8 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 gyms in Mississippi say.
Draft. These 8 rows were drafted from the agencies' own pages in October 2026 and 1 still waits to be confirmed against the agency; one carries a note on what to check. Open the official page before you pay anything.
8 licenses, permits and registrations, in the order to get them
Step 1 of 5Set up the business. Now: Certificate of formation (LLC) and the annual report
0 of 8 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 Secretary of State’s business filing portal; there is no paper route. The certificate names a registered agent with a Mississippi street address. Fees are set by statute, and the annual report, though free, is still required, since a missed report leads to administrative dissolution.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
File it whenever the business trades under any name other than the owner’s legal name or the LLC’s registered name. Filed online only, and the state does not refuse a name because another business already uses it.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Needed to hire, to open a business bank account and for the Department of Revenue registration. Issued at once online.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Register for taxOpens after step 1
Register through TAP before the first sale; the same registration opens the withholding account once you have employees. The state sales tax is 7%, and only two cities add a local levy (Jackson 1%, Tupelo 0.25%). The permit must be displayed, and the Department describes it as the privilege of operating a business in the state, conditioned on collecting and remitting the tax.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Checked Oct 21, 2026
Mississippi has no statewide general business license, but every city collects a privilege tax and issues a license before a business may open inside its limits, usually after the zoning and building sign-off. A late renewal adds a 10% penalty plus 1% a month. Outside city limits, ask the county.
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 building permits under the adopted International Building Code, and the certificate of occupancy comes after the building official’s and fire chief’s final inspections, with the occupant load posted. A restaurant may also need a grease trap approval. The health permit, the privilege license and the ABC permit all 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
Any gym or studio selling memberships registers each facility before advertising or selling a contract; the registration lists the owners and any pending litigation, and the bond protects members who lose money if the spa closes or defaults. The Act also writes cancellation and refund terms into every contract.
Fee
Members
Renewal
Members
Official page
Members
Before the first hireOpens after step 4
Workers’ compensation insurance is required once the business regularly employs five or more people, full time or part time; smaller employers may cover voluntarily. Report each new hire within 15 days of the start date.
The free location checkWho lives and works around an address, the gyms already there and the traffic on its road, from public records.
The full reportWhether the rules allow a gym at that address, the rent it supports, what has opened and closed nearby, and the questions to settle before signing.
No account. The gym check reads public records at the address itself.
Sources and dates
Secretary of State business services fee schedule and LLC formation pages; Fictitious Business Name Registration Act (Senate Bill 2003, 2010); Secretary of State fictitious business name filing; IRS EIN page; Department of Revenue business tax FAQ and Taxpayer Access Point (TAP) registration pages; Mississippi Code 27-17-5, 27-17-9 and 27-17-463; city privilege license pages (Bay St. Louis, Ridgeland, Batesville, Natchez); City building and use and occupancy permit pages (Byhalia, Wiggins); State Fire Marshal rules on local fire officials; Mississippi Code 75-83-3 (registration of health spa; bond required) and following; MDES employer FAQ (taxable wage base and new employer rates); MDHS new hire reporting pages; Workers’ Compensation Commission facts for employers (Mississippi Code 71-3-5); 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.
8 items, in order: certificate of formation (llc) and the annual report, fictitious business name registration (dba), employer identification number (ein), sales tax permit and withholding account (tap registration), municipal privilege license and zoning approval and certificate of occupancy, and 2 more.
Mississippi Secretary of State, Internal Revenue Service, Mississippi Department of Revenue, Your city’s clerk or code office, Your city or county building official and fire chief and Mississippi Attorney General, and 1 more.
With certificate of formation (llc) and the annual report (Mississippi Secretary of State, Business Services), then fictitious business name registration (dba). The steps run structure, tax, space, permits and employer, in that order.
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 gym in Mississippi (2026) | DoorWorthy
