Petersburg VA Business License: $50 Flat to $50,000, 2026 Rate Sheet and the Five-Step Sign-Off
If your Petersburg business brings in less than $50,000 in gross receipts, the city license is a flat $50. Above that line, you pay a rate per $100 of gross receipts that depends on your trade. The city's 2026 Rate Sheet shows no rate changes for 2026. The city of Petersburg VA business license application also requires a sign-off from several offices before the Commissioner of the Revenue issues anything, and that step is where most first-time applicants lose time.
Virginia does not have a general state business license. The State Corporation Commission (SCC) forms your entity but issues no business license. The license you need from Petersburg is the Business, Professional and Occupational License (BPOL), a local license tax under Va. Code 58.1-3700 et seq. Each locality sets its own rates and filing deadlines, and not every Virginia locality levies a general license. Everything below applies to Petersburg, which had a population of 33,734, and should not be applied to any other city or county.
Disclaimer: This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Confirm current figures with the City of Petersburg before you file, and consult a qualified attorney or CPA for anything complex, such as a multi-entity structure or a mixed-use property.
What you pay: the $50 flat fee and the gross receipts rates
Petersburg charges a $50 license when your gross receipts are under $50,000. The city's Business License Action Form describes that minimum as covering up to $50,000. If your receipts land exactly on the line, ask the Commissioner's office how the line is applied before you file. Once your gross receipts are above $50,000, you pay only the gross receipts tax, not the $50 flat fee.
For gross receipts above $50,000, the tax is charged per $100 of gross receipts. The rates in the table come from the city's 2026 Rate Sheet. Find your trade on the sheet, because the city lists each category separately.
| Business type | Rate per $100 of gross receipts |
|---|---|
| Contractor | 0.16 |
| Retail merchant | 0.20 |
| Accountants, architects, attorneys, consultants, dentists, physicians, surveyors, veterinarians, real estate, loans and other professional services | 0.58 |
| Repair, personal service, barber and beauty shops, janitorial, hauling, daycare, assisted living, photographers, storage, rentals, tax preparers, bookkeeping, collection agencies, auctioneers, bondsmen, pawnbrokers and motels | 0.32 |
| Coin-operated machines, lounges and vending placers | 0.20 |
| Light, gas and telephone | 0.50 |
| Wholesale | Uses its own separate scale on the Rate Sheet. Check the sheet for your figure. |
For example, a retail merchant with $200,000 in gross receipts would multiply 2,000 (that is, $200,000 divided by $100) by the 0.20 retail rate, for a gross receipts tax of $400. That is an illustration of the arithmetic only. Your actual bill depends on your classification and the figures the Commissioner's office assigns.
Several licenses carry flat fees instead of a rate:
- Itinerant merchant or peddler: $500
- Fortune teller: $800
- Mixed beverage: $200 for 50 to 100 seats, $350 for 100 to 150 seats, and $500 for more than 150 seats
- Yard sale: $5
The five-step sign-off
The city issues the license only after the Business License Action Form clears each office it lists. The form is on paper, so plan to visit or call each office. Work through the steps in this order:
- Billing and Collections, 144 N. Sycamore St., 804-733-2346. Confirm your account is in good standing here first.
- Planning and Community Development (zoning), 135 N. Union St., third floor, 804-733-2308. The zoning fee is $100, and processing takes five to seven days. Build that window into your opening date.
- Fire Marshal, for commercial businesses, by appointment at 804-805-8097.
- Health Department, if applicable to your business. The fee is up to $80 and is paid to the Health Department.
- Commissioner of the Revenue issues the license.
The business owner and the property owner both sign the Business License Action Form. The owner also certifies that real estate taxes on the property are paid. If you lease your space, arrange the property owner's signature before you go to the office, since the form cannot be completed without it.
Home-based businesses need a Home Occupation Permit
If you operate from your home, you need a Home Occupation Permit from Planning and Zoning in addition to the license. The fee for that permit was not confirmed, so call Planning and Zoning at 804-733-2308 for the current amount before you pay anything.
Trade-specific prerequisites
Some trades need a state or agency credential before the city will finish the sign-off:
- Contractors need a state contractor license. Since July 1, 2025, the classes are Class C for over $1,000 to under $30,000, Class B for $30,000 to under $150,000, and Class A for $150,000 or more. Confirm the class and your requirements with the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation.
- Regulated professions need a license from the relevant state board.
- Alcohol sales need an ABC license.
- Vehicle dealers need a DMV dealer certificate.
