HOW TO LEGALLY START YOUR BUSINESS
The U.S. Small Business Administration has put together a Business Guide with 10 steps to start your business that can be found here.
The 10 steps are:
- Conduct market research
- Write your business plan
- Fund your business
- Pick your business location (most likely your home office)
- Choose a business structure (Corporation? Sole proprietor? LLC?)
- Choose your business name
- Register your business
- Get federal and state tax IDs
- Apply for licenses and permits
- Open a business bank account
When I registered my business in the state of Massachusetts, I applied for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) online with the IRS here
Applying for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) is a free service offered by the Internal Revenue Service. I also had to go to my town hall city clerk’s office and get a business certificate. It only cost $25 to obtain a business certificate in my town.
