10 licenses, permits and registrations, in the order to get them, each with the agency, the fee and the official page, and what the Census counts of bars in New Jersey say.
10 licenses, permits and registrations, in the order to get them
Every row checked against its agency’s page; the latest on Oct 21, 2026.
Step 1 of 6Set up the business. Now: Certificate of formation (LLC) and the annual report
0 of 10 items done. Each step opens when the one before it is complete. Progress stays on this device. Members keep a dated, noted plan for each saved location in the workspace.
1Set up the business0 of 3
File online through the Division’s business formation service. The certificate names a registered agent with a New Jersey street address. Two missed annual reports and the LLC is revoked.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Needed when an LLC or corporation trades under any name other than its registered one. A sole proprietor files a trade name certificate with the county clerk instead.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Needed to hire, to open a business bank account and for the NJ-REG registration. Issued at once online.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Register for taxOpens after step 1
Register online at least 15 business days before opening. The same registration issues the sales tax certificate of authority, which must be posted, and opens the withholding, unemployment, disability and family leave accounts once you have employees.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
New Jersey has no statewide business license, but most municipalities license storefronts, and the clerk is also where the liquor, pet shop and other local licenses are filed. Ask before signing the lease.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Approve the spaceOpens after step 2
Confirm the zoning allows your use before signing; a change of use needs a zoning permit and construction permits, and the certificate of occupancy comes after the final inspections. The health department and the liquor license both ask for it.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Get the permits for your kind of businessOpens after step 3
Submit plans to the local health department before building out or converting a space, pass the opening inspection, then post the license. Restaurants, bars, coffee shops, bakeries and ice cream shops are all retail food establishments under the code.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
A risk type 3 establishment (most restaurants and bars) needs at least one person in charge who holds a food protection manager certificate from an approved course, and many municipalities require one for risk type 2 as well. Replace a departing manager within the time the local code sets.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Alcohol permitsOpens after step 4
Apply through the POSSE ABC portal with the lease, the floor plan and the owners’ disclosures; the municipality publishes notice twice, takes objections and votes. A person-to-person and place-to-place transfer of an existing license is the usual route. A restaurant without a license can let customers bring their own.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Before the first hireOpens after step 5
Workers’ compensation insurance is required for every employer with any employee, from the first hire, and must be posted. Report each new hire within 20 days.
The free location checkWho lives and works around an address, the bars already there and the traffic on its road, from public records.
The full reportWhether the rules allow a bar at that address, the rent it supports, what has opened and closed nearby, and the questions to settle before signing.
No account. The bar check reads public records at the address itself.
Sources and dates
Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services business formation pages and fee schedule; Division of Revenue alternate name registration (form C-150G); IRS EIN page; Division of Revenue getting registered pages; form NJ-REG; Business.NJ.gov local requirements guidance; municipal ordinances; Department of Community Affairs Division of Codes and Standards; municipal ordinances; Department of Health retail food program; municipal retail food license ordinances; State food code manager certification rule; municipal ordinances; N.J.S.A. 33:1-12 and 33:1-12.14; municipal license fee ordinances; Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control; Department of Labor employer rate information (2026 wage bases); Division of Workers’ Compensation employer pages; U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023; U.S. Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics. Fees are as published by each agency on the date checked; cities add their own.
Questions about opening here.
10 items, in order: certificate of formation (llc) and the annual report, alternate name registration (dba), employer identification number (ein), business registration (nj-reg): sales tax certificate of authority, employer accounts, mercantile or business license and zoning approval and certificate of occupancy, and 4 more.
New Jersey Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services, Internal Revenue Service, Your municipality, Your municipality’s zoning officer and construction office, Your local health department and Local health department, and 1 more.
With certificate of formation (llc) and the annual report (New Jersey Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services), then alternate name registration (dba). The steps run structure, tax, space, permits, alcohol and employer, in that order.
Yes, to sell it: plenary retail consumption license. The local license usually comes first.
Each item's fee, renewal cycle and official page are shown to members, as the agency published them on the date checked. Cities and counties add their own fees.
How to open a bar in New Jersey (2026) | DoorWorthy
