The District of Columbia

Businesses in the District of Columbia may incur the following filing fees and taxes on income and sales:

• startup costs, which include incorporation document filing fees, limited liability company formation fees, and initial corporate franchise tax fees
• fees and taxes on income and sales from ongoing operations such as an annual report filing fee, corporate franchise tax, corporate income tax, personal property replacement tax, and sales and use tax

In addition, the District of Columbia imposes a personal income tax on business income that passes through to you from your business.

To gain a better idea about the types of fees and tax obligations you may be facing, we recommend that you review the following sections:

• Initial formation fees in the District of Columbia for new businesses vary depending upon the type of business you run (hairstylist, lawyer, etc.) and the form you operate your business as — are you a corporation, sole proprietorship, partnership or limited liability company (LLC)? This segment will go through the various formation fees and licensing requirements that the District of Columbia imposes
• Taxes and fees on business income outlines the various taxes that the District of Columbia imposes on your business income. This section will provide you with a working knowledge of these taxes.
• Sales and use taxes discusses the general requirements of sales and use tax. This section also provides you with a discussion of the various sales and use tax issues specifically facing purchasers and sellers

We also provide the names and telephone numbers of the oversight agencies in the District of Columbia that administer the various types of business fees and taxes. This section will give you the references to contact if you need additional information on any of the District of Columbia business taxes.