Legal Question in Technology Law in California

Re: home based business - License needed

You need to do at least the following:

obtain a business license (actually, a tax-permit) in your CITY.

Register a fictitious business name (if you're not operating under your own given name, or the name of a corporation or LLC) This is accomplished at the county level, and usually involves publishing the information in a newspaper, etc. Many newspapers offer a service for under $100 that does it all for you.

Finally, as a DBA, you'll need a separate tax ID number, obtained through the IRS.

Re: home based business - License needed

You'll need a business license from your city (or county if in the unincorporated area). If you are doing business under a so-called fictitious name, you need to file and publish a notice (contact the county clerk for forms). A fictitious business name is a name which is not the name of a natural person, corporation or LLC. A natural person doesn't need to use their whole name, I think; for example, John Smith can do business as "Smith Plumbing" without the need to register that as fictitious, but if it is "John's Plumbing," he needs to register. As to other licenses possibly needed, it depends upon the particular business, trade or occupation. Obviously, John Smith, the plumber, will need a state contractor's license.