Business owner filing Charlottesville Virginia business license application through the new online tax portal

How to Get a Business License in Charlottesville, Virginia

Charlottesville License Overview

All businesses operating within Charlottesville city limits must obtain a business license from the Commissioner of the Revenue. No exceptions — retail, service, professional, home-based, contractor, food truck. If you’re doing business inside Charlottesville, you need the license.

Charlottesville is an independent city — completely separate from Albemarle County’s licensing system. The two jurisdictions share zip codes, which causes genuine confusion. A business address that reads “Charlottesville, VA 22901” or “22903” may actually be in Albemarle County. Before you spend time on the Charlottesville application, verify you’re in the right jurisdiction.

Verify your address: Use the Charlottesville GIS Viewer at charlottesville.gov to confirm your address is inside city limits. If your address returns no results in the GIS Viewer, contact the Commissioner — you may be in Albemarle County, which has its own separate BPOL licensing process.

Key facts about the Charlottesville licensing system:

  • Fee structure: $35 minimum (under $50K in gross receipts), $50 (under $100K), rate-based over $100K
  • Business classification is determined by the Commissioner — not the applicant
  • New applications: in-person, mail, or email only — NOT through the online portal
  • Renewals (2026+): transitioning to paperless online Business Tax Portal
  • Business tangible personal property return due January 31 — separate from the license, commonly missed
  • Meals tax: 6.5%, remitted monthly by the 20th
  • Transient occupancy tax: 8%, also monthly

Step 1: Verify Address and Gather Documents

GIS Viewer: charlottesville.gov — search your address to confirm you’re inside Charlottesville city limits. If your search returns nothing, contact the Commissioner at (434) 970-3170 before proceeding.

New Business License Checklist: Available on the city website. Download it. It covers all required items:

  • EIN from IRS (free at irs.gov/ein)
  • Virginia sales tax registration (tax.virginia.gov)
  • DPOR licensing (if your profession requires a state license — contractors, cosmetologists, real estate agents, etc.)
  • Health permit (if food or food service)
  • Zoning approval (required before license issues)

Fictitious name: If you’re operating under a business name different from your legal name or LLC’s registered name, register the fictitious name with the Virginia SCC first. Contact the SCC Clerk’s Office at (804) 371-9967 or file at cis.scc.virginia.gov. Cost: $10.

Step 2: Zoning Approval

Zoning approval is required before the Commissioner will issue your business license.

Zoning Office

  • Phone: (434) 970-3182
  • Complete the Business License Zoning Approval Application (available at charlottesville.gov)

The Zoning Office confirms that your proposed business type is permitted at your specific address. Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall area, West Main Street corridor, and University Avenue corridor each have distinct zoning frameworks — verify before signing a lease or committing to a location.

Home-based businesses: Require a Home Occupation Provisional Use Permit from the Zoning Office. Rules that apply:

  • No advertising signs on the property
  • No non-resident employees working on-site
  • No retail customer traffic beyond what the residential zone allows
  • Business activity must not be visible or apparent from outside the residence

Signs: A separate Sign Permit is required for commercial signage. Apply through the City Public Permit Portal — this is separate from the business license process.

Certificate of Occupancy: May be required for commercial spaces, particularly if there has been a change of use or significant interior buildout. Review General CO information at charlottesville.gov or contact Building Inspections at (434) 970-3182.

Step 3: Apply for Your License

With your GIS verification and zoning approval in hand, apply for the business license.

Commissioner of the Revenue

  • Address: 605 East Main Street, Room A130, Charlottesville, VA 22902 (City Hall lobby, left side)
  • Mailing: P.O. Box 2964, Charlottesville, VA 22902
  • Phone: (434) 970-3170
  • Email: [email protected]
  • In-person hours: Monday – Friday, 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM (lobby window)
  • Phone hours: Monday – Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM

For NEW applications:

  • In person at Room A130 (strongly recommended for first-time applicants)
  • By mail to P.O. Box 2964
  • By email to [email protected]
  • Drop boxes: 6th Street, 7th Street, and drive-up box at Key Recreation Center
  • NOT available through the online portal — the portal is for renewals only

For RENEWALS (2026+):

  • File through the online Business Tax Portal at charlottesville.gov
  • After your initial application is processed, the Commissioner’s office will send you login credentials for the portal
  • Mail-in renewal remains available if needed

Fees and Tax Rates

Charlottesville uses a tiered fee structure for businesses below $100,000 in gross receipts, with rate-based taxation above that threshold.

Fee tiers:

  • Gross receipts $50,000 or less: $35 minimum license fee
  • Gross receipts $50,001 – $100,000: $50 fee
  • Gross receipts over $100,000: rate per $100 of gross receipts, based on business classification
  • Want an active license even with $0 revenue: $35 minimum assessed

Business classification: Only the Commissioner’s office determines your classification — not the applicant. Classification is based on your business activity description. If you believe your classification is incorrect, you may appeal under Virginia Code §58.1-3703.1(A)(5) within one year of the assessment.

