//Orange, California

How to start a business in Orange.

Orange sits right at the center of the county, anchored by the antiques district of Old Towne, Chapman University, and the plaza everyone calls the Circle. Here is the practical sequence to register, license, and open, with the official links and where to get free help.

Starting a business in Orange? The official steps and source links are below.

Already operating or launching with budget in place? You can also

Orange is unusual for a modern OC city because its heart is a hundred-year-old downtown. Old Towne Orange is a sprawling historic district, and the plaza at Chapman and Glassell, the Orange Circle, pulls antique hunters, brunch crowds, and film crews from across the region. A block away, Chapman University keeps a steady stream of students, faculty, and visiting families in town, and the city's central position near the 22, 55, and 57 freeways makes it a natural base for trades and service businesses serving the whole county.

That mix means your customer could be a weekend visitor browsing the antique malls, a Chapman parent, or a homeowner in the older neighborhoods that ring the Circle, and each one finds you differently. Getting open cleanly, with the right license and permits, is the first step. Getting found afterward is the second. This guide covers the first in detail, then points you to the second at the end.

//The sequence

How to start a business in Orange, step by step.

This is the order that works for most new businesses in Orange. Requirements vary by entity, location and industry, so use the city, county and state sources below to confirm what applies to yours.

1
Call Planning and Zoning before you apply
Before you apply for the license, call City of Orange Planning and Zoning at (714) 744-7220 about zoning, banners and signs at your location. Some activities need extra review or a Conditional Use Permit, so make the call before you sign a lease.
City of Orange: Business License Information
2
Register the business and the name
Form an LLC or corporation with the California Secretary of State through bizfile Online, or stay a sole proprietor. If you use a name that is not your legal name, file a fictitious business name (DBA) statement with the Orange County Clerk-Recorder within 40 days of starting business. It costs $23 for one name. The first newspaper publication must run within 45 days of filing or the statement expires, then it runs once a week for four weeks and you file the affidavit of publication.
CA Secretary of State: bizfile Online Orange County Clerk-Recorder: Fictitious Business Name
3
Get your free EIN and any seller's permit
The IRS says you generally need an EIN to hire employees or to operate a partnership or corporation. It issues the number online, immediately if approved, and never charges for it. If you sell or lease goods that would ordinarily be subject to sales tax, you also need a seller's permit from the CDTFA, which does not charge for it but may ask for a security deposit.
IRS: Get an EIN CDTFA: Seller's permit
4
Get your City of Orange business license
Orange requires a business license for every business operating in the city, whatever the trade and wherever the main address is (Municipal Code 5.06.015). A new application costs the $76 application fee plus the $4 state fee and the minimum tax for your business type; the application and state fees are not refundable. Apply or renew online. Licenses renew every 12 months from the start date, and late renewals cost 25% per month plus a $50 non-compliance fee at three months. Business License Division: (714) 744-2270, Monday to Friday 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., closed alternating Fridays.
City of Orange: Business License Information City of Orange: Business License FAQs
5
Pull any industry permits
If you sell or serve food: Every food facility needs a health permit from Orange County Environmental Health before it opens, and a new or remodeled facility needs written plan approval before construction. The first plan review usually takes 20 working days. Permits are not transferable, so a new owner needs a new permit. For other permits, GO-Biz offers permitting and regulatory help for any size company.
OC Environmental Health: Food Facility Health Permit GO-Biz: Permit & Regulatory Assistance
6
Check the $800 California tax rules for your entity
Every California LLC owes the $800 annual tax, even in a year it does no business, until it is cancelled. Corporations owe an $800 minimum franchise tax, but newly incorporated or qualified corporations do not pay it in their first taxable year.
Franchise Tax Board: LLC $800 annual tax Franchise Tax Board: Corporation minimum tax
7
Use the free help that already exists
The Orange County Inland Empire SBDC offers no-cost help for entrepreneurs across Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Use it before you pay a consultant.
Orange County Inland Empire SBDC (free advising)

//Free Orange checklist

Take the steps with you.

Get the Orange business checklist with the city, county, state and federal source links in one place, plus the licensing office for every city in Orange County. We keep the source page dated so you can see when it was last checked.

//Common questions

Things we get asked first.

