There are a number of small businesses which can be started without much capital investments. Many of these small businesses require licenses and a few others do not require any statutory licenses or certificates to commence with. It may be felt difficult that the home based small consulting service or hand-knit sweater business would have to comply with any of the numerous local, state and federal regulations, but in the log run the avoidance could be an obstacle as the business grows. Taking the time to research the applicable regulations is as important as knowing the market of the proposed business.

In US, depending on the type of proposed business, one may be required to obtain local, county, State or Federal licensing. Most small and home-based businesses will only require a local business license or permit.

There are many types of licenses. If the business is located within an incorporated city limits, a license must be obtained from the city; if outside the city limits, then from the village/county.

If the proposed business is to be carried on occupying a new or used building, one may have to apply for a Certificate of Occupancy from the city or county zoning department.

There are many forms of legal structure one may choose for starting a business. The most common forms are Sole Proprietorships, Partnerships, and Limited Liability Companies. All organizational forms other than proprietorship may require registration / license under corresponding Acts / Rules.

In some cases, businesses that use a trade name other than the owner's must register the name with the authority/county as required by the Trade Name Registration Act. Depending on the nature of business, in applicable cases, trademarks, patents or copyrights are to be obtained from the issuing authorities. In the United States, Trademarks and service marks may be registered in a state for a term of ten years.

Based on the specific nature of business, some need licence / approval from concerned authorities in the state. These type of business include, inter alia, insurance advisory business, food services, man power services, etc. Most of the professions such as advocates, doctors, etc also require licenses from respective authorities in order to start the business.

For a very few businesses, Federal licensing is required. Examples would be a business that is engaged in providing investment advice or dealing with fire-arms.

Business that may cause pollution, etc to environment shall obtain license / certificate from pollution control authorities.

If the proposed business pertain to sale of goods and commodities, registration with Sales Tax authorities to be obtained. If value added tax is applicable to the state/ county registration under this act is required. However most of such Acts require the registration only on achieving a specified turnover in the business.

If the business relate to service, then Service Tax registration is to be taken, provided service tax is imposed in the country and the proposed service comes within the purview of services specified under related Act.

In addition to the above Income Tax registration also to be obtained as the entity will have to file the income tax returns in future on the profits of the business. The registration is necessary in order to claim exemptions, if any, from Income Tax.

In California, to assist the small business promoters in finding the appropriate permitting information for the proposed business, the CalGOLD database provides links and contact information that direct the businessmen to agencies that administer and issue business permits, licenses and registration requirements from all levels of government. The CalGold listings include descriptions of the requirements, the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the agencies that administer those requirements and issue the permits and licenses, and in most cases a direct link to the agencies' Internet web pages.

In New York, there is a separate department for licensing purpose, known as the Department of State, Division of Licensing Services which is located at Alfred E. Smith Building, 80 South Swan Street, 10th Floor, Albany, New York. There is pre-registration option at this office. The license has been made mandatory to some business areas recently. For example, persons engaged in performing home inspections of residential buildings for compensation, must be licensed.

Business licenses details can be obtained from the web sites of the offices in major states. Some of such sites are Washington -http://www.wa.gov/dol/bpd/limsnet.htm, Texas - http://www.tded.state.tx.us/guide/, Oklahoma - http://www.okonestop.com/ , NewYork- http://www.dos.state.ny.us/lcns/licensing.html, California - http://www.calgold.ca.gov/ , etc.

In UK all businesses require licensing in some form, whether it's a general licence or a business activity-specific licence. A business owner cannot run a particular business without the requisite licence or permit.

An example of general licensing is Business Name registration. It is administered by Consumer Affairs Victoria, and serves as a form of consumer protection.

Other business licences are specific to a particular business activity. For example, running a small restaurant can cover a minimum of four licences / approvals:

1. Food premises registration for the preparation and serving of meals.

2. Liquor licensing for the purpose of selling or serving alcohol.

3. APRA licensing required for playing recorded music over a sound system and

4. Local council permission for tables on the street.

Victorian Business License Information Service (BLIS) is an online tool that helps to identify and search for the licences one may need to run a particular type of business, as well as the codes of practice relevant to that business or industry.

On-line application can be given to the Copyright Licencing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, Kirby, London for small business license if the number of employees in the proposed business is less than 50. For submitting the application company name and address, names of subsidiary companies, if any, name of authorised signaturee and total number of employees to be provided.

It is important to determine which of the licenses / permissions will be required before starting any business since heavy fines are usually associated with conducting a business without proper licenses and permits.