Starting a new business in Maryland is no easy task. Campen & Manganaro wants to see Frederick, Urbana, and all of Maryland’s other beautiful neighborhoods grow. Who doesn’t want a new bakery down the street, or new options for dogsitters when you go out of town? In meeting with an old friend who’s starting her own acupuncture business, I realized it might be helpful to create a list of tasks for all you entrepreneurs out there. Please see below, and good luck!
Samantha Manganaro & Courtney Luck meeting to discuss Courtney’s new acupuncture business.
CHECKLIST FOR NEW BUSINESSES IN MD
- Choose a Name – Pick something unique! Check these places to find out if someone is already using your name: 1) USPTO website at https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=tess&state=4807:wzrohp.1.1;
2) State Department of Assessments and Taxation website at https://sdat.resiusa.org/ucc-charter/Pages/CharterSearch/default.aspx; and 3) Remember to also check GOOGLE and other search engines. Trademarks exist even without registration. - Register Your Trade Name here: https://www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/nameappl.pdf -$75 with rush fee.
HELPFUL HINT: It’s worth it to pay the extra money to rush paperwork with SDAT. And if you have the time, go to the office yourself, and file there. - Decide if you want to be an LLC or a Sole Proprietor. (This warrants an entirely separate blogpost, but a very bare bones description is this: As an LLC your personal assets are protected, but you’ll have to pay taxes, fees, and it’s more work. As a Sole Proprietor, you pay less and have to do less, but your personal assets are not protected. We can talk S Corps and C Corps later, but most small businesses don’t start that way typically because LLC’s are easier and cheaper to start up. You can always roll into a corporation.)
Want to be an LLC?
- Decide who will be your Registered Agent. (It can be you.)
- Write Articles of Incorporation & Operating Agreement (there’s an easy form for Articles of Incorporation here https://www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/artorgan.pdf ). You will need to decide who will be the Managing Member and Members.
- File Articles of Incorporation with SDAT. $175 with rush fee, and return mail service.
- File a Combined Central Registration Form with the Comptroller of Maryland. https://forms.marylandtaxes.com/14_forms/CRA.pdf
- Get an EIN/Tax ID. # https://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Apply-for-an-Employer-Identification-Number-(EIN)-Online
- You’re a business so you have to hold yourself out as one. Use LLC, L.L.C., LC, or L.C. in your contracts, ads, and correspondence.
- Compliance: File a Personal Property Return. For an LLC the fee is $300, and you must file whether you own property or not. This also means, you will likely owe taxes on your property. https://www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/pp_brochure.pdf < Here’s a helpful brochure.Want to be a Sole Proprietor?
- File a Combined Central Registration Form with the Comptroller of Maryland. https://forms.marylandtaxes.com/14_forms/CRA.pdf
- Get an EIN/Tax ID. # https://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Apply-for-an-Employer-Identification-Number-(EIN)-Online if you want a business bank account
- Compliance: File a Personal Property Return. For Sole Proprietorship $0, and only if you own property. https://www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/pp_brochure.pdf < Here’s a helpful brochure.Other things you might want to do.
- Register Your Trademark? Federally &/or at the State Level.
- Open a business account.
- Get insurance.
- Get a domain name.
- Develop Content for your website.
- Build your website, or have it built for you.
- Create a FB Page & sign up for other social media
- Create FB Ads.
- Sign up for Google AdwordsGovernment Websites that can help with setting up New Businesses:
https://taxes.marylandtaxes.com/Business_Taxes/New_Businesses/
https://www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/checklist.html
https://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Starting-a-Business
Samantha Manganaro, Esq.