newspaper in the county of your principal place of business, which for most Minneapolis addresses is Hennepin County. Failure to publish may render the certificate invalid. The certificate must be renewed each year at no charge.

Then put these dates on a shared calendar: December 31 for your entity's annual renewal, the yearly assumed name renewal, and each city license renewal date, which varies by license and appears on the license you receive.

Tips that save time

• Search the fee schedule by activity, not by business name.
• Ask zoning staff before you sign a lease, and get the answer in writing.
• Keep one spreadsheet of fees, renewal dates and agency contacts.
• Ask the city whether any 2026 fee relief still applies to your category, since that relief was time-limited.
• File online or in person if you want the expedited service that the $155 LLC fee includes.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Searching for a general business license, finding none and stopping there.
• Assuming a home-based business needs no paperwork. Zoning still applies.
• Assuming a state trade license also covers a city-licensed location.
• Using a PO box as the registered office.
• Skipping the newspaper publication for an assumed name, which can leave the certificate invalid.
• Missing the December 31 renewal. A lapsed LLC is terminated, and reinstatement costs $65 by mail or $85 online or in person.
• Budgeting with the 6.875 percent state rate alone instead of the 9.025 percent combined rate that starts October 1, 2026.

What to expect when you finish

When you complete these steps, you should have a clear list of every license, fee and renewal date that applies to your business, a filed entity if you chose one, a Revenue registration for sales tax, and a city application on file. Results depend on your activity, your location and agency timelines, which can change. Treat this guide as a checklist to verify, not a guarantee of approval or a fixed schedule.

If your business involves alcohol, a commercial lease, multiple locations or employees, ask a qualified attorney or CPA to review your plan before you open.