Williston Business License: $500 Mobile Food, $35 a Day Door-to-Door, $100 Tobacco, and Where Crew Housing Is Not on the City Fee List
Williston Business License: $500 Mobile Food, $35 a Day Door-to-Door, $100 Tobacco, and Where Crew Housing Is Not on the City Fee List
If you searched for a williston nd business license, the first thing to know is that Williston does not issue a general business license, and neither does North Dakota. Both license specific activities, one trade at a time. The useful question is not "how do I get a business license?" but "which license does my activity need, and who issues it?" This guide covers the steps, the fees the City of Williston publishes, and the points you need to check before you open.
Disclaimer: This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Fees and rules change, so confirm current amounts with the agency named in each section before you pay or sign anything. For complex situations, talk to a qualified attorney or CPA.
Materials and Information You Will Need
- A written description of your activity, the location, and whether you sell from a fixed site, a vehicle, or door to door
- Your legal name, the entity type you plan to use (sole proprietorship, LLC, or corporation), and any trade name you will operate under
- A North Dakota registered agent with a physical address in the state, if you form an LLC or corporation. You must get the agent's approval before naming them.
- A payment card and email address for FirstStop filings
- Your planned opening date, so you can count back about 30 days for the sales tax permit
- The City of Williston fee list, published on cityofwilliston.com
Step 1: Confirm Which Licenses Apply to Your Activity
North Dakota has no general statewide business license, and no major city in the state has one. Forming an entity or registering a trade name is a filing with the Secretary of State, not a license. The Secretary of State licenses a short list of activities, including contractors. The Attorney General licenses retail alcohol, tobacco retailers and transient merchants. Health and Human Services licenses food establishments. State boards license occupations such as electricians, plumbers and cosmetologists. Cities license only specific activities, and Williston's list appears in Step 3.
Write down every activity your business will perform. A business that sells taxable goods from a food truck, for example, may need a city mobile food license, health approval and a sales tax permit. A business that does construction work above the threshold needs a state contractor license. List every activity before you start filing.
Step 2: Form Your Entity or Register a Trade Name
File through the Secretary of State's FirstStop portal at firststop.sos.nd.gov. The current figures are:
| Filing | Filing fee | Recurring cost and deadline |
|---|---|---|
| LLC Articles of Organization (Chapter 10-32.1) | $135 | Annual report $50, due November 15 |
| Corporation Articles of Incorporation (Chapter 10-19.1) | $100 | Annual report $25, due August 1 |
| Trade name registration | $25 | $25 to amend, $25 to renew every 5 years |
| Name reservation | $10 | Lasts 12 months, renewable in 12 month periods |
An LLC name must include "limited liability company," "LLC" or "L.L.C." It cannot include "corporation," "incorporated," or the other restricted terms, and it must be distinguishable from every name already in the Secretary of State's records. Search the business search before you file.
A trade name is any name a sole proprietor or other business uses that is not its legal name. Register it with the Secretary of State, not the county or the city. The registration gives you exclusive use of that name within North Dakota only, and it must be renewed every five years. Details are on the trade name FAQ page.
Corporations, LLCs and most partnerships must maintain a North Dakota registered agent. The agent can be an individual who lives in North Dakota, or a registered North Dakota or out-of-state entity with a business office in the state. A business cannot serve as its own agent. Changing the agent costs $10, and service of process costs $25.
Step 3: Review the Williston City License Fees
The City of Williston publishes the following license fees for 2026. Business licenses renew by November 30. Alcohol licenses renew by October 31.
| Activity | City fee |
|---|---|
| Mobile food (inside city limits and ETJ) | $500 |
| Frozen dessert vendor | $500 |
| Door-to-door sales | $35 per day per person (no fee for political canvassing) |
| Farmers and flea markets, fairs, carnivals | $100 a year or $35 a day (14 days maximum) |
| Tobacco | $100 per location plus $35 per vending machine, on top of the state license |
| Vehicle for hire | $250 per vehicle |
| Special event | $25 base |
| Raffle permit | $25 per event |
| Pawn shop | $50 |
| Arborist | $100 |
| Pesticide | $65 |
| Pet shop, kennel or groomer | $25 |
| Waste hauler or liquid waste hauler | $75 each |
| Bulk storage | $250 per facility |
| Auctioneer | $50 initial, $25 renewal |
| House mover | $25 |
| Fortunetelling | $300 |
The city's fee list includes no crew housing permit. Activities not on the list may still need approval from another agency, so confirm before you open.
Step 4: Apply for the Mobile Food License
The $500 mobile food license applies inside city limits and the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ). It does not replace health approval. Food establishments are licensed through Health and Human Services. Inside city limits, the Upper Missouri District Health Unit handles food licensing at 701-774-6400. Elsewhere in Divide, McKenzie, Mountrail and Williams counties, call HHS at 701-328-1291. Ask which agency covers your exact route or parking location, including ETJ areas, before you buy equipment.
