How to Start an Agritourism Business in North Dakota: Free 5-Year Tourism Division Registration and the Required Liability Notice in Every Contract

Farm tours, u-pick orchards, guided hunts, hayrides, farm stays and event barns all bring visitors onto North Dakota's working land. If you want to start an agritourism business in North Dakota, the state offers a useful tool: a voluntary registration with the North Dakota Division of Tourism that carries no fee and lasts five years. Registration alone does not protect you, though. You also have to post a liability notice on your property and include it in every written participation contract.

This guide covers the steps in order: what to gather, how to form the business, how to register, how to write the notice into your paperwork, and which tax, permit and licensing items to check before opening day. It is informational content, not legal or tax advice.

What You Need Before You Start

• A list of every activity you plan to offer, such as hayrides, u-pick produce, farm stays or event rentals. The registration must describe the activity, so vague descriptions cause rework.
• Two or three name options, each checked in the Secretary of State's business search.
• A FirstStop account for entity filings, trade names and name reservations.
• A North Dakota address for a registered agent, if you form an LLC or corporation.
• Your current booking or waiver template, since the liability notice goes into each one.
• A budget that includes filing fees, insurance quotes and any license your activities require.

Step 1: Confirm Your Activity Qualifies

North Dakota's agritourism law, NDCC chapter 53-13, covers farming and ranching activities and historic, cultural or natural attractions that the public views or enjoys, whether or not there is a charge. A paid hayride and a free nature trail on the same land can both qualify.

A wedding barn or event venue is the case most likely to raise questions. If the events are built around the farm or ranch setting, they may fit. Confirm that with the Division of Tourism before you rely on the registration for event use, and keep a written record of the answer.

Step 2: Choose and Form Your Business Entity

North Dakota has no general statewide business license, so forming an entity is a filing, not a permission slip. Your structure determines what you file.

• Sole proprietorship: no formation filing is required. If you operate under a name other than your own, register a trade name (Step 3).
• LLC: file Articles of Organization under NDCC Chapter 10-32.1 through FirstStop. The filing fee is $135.
• Corporation: file Articles of Incorporation under NDCC Chapter 10-19.1 through FirstStop. The filing fee is $100.

Many small operators choose an LLC because it is designed to separate business liabilities from personal assets. The agritourism statute does not replace that separation or insurance. Settle your structure before you sign the first contract, and ask a CPA how the entity will be taxed.

Step 3: Name and Protect Your Business

An LLC name must include “limited liability company,” “L.L.C.” or “LLC.” It cannot include “corporation,” “incorporated” or their abbreviations, and it cannot use “limited” or “company” except as part of that LLC wording. It must be distinguishable in Secretary of State records from every other registered entity, reserved name and registered trade name, and it cannot imply a purpose the company is not organized for. To hold a name while you finish paperwork, reserve it for $10. The reservation lasts 12 months and can be renewed in successive 12-month periods.

If you operate under a name that is not your legal name, such as “Prairie Pumpkin Patch” run by a sole proprietor, register a trade name. Registration costs $25, amendments cost $25 and renewal costs $25 every five years. Trade names are filed with the Secretary of State, not a county, and the registration gives the owner exclusive use of the name within North Dakota only.

Step 4: Appoint a Registered Agent

Corporations, LLCs and partnerships other than general partnerships must maintain a North Dakota registered agent with a physical address in the state. Your business cannot be its own agent. The agent can be a North Dakota resident or a registered entity with a North Dakota business office. Get the agent's approval before you name them, because failure to do so may result in involuntary dissolution. Filing fees are $10 for a statement of change of address or agent and $25 for service of process.

Step 5: Register With the Division of Tourism

Registration under NDCC 53-13-02 is voluntary, and the Division may not charge a fee. The registration is effective for five years and must describe the agritourism activities you provide or intend to provide, so list each one. The Division keeps lists of registered operators and activities. This guide does not list a form, portal or processing time for the registration, so confirm those with the Division of Tourism before you file. Note the expiration date the day you are approved and plan your renewal before it lapses.

Step 6: Post the Notice and Put It in Every Contract

This is the step new operators most often miss, and it is a condition of the protection. A registered operator must:

1. Post a conspicuous notice on the premises. Place it where participants will see it before they take part, such as at the entrance, check-in point or trailhead.
2. Include the same notice in each written contract for participation. That covers waivers, event rental agreements, farm stay agreements and booking terms that function as a contract.

The notice states that the operator is not liable for injury or death from an inherent risk. Confirm the exact required wording with the Division of Tourism before you print signs or update templates.

Under NDCC 53-13-05, participants assume the inherent risks of the activity, and the operator may plead assumption of risk as a defense. That is a defense you can raise, not an automatic end to a claim. The protection also has limits under NDCC 53-13-06. It does not cover willful or grossly negligent injury, or injury from a dangerous condition on the property or in equipment that you knew about or should have known about. Fix known hazards before opening, and keep a dated maintenance log.

