Hawaii County (Big Island) Business License: 0.5% GET Surcharge, $250 or $500 Vacation Rental Registration and $600 Restaurant Liquor License

If you plan to run a business on the Big Island, you will hear about a Hawaii County business license constantly. The short version is this: Hawaii County does not issue a general business license. What you will actually deal with is a one-time $20 state General Excise Tax (GET) license, a few state and county filings, and then whatever license your specific activity requires. This guide walks through each piece in the order most owners encounter it, with the fees and deadlines we have confirmed and clear flags on anything you need to check yourself.

Hawaii County covers the entire Big Island and had 210,043 residents in the 2025 Census estimate. Hilo and Kailua-Kona are towns inside the county, not cities. Hawaii has no incorporated cities at all, so there is no separate city business tax or city license to look for.

What a Hawaii County Business License Actually Covers

Hawaii has no general statewide business license, and Hawaii County has no county general business license. Registering a company or a trade name is a filing with the state, not a license. Licensing in Hawaii works in three layers:

• State registration: The one universal requirement is the GET license from the Hawaii Department of Taxation.
• Agency and trade licensing: Professional and vocational licenses through the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA), food permits from the state Department of Health, and certain regulated services through the Public Utilities Commission.
• County licensing: Liquor licenses through the county liquor commission, vacation rental registration, pawnbroker licenses through the county Vehicle Registration and Licensing Division, and zoning questions through the county Planning Department.

Materials and Information You Need Before You Start

• Your legal business name, entity type, and the name you plan to use with customers. If you operate under any other name, you will need a trade name registration.
• A physical Hawaii street address for the business. For an LLC or corporation, you also need a registered agent with a Hawaii street address and a physical presence in the state. An LLC cannot act as its own registered agent.
• Your federal Employer Identification Number (EIN), if the business has one or needs one for tax filings.
• The tax map key (TMK) number for any property you plan to operate from or rent out. Zoning and vacation rental paperwork usually asks for it.
• A payment method accepted by each agency. Confirm which methods each portal takes before you start a filing.
• A calendar for recurring deadlines, which are covered in Step 9.

Step-by-Step: Getting Licensed on the Big Island

Step 1: Form the Entity and Check the Name

If you are forming an LLC, start with the free BREG business name search at https://hbe.dcca.hawaii.gov/search-and-buy. The name must contain Limited Liability Company, L.L.C., or LLC. Limited may be abbreviated as Ltd., and Company as Co. Next, file Articles of Organization (Form LLC-1) with a $50 filing fee through Hawaii Business Express at https://hbe.dcca.hawaii.gov/. A corporation files Articles of Incorporation (Form DC-1) with the same $50 filing fee. If you need time to decide, a name reservation costs $10 and holds the name for 120 days.

Expedited review normally costs an extra $25 per document. BREG says expedited processing is not available right now following the July 6, 2026 move to its new registration system, so plan for routine processing. BREG does not publish a standard turnaround time for routine filings.

Step 2: Register a Trade Name If You Use a Different Name

If customers will know your business by a name other than the legal name, file a Trade Name Registration (Form T-1) with BREG at https://cca.hawaii.gov/breg/registration/trade/. The fee is $50 plus a $1 State Archives preservation fee, with an optional $20 expedited review fee. The registration is valid for five years. The Department does not send renewal notices, so you must calendar the renewal yourself. Hawaii has no county-level DBA filing, so do not pay anyone to file one with the county.

Step 3: Get the General Excise Tax License

This is the one license almost every business needs. The GET license is a one-time $20 fee, applied for on Form BB-1 or through Hawaii Tax Online. It stays active until you close, surrender, or lose it through revocation. Processing is immediate if you apply in person, 5 to 7 business days through Hawaii Tax Online, and 4 to 6 weeks by mail.

Hawaii has no sales tax. Instead, the GET is levied on your gross income or gross receipts as a business tax, not on your customer. The state rate is 4.0%, and the 0.5% county surcharge brings most retail, rental, and contracting activity to 4.5%. Wholesaling and producing carry a 0.5% rate, and insurance commissions carry 0.15%. The 0.5% county surcharge has applied since January 1, 2020. A 0.25% surcharge applied only in 2019. If you visibly pass the tax on to customers, the maximum pass-on rate is 4.7120%. Every license holder must file periodic and annual returns, even in a period with no income. Confirm your rate category with the Department of Taxation at https://tax.hawaii.gov/get/.

Step 4: Check Whether Your Activity Needs an Agency or Trade License

This step decides most of your real licensing costs. Hawaii licenses by activity, not by location. Check these agencies for your specific trade:

• DCCA Professional and Vocational Licensing boards cover many licensed trades and professions, such as contractors and real estate.
• Hawaii Department of Health issues food permits. Hawaii County has no county health department, so do not look for a county food permit.
• Public Utilities Commission regulates certain transportation and utility services.