First-year businesses: Estimate gross receipts from your start date through December 31 of the current calendar year. This estimate is the basis for your first license payment.

Reconciliation: Final levy is calculated based on actual results. This means:

  • In year two, you report actual first-year receipts and pay any difference (or receive a refund)
  • All subsequent years are based on prior year actual receipts

Qualified Technology Business tax reduction: Eligible technology businesses can apply for a reduced BPOL tax rate for a set number of years. Download the Application for Qualified Technology Business from charlottesville.gov and submit it to the Commissioner. This program is a genuine incentive for tech startups and is underutilized. Ask the Commissioner’s office for details on eligibility criteria.

Business Tangible Personal Property — Mandatory

This is the most commonly missed requirement for new Charlottesville businesses — and missing it has real consequences.

What it is: A separate annual filing of all equipment, furniture, computers, tools, and other tangible property used in the operation of your business as of January 1. This is NOT the business license — it is a separate obligation that applies to every business in Charlottesville.

Due date: January 31 each year.

Billing: The tax is billed in two installments:

  • First installment due: June 5
  • Second installment due: December 5

Consequence of not filing: If you fail to file, the Commissioner will issue a statutory assessment — they will estimate your liability based on what they believe you own. You then owe that amount plus any penalties. The statutory assessment is not negotiated down easily.

Pay through the online Business Tax Portal once you have credentials from the Commissioner.

What counts: Business computers, furniture, equipment, machinery, tools, phones used for business, printers, point-of-sale systems — any tangible personal property used in your business operations. Business vehicles are taxed separately through the city’s personal property tax, not this return.

Meals Tax — 6.5%

Every business in Charlottesville that sells prepared food or beverages must register for and collect the 6.5% meals tax.

Who it applies to:

  • Restaurants, cafés, bars, food trucks, catering operations, delis, bakeries, any establishment selling prepared food or beverages — including alcoholic beverages

How it works:

  • 6.5% collected from customers on every eligible sale, in addition to sales tax
  • Combined meals tax + state/local sales tax: approximately 11.8% total on prepared food
  • Reported and remitted monthly: due by the 20th of the following month

New businesses: Complete the Meals Tax Registration Form and submit it to the Commissioner’s office at the time of your initial business license application. Do not wait until after you open.

Cash flow planning: Monthly remittance by the 20th means you need a system for segregating meals tax receipts. A restaurant doing $50,000 in monthly sales remits $3,250 in meals tax each month.

Transient Occupancy Tax — 8%

If your business provides lodging — hotel, bed-and-breakfast, Airbnb, VRBO, or any short-term rental — Charlottesville’s transient occupancy tax applies.

Rate: 8% on the total price of lodging for stays of fewer than 30 consecutive days.

Monthly remittance: Due by the 20th of the following month, same schedule as meals tax.

Critical detail for Airbnb/VRBO hosts: You must report gross rental receipts — the full amount your guests paid — not the payout Airbnb or VRBO deposits into your account. Platform payouts are net of service fees; the tax applies to the gross amount. Reporting the platform payout instead of gross receipts is an error that the Commissioner will catch.

New businesses: Complete the Transient Occupancy Tax Registration Form and submit it to the Commissioner before accepting your first guests.

Renewal and Closing

Annual renewal deadline: March 1.

As of 2026, Charlottesville is transitioning to a fully paperless renewal process through the online Business Tax Portal. After your initial application is processed, the Commissioner’s office will send you portal login credentials. Use those credentials to file renewals online each year. If you don’t receive credentials or prefer to file by mail, contact [email protected].

Renewals are based on prior year’s actual gross receipts — report what you actually earned in the preceding calendar year.

Closing your business: You must formally notify the Commissioner. Do not assume that simply stopping operations ends your tax obligations in Charlottesville.

  • Submit your closure notification at charlottesville.gov/cor/bizchange
  • Additional documentation may be requested
  • The Commissioner will continue to issue statutory assessments for both the business license and tangible personal property each year until you formally close — these accumulate and do not disappear

If you have meals tax or transient occupancy tax accounts, notify the Commissioner those are closing as well.

Contact and Resources

Commissioner of the Revenue (Business Licenses)

  • Phone: (434) 970-3170
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Address: 605 East Main Street, Room A130, Charlottesville, VA 22902
  • Mailing: P.O. Box 2964, Charlottesville, VA 22902
  • In-person hours: Monday – Friday, 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM

Zoning Office (Planning and Zoning)

  • Phone: (434) 970-3182
  • Business License Zoning Approval Application

Charlottesville Economic Development

  • charlottesville.gov — startup process assistance, enterprise zone information, Qualified Technology Business program

Central Virginia SBDC

  • Free one-on-one consulting and workshops for Charlottesville-area businesses

SCORE Central Virginia

  • Free mentoring from retired executives

Virginia Business One Stop

  • virginia.gov — statewide registration portal and state tax registration