Hampton Business License: $50 Under $100,000, Rates, Food Truck Host Sites and Short-Term Rental Overlay
Opening a business in Hampton, VA means dealing with one local office, one annual license and several city taxes that most state guides never mention. Hampton has 137,315 residents (Census 2025), and its business license is issued by the Commissioner of the Revenue, not the state. This guide covers where to apply, when the license is required, what Hampton charges, the renewal deadline, the other city taxes, and the food truck and short-term rental rules that catch new owners.
Virginia has no general statewide business license. The State Corporation Commission (SCC) forms entities and issues no license. The business license is the Business, Professional and Occupational License (BPOL), a local license tax under Va. Code 58.1-3700 et seq. Localities set their own rates and deadlines, and not every locality levies a general license, so use Hampton's numbers rather than another city's.
Where to Apply: Commissioner of the Revenue
Apply through the Commissioner of the Revenue in person, by mail or online:
- In person: One Franklin Street, Suite 101, Hampton, VA 23669
- Mail: P.O. Box 636, Attn: Business License, Hampton, VA 23669
- Phone: 757-727-6700. Fax: 757-727-6330. Business personal property: 757-727-6182
- Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (verify)
The Hampton business license application is filed online through AccessGov at va.accessgov.com/hampton (verify). Pay through the city's payment portal at hampton.virginiainteractive.org (verify). Check hampton.gov for current forms before you file (verify).
Who Must Hold a License: The $100,000 Threshold
Hampton's guidance says the tax generally applies when total gross receipts exceed $100,000 (verify). Below that level, a $50 license fee may apply (verify). Certain categories are not subject to the threshold at all (verify which categories). Gross receipts means total sales or income from the business, not profit.
State law sets a floor based on population. A locality with more than 50,000 people cannot require a license on gross receipts under $100,000, and Hampton is above that size. Localities over 50,000 people may also waive the license for businesses with gross receipts up to $200,000 (verify the waiver ceiling with the Commissioner).
Ask the Commissioner whether the rate applies to all of your receipts or only to receipts above the threshold (verify). Get that answer before you project your first-year fee.
Hampton Business License Rates
Hampton charges these rates per $100 of gross receipts unless noted. The rates on the standard classes equal the state caps (verify). Match your license class to your primary activity, and ask the Commissioner how to classify a business with several activities (verify).
| Business class | Hampton rate |
|---|---|
| Contractors | $0.16 per $100 (verify) |
| Financial, real estate and professional | $0.58 per $100 (verify) |
| Retail | $0.20 per $100 (verify) |
| Wholesale | $0.15 per $100 of gross purchases (verify) |
| Repair, personal, business and other services | $0.36 per $100 (verify) |
| Commission merchant | $0.36 per $100 (verify) |
| Short-term rental equipment business | $0.20 per $100 (verify) |
| Direct sellers | $0.20 per $100 retail; $0.05 per $100 wholesale over $4,000 (verify) |
| Federal R&D prime contractors | $0.03 per $100 (verify) |
Some businesses pay flat fees instead of a percentage:
- Peddlers: $25 to $500 (verify)
- Fortune tellers: $1,000 (verify)
- Show promoters: $500 (verify)
- Animal shows: $75 a day (verify)
- Carnivals: $1,000 a week (verify)
- Amusement machine operators: $195 for fewer than 10 machines (verify)
Watch the term. In BPOL law, "short-term rental" means equipment rental. It does not mean Airbnb-style lodging. Lodging is covered by the lodging tax and the zoning overlay rules below.
Renewal Deadlines and Proration
Renew your Hampton business license by March 1 each year (verify). Every license expires December 31 (verify). Licenses are not prorated by start date (verify), so a business that opens mid-year pays the full amount for that license year.
Other City Taxes to Plan For
- Business personal property: $4.50 per $100, and $3.50 per $100 on machinery and tools, both assessed at 35% of original cost (verify). Returns are due March 1. Bills go out June 5 and December 5 (verify).
- Meals: 7.5%, including meals sold from food trucks (verify)
- Lodging: 8% plus $2.00 per room-night, plus an extra 1% Transportation District transient tax since May 1, 2021 (verify). Transient means a stay of 90 days or less.
- Admissions: 10% of charges of $0.35 or more (verify)
- Cigarettes: $0.85 a pack (verify)
- Equipment daily rental: 1%, with a 92-day period (verify)
Sales tax: Hampton's combined rate is 6.0% (verify): 4.3% state, 1.0% local and 0.7% regional. Register and file through Virginia Tax at tax.virginia.gov. The state base rate is 5.3% statewide, and the regional tax applies in Hampton Roads.
Food Trucks: Permit and Host Site Rules
Hampton has required a food truck permit since January 1, 2024 (verify). The permit requires three things: a business license, a Health Department permit and a fire safety inspection (verify).
Location is the bigger constraint. Trucks may operate only at approved host sites. The host site owner must hold a Zoning Administrator permit and send the city a monthly log (verify). You must give the host 48 hours of email notice before you operate there (verify).
Operating hours depend on how close the truck is to homes (verify):
- Within 100 feet of residential property: 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- All other locations: 5 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Virginia has no statewide food-handler card rule, but a Certified Food Protection Manager is required in food establishments. Ask the Health Department how that requirement applies to your truck before you buy or lease one.
Short-Term Rentals: The Overlay Rules
Hampton's short-term rental regulations took effect September 1, 2024 (verify). Overlay zones cap short-term rentals at 1% of residential dwellings in each zone (verify), and some zones are already full. Rentals must be 300 feet apart (verify). Most types need an administrative permit with a $200 application fee and a $50 inspection fee (verify). Permits issued before 2023 had to reapply by December 31, 2024 (verify). Bed and breakfasts and homestays sit outside the caps (verify).
Check the overlay status of the specific address before you sign a lease or buy a property. Our short-term rental rules by locality guide explains how these overlays compare across Virginia.
Home-Based Businesses
If you run a business from your home, ask Hampton Zoning whether a home occupation approval applies and what it costs. A business license does not cover zoning. The two are separate approvals, and the home occupation fee is one to confirm directly with Zoning.
Checklist Before You Open
- SCC name filing: If you operate under a trade name, file an assumed name certificate with the SCC for $10. It is not filed with the circuit court (verify). You can reserve a name for $10 for 120 days. Start at scc.virginia.gov/businesses.
- Zoning approval: Confirm that your address allows the use, including any overlay limits and home occupation rules. Ask Hampton Zoning.
- AccessGov application: Complete the Hampton business license application at va.accessgov.com/hampton, confirm your gross receipts against the $100,000 threshold, and pay through the city's portal (verify).
- March 1 renewal: Renew by March 1 each year (verify). Licenses expire December 31 (verify).
This guide is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Fees, rates and deadlines change, and the Hampton figures marked (verify) come from archived city pages. Confirm them with the Commissioner of the Revenue and at hampton.gov before you file. For a complex structure, multiple locations or a regulated trade, consult a Virginia attorney or a CPA.