Getting a Business License in Arlington, Fairfax or Prince William

If you run a handyman, cleaning or other home-service business in Northern Virginia, you most likely need a local business license. Your county or city issues it, usually as a BPOL (Business, Professional and Occupational License), and it's separate from any state license the work itself needs. Fairfax County charges no fee on gross receipts of $10,000 or less, Arlington County licenses home-based businesses too, and both licenses are due March 1.

This guide covers what a local business license is, how Fairfax County's and Arlington County's work, where to start in Prince William County, and how it all fits with a state license from DPOR. Every rule below is as of September 2026.

What is a business license, and how is it different from a state license?

Two levels of government license two different things. Your county or city licenses the business. The state, through DPOR (the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation), licenses certain kinds of work.

Having one doesn't cover the other. A handyman with a Fairfax BPOL still needs a DPOR contractor license for a job worth more than $1,000 (Va. Code § 54.1-1100). And a DPOR license doesn't replace the local one.

How does Fairfax County's business license work?

Fairfax County's BPOL applies to home-based businesses as well as shops and offices. As of September 2026, the fee depends on your gross receipts for the year (Fairfax County, understanding the BPOL; BPOL rates):

• When it's due: March 1 each year. A new business files within 75 days of starting.
• If you work from home: a home-based business also needs a zoning administrative permit, which costs $140 (Fairfax County, home-based businesses). The county notes that a BPOL isn't zoning approval, so you need both.
• If you're based in a nearby city or a town: the cities of Fairfax, Falls Church and Alexandria, and some towns, run their own business licenses. If your business is based in one of them, ask that city or town what it needs.

How does Arlington County's business license work?

Arlington County's Commissioner of Revenue licenses businesses in the county, including home-based ones. As of September 2026:

• Zoning comes first. A new home-based business needs a Home Occupation Permit from the county's zoning office before it can be licensed.
• It's due March 1 each year.
• The fee depends on your gross receipts. Check the current tiers on the county's business license page before you file.

Where do you start in Prince William County?

Prince William County's business license rules aren't summarized in this guide, so ask the county before your first job. Three questions cover most of it:

1. Does a business like mine need a county license, and what does it cost?
2. Do I need a zoning approval to run it from home?
3. When is it due each year, and how soon must a new business file?

Manassas and Manassas Park are independent cities, separate from the county. If your business is based in either one, or in one of the county's towns, ask that city or town as well.

Counties can also tie the local license to building permits. In neighboring Loudoun County, contractors named on a building permit application must hold both a Virginia contractor license and a Loudoun County business license (Loudoun County, Hiring a Contractor, as of September 2026).

Does your work also need a state license?

That depends on the work, not on your business license. As of September 2026:

• Jobs worth more than $1,000. Any construction, repair, removal or improvement job worth more than $1,000 needs a DPOR contractor license (Va. Code § 54.1-1100). Virginia has no handyman license, and no handyman exemption above that floor.
• Electrical, plumbing, HVAC and gas work. This needs a DPOR tradesman license at almost any size, or supervision by someone who holds one (§ 54.1-1129). The only small-job exemption is work worth less than $250 on a single-family home, by someone who doesn't hold themselves out to the public as a tradesman (§ 54.1-1131, subsection C).
• Cleaning, furniture assembly, TV mounting with no electrical work, junk removal. None of these appears on DPOR's list of regulated professions, so no state license was found for them. Your local business license still applies.
• Hauling trash in Fairfax. The county requires refuse collectors to hold a Certificate to Operate. If you haul junk, ask Fairfax County whether it applies to your business (Fairfax County, permitted collection companies).

Getting a Class C contractor license (Virginia's license for smaller contracting jobs) includes eight hours of pre-license education, a basic business course taken by a member of the business's management. DPOR's Board for Contractors page has the application.

Skipping a state license you need is costly. Unlicensed contracting is a Class 1 misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $500 a day on top, and an unlicensed contractor generally can't enforce the contract to get paid (§ 54.1-1115).

What should you do before your first job?

1. Find your office. It's the county, or the city or town if yours runs its own license.
2. Sort out zoning if you work from home. In Fairfax, that's the zoning administrative permit. In Arlington, it's the Home Occupation Permit, which comes before the license.
3. Apply for the business license. A new Fairfax business has 75 days from its start.
4. Check the state rules for your work. Look at DPOR's rules for any job worth more than $1,000 and for any trade work.
5. Keep a running total of what you take in. In Fairfax and Arlington the fee depends on gross receipts, so a simple record of each job's payment makes the renewal quick, and helps with taxes for independent service providers too.
6. Put March 1 on your calendar. That's when both counties' licenses are due each year.

With the paperwork in order, you can take on customers wherever suits you. Pros on One Stop Pros are independent service providers who set their own rates. If that fits how you work, you can join One Stop Pros as a Pro.

This is general information, not legal advice. Fees and rules change, so confirm with your county or city, and with DPOR, before you file.

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Last updated September 2026.