Wyoming does not issue a general statewide business licence. Once your LLC is registered with the Secretary of State, what else you need depends on what you do: a sales tax licence if you sell taxable goods or services, a city licence for certain activities, and a state licence for regulated professions. This guide covers each one for a new Wyoming LLC.
Step 1: Form the LLC and know the yearly cost
A Wyoming LLC is formed by filing Articles of Organization with the Secretary of State for $100 (a small card processing fee may apply online). Every LLC must keep a registered agent in Wyoming.
- Annual report licence tax: $60, or two-tenths of a mill ($0.0002) per dollar of assets located and used in Wyoming, whichever is greater. It is due on the first day of your LLC's anniversary month each year.
- No state income tax: Wyoming has no individual or corporate income tax. Federal tax rules still apply.
The annual report licence tax is not a business licence — it simply keeps your LLC in good standing. See our Wyoming LLC guide for every formation step.
Step 2: Sales tax licence
If you sell taxable goods or services and have a physical presence or other connection to Wyoming, you need a sales tax licence from the Wyoming Department of Revenue (Excise Tax Division). Sellers with no presence must register once their sales delivered into Wyoming exceed $100,000 a year (the old 200-transaction test was removed on 1 July 2024).
- Fee: $60, one time. The licence stays valid until it is revoked, with no renewal fee.
- How to apply: a two-step process — open an account on the Wyoming Internet Filing System (WYIFS), and once it is approved, apply for the licence on the same platform.
Step 3: City licences
Wyoming cities license specific activities rather than every business:
- Casper requires licences for listed business types — for example junk dealers, pawnshops, itinerant merchants, door-to-door sellers, second-hand dealers, hotels and rooming houses, and vehicles for hire.
- Cheyenne's City Clerk licenses specific activities, such as restaurants, second-hand dealers, pawnbrokers, massage, tattoo, taxis, transient merchants and vending machines. Contractors and building trades are licensed separately through the city's Building Safety (Compliance) Department.
Liquor, food service and building permits are handled separately. If you work from a physical location, also check local zoning.
Step 4: Professional and trade licences
Wyoming's Professional Licensing Boards office supports 21 boards — including architects, dentists, chiropractors, mental health professionals, physical therapists and veterinarians. Other professions, such as CPAs, cosmetologists, engineers, doctors and nurses, have their own boards. Electricians and electrical contractors are licensed by the state, through the Department of Fire Prevention & Electrical Safety. Wyoming has no statewide general contractor licence; cities such as Cheyenne license contractors locally.
Hiring staff: DWS registration
Before hiring in Wyoming, complete the joint unemployment insurance and workers' compensation registration with the Department of Workforce Services. Workers' compensation is mandatory before work starts in "extra-hazardous" industries, which include construction, manufacturing, mining, transportation and warehousing, and healthcare. Other employers may elect coverage, and DWS still requires them to register.
Running a Wyoming LLC from outside Wyoming
Many owners — including non-US founders — form in Wyoming but run the business elsewhere. In that case:
- Your LLC still needs its registered agent and must pay the annual report licence tax every year, wherever you live.
- City licences apply to the listed activities carried out inside that city.
- The sales tax licence depends on your connection to Wyoming or your sales into the state.
- DWS registration applies when you have employees working in Wyoming.
You will usually also need licences or tax registrations where you actually operate — in another US state, that may mean registering your LLC there as a foreign LLC.
Trade names (DBA)
To trade under a name other than your LLC's legal name, register a trade name with the Secretary of State for $100. It lasts 10 years and can be renewed. Your LLC must be registered and in good standing first, and the form is filed by mail.
Checklist and costs
- Form your Wyoming LLC — $100 (details).
- Get your EIN — free from the IRS (without an SSN if you are a non-resident).
- Get a sales tax licence if you sell taxable goods or services — $60, one time.
- Check city licences for your activity (Cheyenne, Casper and others).
- Obtain any professional or electrical licence your work requires.
- Pay the annual report licence tax — $60 minimum — on the first day of your anniversary month, every year.
Not sure which licences apply to you? Our business licence research service identifies every federal, state, county and city requirement for your Wyoming LLC, with forms and fees. Or start with the company: form your Wyoming LLC now.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Fees and rules are set by each agency and city and change over time — confirm with the issuing office before you apply. Checked October 2026.