If you are not sure which license applies, call the agency before you sign a lease or buy equipment.

Step 5: Register a Vacation Rental If You Rent Short Term

Hawaii County has not banned vacation rentals, but Ordinance 25-50 requires registration of rentals of 180 days or less. Hosted vacation rentals pay a $250 registration fee, and unhosted vacation rentals pay $500. Read the ordinance definitions and confirm which category your property falls into before you apply. Operating an unregistered rental can carry fines of up to $10,000.

The County Council extended the penalty-free registration window through December 31, 2026 under Bill 175 in September 2026. Do not assume that date will hold. Check hawaiicounty.gov for the current deadline and the registration portal before you act.

Two other items are moving targets. Bill 147 would rewrite the vacation rental zoning and operating rules. As of late October 2026 it was still before the County Council with an unfavorable committee recommendation, so check its status before you plan operations around it. The county transient accommodations tax (TAT) is 3% from January 1, 2022 under Ord. 21-89. Ask the Department of Taxation which state transient tax registration your rental needs, since that is separate from the county rate.

Step 6: Apply for a Liquor License If You Serve Alcohol

Liquor licenses are issued by the county liquor control office. The application costs $50 plus a $2.50 online fee. A Class 2 restaurant general license costs $600 a year. Licenses expire June 30 each year, so put the renewal on your calendar well before that date. Before you apply, confirm the current process with the county liquor control office on hawaiicounty.gov. A liquor license also depends on your food permit and zoning, so line up those approvals early.

Step 7: Apply for a Pawnbroker License If It Applies

Pawnbroker licenses are issued through the county Vehicle Registration and Licensing Division. Check the current fee directly with that division, because this guide does not list a confirmed amount.

Step 8: Confirm Zoning, Home Occupation, and Vending Rules

Before you open from a home office, sell from a cart or stand, or run any operation on agricultural or residential land, check with the Hawaii County Planning Department. Home occupation and vending rules depend on the zoning district and the exact activity, and the answer for a home-based bakery is different from the answer for a yoga studio. Get the answer in writing when you can.

Step 9: Set Up Your Recurring Obligations

Registration is only the start. Your annual report is due each year by the end of the calendar quarter that matches your registration quarter, and no report is required in the year you registered. The annual report fee is $12.50 for both LLCs and corporations.

Registered between	Annual report due
January 1 to March 31	March 31
April 1 to June 30	June 30
July 1 to September 30	September 30
October 1 to December 31	December 31

Also calendar your GET returns, your liquor renewal each June 30, your trade name renewal every five years, and your vacation rental registration renewal. If you have employees, you must follow the Prepaid Health Care Act, so confirm your obligations with a qualified professional before your first payroll.

Step 10: Check Optional Programs

Hawaii County has five enterprise zones. Businesses that build new construction in a zone may receive a three-year exemption from property tax increases on that construction. Confirm eligibility and the administering agency before you rely on the exemption in a budget. The Hawaii Small Business Development Center has offices in Kona and Hilo at https://hisbdc.org/, and it is a practical place to ask questions before you file.

Tips and Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Paying for a county business license that does not exist. Hawaii County issues specific licenses and registrations, not a general business license.
• Skipping the GET license because you have no sales tax. The GET is a business tax on your receipts, and it applies even when customers never see a line item.
• Forgetting the 0.5% surcharge. The state 4.0% rate plus the county 0.5% surcharge makes 4.5% on most retail and rental activity.
• Operating under a name you have not registered. File Form T-1 before you advertise under the trade name.
• Naming yourself as your LLC's registered agent. An LLC cannot be its own registered agent, and the agent must be physically present in Hawaii.
• Missing the vacation rental window. Check the current deadline before the penalty-free window closes, and do not rely on this article for the date.
• Relying on expedited service. BREG says expedited processing is not available right now.
• Forgetting zero-income returns. GET license holders must file even in a quiet quarter.
• Missing the June 30 liquor renewal. A lapsed license can stop your service until it is reinstated.

What to Expect After You File

Completing these steps in order may put your business on track to operate legally on the Big Island. Following them is designed to reduce surprises, but it does not guarantee approval, a specific processing time, or that a particular property qualifies for a particular use. Processing times differ by agency, and several items in this guide are still changing. Build a buffer into your opening date for any license tied to zoning or a county approval.

Final Notes

Start with the state filings that apply to every business, then work through the agency and county licenses that match your activity. Keep a dated list of your renewals, because most missed deadlines in Hawaii come from forgotten annual items rather than from the original application.

This article is informational content only. It is not legal or tax advice. Fees, deadlines, and ordinances change, and several items discussed here, including Bill 147 and the vacation rental penalty-free window, were pending when this article was written. Confirm every figure with the named agency before you file. For complex situations, such as a rental portfolio, a liquor license, a multi-owner entity, or employees, consult a qualified attorney or certified public accountant licensed in Hawaii.