Step 5: Plan for Door-to-Door Sales at $35 a Day
Door-to-door sales cost $35 per day per person. The fee is charged to each person canvassing, so a three-person crew owes $105 for each day it works. Political canvassing carries no fee. Plan your daily schedule around the per-day cost rather than a single annual fee.
Step 6: Account for the Tobacco License Structure
Tobacco has two layers. The Attorney General issues the state tobacco retailer license, and the city charges $100 per location plus $35 per vending machine. A store with two vending machines owes $170 in city fees per location, plus the state license. Confirm the state fee and renewal terms with the Attorney General before you sign a lease.
Step 7: Apply for the Sales and Use Tax Permit
Any business making taxable sales needs a sales and use tax permit from the Office of State Tax Commissioner. Apply through ND TAP about 30 days before you open. The combined sales tax rate in Williston is 8.0%: the state rate of 5%, the city rate of 2.0%, and Williams County's 1%, effective October 1, 2026. North Dakota has no franchise tax. If you rent lodging, the city lodging tax is 2%, and a separate 1% lodging, food and liquor tax is administered by the state. Confirm how these apply to you with the Tax Commissioner.
Step 8: Check Whether You Need a Contractor License
A state contractor license is required when the cost, value or price of a construction job exceeds $4,000. The rule covers pipeline, well-pad and road work under NDCC Chapter 43-07. Contractor license fees run from $100 for Class D (jobs up to $100,000) to $450 for Class A (jobs over $500,000). Licenses renew annually by March 1. Confirm the class that fits your work with the Secretary of State.
Step 9: Address Temporary Sales and Crew Housing
Temporary use permits cover sales from a vehicle, trailer, tent or vacant storefront. Planning and Zoning issues them, not the business license office. Check with Planning and Zoning before you set up any temporary location.
Crew housing is the most common point of confusion. Under NDCC 57-02.4-02, cities inside their limits and counties outside them may charge crew housing permit fees based on the services provided. The city's fee list does not include one, and counties set their own rules, so check with Williams County for any property outside city limits. This article cannot tell you which zones or parcels allow crew housing. Ask Planning and Zoning for properties inside city limits and the county for properties outside them, and get the answer in writing before you sign a lease or buy land.
Williston also has a Renaissance Zone. Ask whether your project qualifies before you finalize your location. The North Dakota Small Business Development Center, hosted by the University of North Dakota, has a Williston office at 113 4th St E and can help you review these questions.
Step 10: Plan for Employees and Workers' Compensation
North Dakota workers' compensation is provided only through WorkForce Safety and Insurance (WSI). If you hire employees, enroll with WSI before your first payroll. Confirm the enrollment steps and premiums with WSI directly, since this article does not list them.
Step 11: Put Your Deadlines on a Calendar
- City business licenses: renew by November 30
- City alcohol licenses: renew by October 31
- LLC annual report: due November 15 (farming and ranching LLCs are due April 15)
- Corporation annual report: due August 1 (foreign corporations with a North Dakota certificate of authority file by May 15)
- Contractor license: renew by March 1
- Trade name: renew every five years
- Name reservation: renew every 12 months
An LLC that files late owes a $50 late fee. If the LLC has been terminated, reinstatement costs $135.
Tips and Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Assuming a general license exists. Williston has no general business license. Look up each activity separately.
- Forgetting the health approval. The $500 mobile food license is a city fee. Health approval is a separate step.
- Miscounting door-to-door crews. The $35 fee applies to each person per day, not each crew.
- Undercounting vending machines. Each machine adds $35 on top of the $100 location fee.
- Filing a trade name with the wrong office. Trade names go to the Secretary of State.
- Assuming crew housing is allowed. Confirm zoning and any permit fee in writing before you commit to a property.
- Waiting until the last week to apply for the sales tax permit. Start about 30 days before opening.
What to Expect After You File
The Secretary of State does not publish a guaranteed processing time, and it offers no published expedited service. Call Business Services at (701) 328-2900 for current timing. Third-party sources often cite about five business days for FirstStop filings, but that figure is not confirmed on a state page, so plan for longer.
If you complete each step in order and confirm each agency's requirements, you may be able to open close to your target date. Results depend on the agency's workload, the accuracy of your filings and your location. These steps are not a guarantee of approval or a specific timeline.
Next Steps
Start with the activities list from Step 1, confirm the city and state requirements for each one, and then file your entity or trade name. For official information, use the North Dakota Secretary of State and the SBA North Dakota district page. If your project involves crew housing, construction over the threshold, or food and tobacco sales, have a qualified attorney or CPA review your plan before you commit money.