Do I need a business license in Orange?

Yes. The City of Orange requires a business license for every business operating in the city, whatever the trade and wherever the main address is (Municipal Code 5.06.015). Call Planning and Zoning at (714) 744-7220 before you apply.

Source: City of Orange, Business License Information

How much does a City of Orange business license cost?

A new application costs the $76 application fee plus the $4 state fee, neither of them refundable, plus the minimum tax for your business type. The Business License Division can confirm your amount: (714) 744-2270.

Source: City of Orange, Business License Information

What happens if I renew late?

Licenses renew every 12 months from the start date. A late renewal costs 25% per month, plus a $50 non-compliance fee at three months.

Source: City of Orange, Business License Information

Can I run a business from my home in Orange?

It still needs a city business license, because Orange requires one for every business operating in the city. Call Planning and Zoning at (714) 744-7220 before you apply to confirm the use is allowed at your address.

Source: City of Orange, Business License Information

How do I open a restaurant in Orange?

Beyond the City of Orange business license, every food facility needs a health permit from Orange County Environmental Health. A new or remodeled facility needs written plan approval before construction, with 3 sets of plans, and the first review usually takes 20 working days. Preliminary and final inspections come at 80% and 100% completion, and the permit is issued after the final inspection.

Source: OC Health Care Agency, Food Facility Health Permit

How do I register a business name in Orange County?

If you use a name that is not your legal name, file a fictitious business name (DBA) statement with the Orange County Clerk-Recorder within 40 days of starting business. It costs $23 for one name. The first newspaper publication must run within 45 days of filing or the statement expires, then it runs once a week for four weeks and you file the affidavit of publication.

Source: Orange County Clerk-Recorder, Fictitious Business Name

//Already operating?

The marketing question starts after the filing question.

If the business is already open, or the launch is funded, tell our founders what you want to change. We will look at the business before recommending SEO, paid media, the website or anything else.

For operating businesses and funded launches with budget available to act on the plan.

//Bookmark these

Official Orange, Orange County, and California resources.

Every link here goes straight to a government or nonprofit source. These are the agencies that actually issue your registrations and permits, so go to them directly rather than a paid middleman.

City of Orange: Business License Information
Required for every business operating in the city, wherever its main address is. $76 application fee, the $4 state fee and the minimum tax. (714) 744-2270.
City of Orange: Business License FAQs
The city's answers on who needs a license, fees and renewals.
County of Orange: Apply for a Business License
The county's links to the business license office of each of Orange County's 34 cities.
County of Orange: Starting a Business
The county lists no general business license for unincorporated areas and points those businesses to the fictitious business name filing.
Orange County Clerk-Recorder: Fictitious Business Name
$23 for one name, plus $7 for each additional name and each registrant after two. The first publication must run within 45 days of filing or the statement expires.
OC Environmental Health: Food Facility Health Permit
Needed by every food facility, from restaurants and markets to carts and event booths. Small displays of prepackaged food only register. (714) 433-6000.
Orange County Assessor: Business Property Statement
Form 571-L is due April 1 if your business equipment cost more than $100,000 in total or the Assessor asks. A 10% penalty applies after May 7. (714) 834-2930.
OC Development Services
Zoning and building for businesses in unincorporated Orange County.
Orange County Inland Empire SBDC (free advising)
No-cost help for entrepreneurs across Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. (800) 616-7232.
CA Secretary of State: bizfile Online
Where LLCs and corporations file with the California Secretary of State.
IRS: Get an EIN
Your federal tax ID. Apply online and, if approved, the number is issued immediately. The IRS never charges a fee for an EIN.
CDTFA: Seller's permit
Required if you sell or lease goods that would ordinarily be subject to sales tax. The CDTFA does not charge for it, though it may ask for a security deposit.
Franchise Tax Board: LLC $800 annual tax
Every LLC doing business or organized in California owes the $800 annual tax, even in a year it does no business, until the LLC is cancelled.
Franchise Tax Board: Corporation minimum tax
Corporations owe an $800 minimum franchise tax, but newly incorporated or qualified corporations do not pay it in their first taxable year.
GO-Biz: Permit & Regulatory Assistance
The Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development says it will assist any size company with permitting and regulatory questions.