Starting a business in Fort Collins, Colorado: a practical checklist

Updated

Requirements, fees and rules change, and some of what follows depends on what you sell and where you operate. Treat this as a checklist of where to look, and confirm each item with the linked office before you act. Fort Collins runs its own tax and licensing system, so the order below differs from what you might expect in a city that leaves everything to the state.

1. Start with the city's own sales tax license

In Fort Collins the city license comes first, because the city is where most of the local paperwork lives. The City of Fort Collins sales tax page says every person doing business in the city needs a sales tax license, and the sales tax FAQ says this includes service-only businesses, not just retailers. The same FAQ lists no fee for the city license and describes no separate general business license, so the sales and use tax license is the city's basic registration.

You apply through the city's online sales tax portal. The city asks you to allow up to 5 business days for approval.

2. Understand who collects which tax

Fort Collins collects its own sales tax. The city FAQ says to send the city portion directly to Fort Collins, and to send state and county taxes to the Colorado Department of Revenue. That means two sets of accounts, not one:

The city's sales tax page lists the current rates, and its rules and regulations page has the rules. Look there rather than relying on a number copied from somewhere else.

3. Form the entity (if you are using an LLC)

A Colorado LLC is formed with the Secretary of State. The business fee schedule lists the online Articles of Organization filing at $50 and the online Periodic Report at $25, with a $50 late penalty. The schedule is marked revised July 1, 2024 and subject to change without notice. Each LLC must file the Periodic Report every year.

Business address and mail

Decide early which address you will put on public filings. The Secretary of State's business search help says the public record shows a business's principal office address and the name and address of its registered agent, so assume whatever you enter there can be seen. If you run the business from home, that may mean your home address unless you use a different one.

The registered agent FAQ says the agent can be an individual or an entity in good standing with a usual place of business in Colorado. It must have a physical street address in Colorado where documents can be accepted in person, and a commercial or P.O. Box address cannot be that physical address. A separate mailing address may be a commercial or P.O. Box address, as long as it is in Colorado. Using an entity as agent is one way to keep your own address off that line, but ask the Secretary of State or a lawyer what fits your case.

For day to day mail, pick one place that you actually check, and use it consistently on your tax accounts, bank and licenses so notices do not go astray.

4. Working from home: the Home Occupation License

This is the item people most often miss. The city's zoning permits page says you need a Home Occupation License to run a business out of your home. Applications go by email to [email protected], and the city says to submit by 4 p.m. on Wednesday for review starting that Thursday. The sales tax FAQ lists a $25 fee for it, renewed every two years. Whether your address allows the use depends on its zoning district, which the city's zoning page explains. The city's zoning line is 970-416-2745.

If you will have a storefront, office or other commercial space, the city's sales tax page also says the building needs a Certificate of Occupancy. Ask the city before you sign a lease.

5. Short-term rentals have their own license

If you plan to rent a room or a home for under 30 days, the city's short-term rental page says a license is required, you must first check the STR zoning map, and you need a Sales and Lodging Tax License as a first step. Buildings with three or more units cannot operate STRs. The page lists a $500 initial license fee and a yearly renewal each June 30, so read it for the current terms before you apply.

6. Local help, mostly free

7. A business email address

Your licenses, state notices and tax accounts all attach to one email, so pick an address you will keep. The usual route is your own domain with Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, which suits a brand with staff. The other is a short local address like [email protected] from us. A personal name is $19 a month, trade names such as plumber@ cost more, and there is no domain or DNS to set up. It takes about five minutes. You rent the address and do not own the domain, so your own domain is the better choice if you will build a brand. See the real cost of a business email or check a name on the home page.

Check a name or try the email address ideas tool.