- Child care is licensed by different agencies depending on the program. Child day centers and family day homes are licensed by the Department of Education. Assisted living and adult day care are licensed by the Department of Social Services. Confirm which agency applies to your program before you apply.
Deadlines, renewal and penalties
The city's rules on timing are firm, so build them into your calendar:
- Apply and pay before your first day of business. Opening first and filing later creates the penalties described below.
- Licenses expire December 31. Renewals are due by March 1. The 2026 form said March 2 because March 1 fell on a Sunday, so read the date on the current form that applies to you.
- Late filing penalty is 10 percent. A further 10 percent applies, and interest begins 30 days after the bill is issued.
- Gross receipts figures. New businesses estimate gross receipts for the year. Renewals use your actual gross receipts from the prior year. Reporting zero is not acceptable unless the tax figure itself is zero, so confirm with the Commissioner's office before you report a zero.
- Appeals must be filed within one year.
The Commissioner of the Revenue is at 144 N. Sycamore St., 804-733-2315, Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 5:00. Renewals, closures, and meals and lodging filings can be completed through the city's online Commissioner of the Revenue (COR) portal, which you can reach from the city website. For a new application, the in-person route is still the most reliable way to clear the sign-off.
Trade names
If you operate under a name other than your legal name, file an Assumed Name Certificate with the SCC for $10. Do not file it with the circuit court. The city's own checklist still points to circuit court, and that information is out of date. You can file and search through the SCC business page or the SCC Clerk's Information System. If you want to hold a name before you file the entity, a name reservation costs $10 and lasts 120 days.
Other city taxes you will face
Business personal property tax
Searches for the petersburg va personal property tax business filing usually land here, so here is the core information. Business personal property is taxed at $4.90 per $100 of the taxable portion of cost. The return uses 20, 25, 30, 35 or 40 percent of cost depending on the year the property was acquired, so the effective rate on original cost is lower than $4.90.
For the 2026 cycle, the return was due March 31, 2026, and a late return carries a penalty of a $10 minimum or 10 percent. The tax was due June 10, 2026. Do not assume those dates carry forward. Call the Commissioner of the Revenue at 804-733-2315 to confirm the filing and payment dates for the coming year.
Other property and meals taxes
- Machinery and tools are taxed at $3.80 per $100.
- Real estate is taxed at $1.27 per $100.
- Meals tax is 7 percent of meals sales and is due on the 20th of each month. Register with the Commissioner of the Revenue before you sell your first meal, and file through the COR portal.
- Lodging tax applies to lodging businesses. Check with the Commissioner of the Revenue for the current rules and filing schedule before you open.
State sales tax
The state sales tax is 5.3 percent. Petersburg is not in the Central Virginia regional-tax group, so do not apply the higher regional rate to your sales. Get your sales tax permit and current rate from Virginia Tax.
Neighboring localities: Tri-Cities and Southside
If you work across the region, each locality sets its own minimums, fee bands and deadlines. Confirm every item below on the locality's own form before you rely on it.
| Locality | What to know |
|---|---|
| Colonial Heights | $30 minimum; business schedule due January 31; meals tax 6.5 percent |
| Hopewell | $30 minimum on gross receipts under $12,000; file by March 1 and pay by March 31 |
| Prince George | $25 or $50 fee bands for gross receipts under $50,000; $25 zoning inspection fee |
| Dinwiddie | No license on gross receipts under $10,000; $25 or $50 fee bands up to $50,000 |
| Cumberland | No tax on gross receipts under $10,000, but a license and report are still required |
| Amelia | Zoning certificate required first |
| Greensville, Sussex, Surry, Nottoway, Emporia, and the towns of Blackstone and Crewe | Check with the locality directly |
Your next steps
- Find your trade on the 2026 Rate Sheet and note your rate or flat fee.
- Estimate your annual gross receipts. If you are above or near $50,000, ask the Commissioner's office how the line applies to you.
- Start the Business License Action Form and visit or call Billing and Collections, zoning, the Fire Marshal and, if needed, the Health Department. Allow five to seven days for zoning.
- If you are working from home, apply for the Home Occupation Permit and ask Planning and Zoning for the current fee.
- File your SCC trade name or entity paperwork, and confirm any state credential your trade requires.
- Calendar December 31 (expiration), March 1 (renewal), and the business personal property filing and payment dates for the coming year.
This guide is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Confirm every figure with the City of Petersburg Commissioner of the Revenue at 804-733-2315 before you file, and consult a qualified attorney or CPA for your specific situation.