Step 7: Set Up Taxes and the Sales Tax Permit

North Dakota has no franchise tax and no separate LLC privilege tax. The only recurring state charge on an LLC itself is the $50 annual report. An LLC taxed as a partnership or disregarded entity passes income to its owners, who pay individual income tax at 0 percent, 1.95 percent or 2.50 percent by bracket. An LLC that elects C corporation treatment, or a corporation, pays corporate income tax at 1.41 percent, 3.55 percent and 4.31 percent by bracket.

Any business making taxable sales must hold a sales and use tax permit from the Office of State Tax Commissioner, applied for through ND TAP about 30 days before you open. The state sales tax is 5%, plus city and county taxes that vary by location. Do not assume your admissions, produce, lodging or event fees are exempt. Confirm taxability with the Tax Commissioner before you set prices.

Step 8: Check Activity-Specific Licenses

Licensing happens by activity, and counties do not license businesses. Cities license specific activities only. Check these items against your plan:

• Alcohol: The Attorney General licenses retail alcohol with local approval. An event venue that serves alcohol needs a local license plus a state retail license, or a licensed licensee working under a local event permit. Event permits cost up to $25 and run up to 14 days under NDCC 5-02-01.1. Confirm the local process with the city or county.
• Food: The Department of Health and Human Services licenses food establishments. If an outside caterer serves your events, confirm who holds the food license for each event.
• Construction: A North Dakota contractor license is required when a construction job exceeds $4,000 in cost, value or price. That can apply to a farm stay cabin or event barn build. The Secretary of State licenses contractors. New licenses run from $100 for Class D to $450 for Class A, renewals cost $30 to $90, and licenses renew by March 1 each year.

Step 9: Plan for Workers and Insurance

Workers' compensation in North Dakota is a state monopoly through WorkForce Safety and Insurance (WSI). If you hire seasonal guides, event staff or farm hands, their workers' compensation coverage runs through WSI. Separately, ask an insurance agent for general liability coverage written for farm and agritourism operations. The statutory notice and insurance work together, and neither replaces the other.

Step 10: Calendar Your Recurring Filings

Filing	Fee	Due
LLC annual report (business LLC or PLLC)	$50	November 15 each year
LLC annual report (farming or ranching LLC, or authorized livestock farm LLC)	$50	April 15 each year
Corporation annual report	$25	August 1 each year
Trade name renewal	$25	Every 5 years
Contractor license renewal	$30 to $90	March 1 each year
Agritourism registration	No fee	Five years from approval

An LLC annual report filed after the statutory due date carries a $50 late fee, and reinstatement after termination costs $135. Confirm with the Secretary of State whether the November 15 or April 15 date applies to your LLC.

What Results to Expect

Results depend on your location, your activities and how closely you follow the notice and filing rules. Nothing here guarantees visitors, revenue or any legal outcome. The steps above may support the following:

• Your activities may appear in the Division's lists of registered operators and activities, which may help some visitors find you.
• Posted and contract notices may support an assumption of risk defense if a participant is hurt, although a court or insurer decides how the facts apply.
• Dated records of maintenance, notices and signed contracts may make your files easier to defend.

Build slack into your opening date. The Secretary of State publishes no guaranteed turnaround for filings, so call Business Services at (701) 328-2900 for current timing.

Practical Tips

• Put the notice in three places: entrance signage, your online booking page and the signed waiver.
• Ask the Division of Tourism and the Tax Commissioner for written answers on any question that affects your prices or your liability exposure.
• North Dakota Small Business Development Center advisers can review your plan before you file.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Treating registration as the whole job. The posted notice and the contract notice are both required.
• Leaving the notice off booking confirmations, event agreements or add-on waivers.
• Describing activities too broadly or too narrowly in the registration.
• Ignoring a known hazard, such as a damaged railing or an aggressive animal. That can defeat the protection.
• Assuming an event venue needs no alcohol or food license.
• Using a name that includes “Inc.” or “Corporation” for an LLC.
• Missing the April 15 date if your LLC qualifies as a farming or ranching LLC.
• Naming a registered agent without that person's approval.

Official Resources

• North Dakota Secretary of State: https://www.sos.nd.gov/, with the FirstStop filing portal at https://firststop.sos.nd.gov/ and business search at https://firststop.sos.nd.gov/search/business
• Office of State Tax Commissioner: https://www.tax.nd.gov/, with sales tax permits through ND TAP at https://tap.tax.nd.gov/?Link=Application
• North Dakota Small Business Development Centers, hosted by the UND Nistler College of Business and Public Administration: https://und.edu/ndsbdc/index.html
• U.S. Small Business Administration, North Dakota district: https://www.sba.gov/district/north-dakota
• North Dakota Division of Tourism: find current contact details and the registration process on the state's official website before you file.

Disclaimer

This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Laws, fees and agency procedures change, so confirm current requirements with the agency named in each section. Liability outcomes depend on the facts of each incident and on the exact wording of your notices and contracts, so speak with a North Dakota attorney before you finalize your waiver. For entity choice and tax treatment, work with a CPA. For coverage, talk with an insurance agent who writes policies for farm and agritourism operations.