Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: operating a business in Arizona

You haven't mentioned the form of the business. Whether it is a corporation, professional corporation, sole proprietorship or maybe something else may be somewhat significant in determining licensing and registration requirements.

Having had some experience trying to assist a Texas-based nurses' registry set up as a Texas LLC get a foothold in California, I'm somewhat familiar with the issues--but of course not Arizona law. Here are some of the legal issues you need to check out:

1. Would either state consider your business to be practicing the profession of nursing? If so, it must be licensed as a professional nursing corporation or whatever kind of entity the state allows to run a nursing practice.

2. Would either state consider your activity to be that of an employment agency of any kind? Generally, there are some special requirements to be in an employment agency or temporary agency or the like.

3. If the business is a kind that needs to pay a franchise tax, usually a corporation of any kind and an LLC, but not a proprietorship or general partnership, you must (in addition to paying the tax in the state where the business was chartered) qualify to do business as a "foreign" corporation (or whatever) in any other state where you transact a significant amount of business. So, if you are a California corporation, you'd have to file qualifying papers with the Arizona authorities, probably the Secretary of State.

4. You would need a local business license in the city or county where your offices in each state are set up, generally wherever you receive mail and/or have a phone. This probably means both states.

5. State laws may differ on what constitutes the practice of nursing. In California, a nurse registry is probably not practicing nursing unless its owners or regular employees are RNs and themselves do things for which a nursing license is required. Arizona may have tighter rules; I'd check with the state board that registers nurses and give them a full description of your business model to see what you can and cannot do.