Kearney NE Business License: 1% Restaurant Tax, 3% Hotel Tax From November 2025 and the $100 Short-Term Rental Permit

If you searched for a kearney ne business license, the short answer is that Kearney does not issue a general business license, and Nebraska does not issue one statewide either. What you need depends on what you sell and where you operate. A restaurant or drinking place pays a 1% occupation tax, a hotel pays a 3% hotel occupation tax, short-term rentals need a $100 permit, and certain trades and food vendors need their own permits or licenses. This guide walks through each registration in the order most owners run into them.

This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Rates and fees change. The City of Kearney, the Nebraska agencies named below, and Buffalo County are the final authorities for your situation. For complex matters such as entity choice, multiple locations, or how a tax applies to your receipts, talk with a qualified attorney or CPA.

Materials and Information You Need Before You Start

• Your business legal name, mailing address, and the physical address where you will operate
• A written list of what you sell or do, such as meals, drinks, lodging, rentals, trade work, or mobile food
• A federal Employer Identification Number (EIN), required if you will have employees and usually obtained when you form an LLC or corporation
• If you are forming an entity, the name and Nebraska address of your registered agent
• A payment method for Secretary of State, Department of Revenue, and City of Kearney fees
• Estimated monthly sales, so you can judge which city taxes apply
• Access to Kearney's finance pages and fee schedule, and a way to check zoning for your address

Step 1: Confirm Which Kearney Taxes and Permits Apply

Kearney does not run a blanket license. Its finance pages and fee schedule list activity-based taxes and permits. Find your activity in the table below before you register anywhere else.

Activity	Kearney Requirement	What to Know
Restaurant or drinking place	1% occupation tax	Approved by voters on November 4, 2014. Remitted quarterly. Runs through January 31, 2042, per the FY2025 occupation tax report.
Hotel or lodging	3% hotel occupation tax	Effective November 1, 2025, up from 2%. Remitted monthly.
Short-term rental	$100 permit (first year), $25 renewal	Required starting January 2026. Expires each December. No inspection needed.
Mobile food vendor	$100 a year	Downtown district: $80 a day or $1,000 a year.
Plumber	Licenses issued every two years: master $280, journeyman $65, apprentice $40	Fee schedule effective October 1, 2026.
Cable, telecom, and natural gas providers	5% cable, 4% telecom, $0.045 a therm natural gas	Utility-type occupation taxes that generally apply to those providers. Confirm applicability with Kearney Finance.
General Business Occupation Tax	1% inside Enhanced Employment Area 1. GBOT 2 (1% or 2% for hotels) inside Area 2.	Applies only inside the mapped areas. Confirm your address with the city before you assume it applies.

Two questions need a direct answer from the city. First, check with Kearney Finance whether the 1% restaurant tax applies to alcohol sales. Do not set up your point-of-sale system until you have that answer. Second, confirm whether your address falls inside Enhanced Employment Area 1 or Area 2.

Step 2: Register With the Nebraska Department of Revenue

Nebraska has no general business license, so state registration follows what you do. You need a Nebraska sales and use tax permit if you make retail sales, rent or lease tangible personal property, or provide taxable services. You need an income tax withholding certificate if you have employees. Both are handled through the Department of Revenue, which issues your Nebraska ID for these purposes. Register online at revenue.nebraska.gov.

Nebraska's state sales tax rate is 5.5%. Kearney's combined sales tax rate is listed at 7.0%. Confirm the local rate and whether Kearney Good Life District 605 affects your sales with the Department of Revenue or Kearney Finance before you start collecting tax.

Step 3: Register With the Nebraska Department of Labor (If Applicable)

If you will have employees, register for unemployment insurance tax with the Nebraska Department of Labor. If you plan to use independent contractors, check the Department of Labor's contractor registration requirements before you hire anyone. Ask the agency directly about any thresholds that apply to your situation.

Step 4: Form Your LLC or Corporation With the Secretary of State

Skip this step if you are operating as a sole proprietor under your own name. Otherwise, file with the Nebraska Secretary of State, Business Services Division.

• LLC: File a Certificate of Organization (Limited Liability Company) for a $100 filing fee. The name must include limited liability company, limited company, or an abbreviation such as LLC, L.L.C., LC, or L.C. Search existing names before you file at the Secretary of State business search.
• Corporation: File Articles of Incorporation for a $100 filing fee. Nebraska does not provide a state form, so you draft the document. You can submit it through the eDelivery portal.
• Name reservation: If you need time, reserve an LLC name for 120 days for $30.
• Registered agent: Nebraska calls this role the registered agent. The agent must be a Nebraska resident individual or an entity authorized to do business in the state, and the agent's office must be the registered office.
• Publication: New LLCs and corporations must publish a notice in a legal newspaper for three successive weeks, then file proof of publication with the Secretary of State. Publication costs vary by newspaper, so ask for its legal notice rate before you file.

The Secretary of State does not publish an expedited fee. Electronic filing costs $10 less than paper, which is the only speed-related cost difference. Filings are submitted as signed PDFs through the eDelivery portal at nebraska.gov eDelivery, or by mail to Business Services in Lincoln. Staff review each document before it is filed, and the state does not publish a standard processing time.

Step 5: Register a Trade Name if You Use a Different Name

If you will operate under a name other than your legal name, register it as a trade name with the Secretary of State. The fee is $100 online through eDelivery or $110 in person or by mail. A trade name lasts 10 years and renews for $110 on paper or $100 online. You must also publish the trade name once in a newspaper in the city or village where the business is located and file proof of publication with the Secretary of State within 45 days of registration, or the registration is canceled. Filing the proof carries no fee. Registration is statewide, not county by county. Use the Application for Registration of Trade Name.

Step 6: Apply for the Short-Term Rental Permit (If You Rent a Property)

Kearney requires a short-term rental permit starting January 2026. The first-year fee is $100, and renewal is $25 each year. Permits expire each December, so put the renewal on your calendar for the same month every year. No inspection is needed. Ask Kearney Finance whether your short-term rental income is subject to the 3% hotel occupation tax, because the answer affects your monthly remittance.

Step 7: Apply for Mobile Food Vendor and Trade Licenses

A Mobile Food Vendor Permit costs $100 a year. Downtown district operations cost $80 a day or $1,000 a year, so decide where you plan to operate before you buy. Plumbers are licensed by the city nearest the job, so Kearney's fee schedule applies to plumbing work in the city. Electricians are licensed through the State Electrical Division. Health professions and child care are licensed through the Department of Health and Human Services. If your business involves food or pesticide application, confirm the state permit with the Department of Agriculture. Alcohol service runs through the Liquor Control Commission, which works with the city or county that grants retail licenses.

Step 8: Check Zoning Before You Sign a Lease

Zoning is handled by the City of Kearney and by Buffalo County, depending on where your property sits. Confirm that your intended use is allowed at the address before you sign a lease or buy equipment. A permit or tax registration does not override a zoning restriction.

Step 9: Set Up Your Recurring Filing Calendar

• Restaurant tax: remitted quarterly to Kearney
• Hotel tax: remitted monthly to Kearney
• LLC biennial report: filed in odd-numbered years between January 1 and April 1. The fee is $25 online or $30 on paper. Delinquent after June 16, when the company is administratively dissolved.
• Corporation biennial report and occupation tax: due March 1 of each even-numbered year, delinquent after April 15. The occupation tax is $26 at minimum, for corporations with paid-up capital stock of $10,000 or less. Higher paid-up capital raises the amount under the Secretary of State schedule.
• Short-term rental permit: renews each December at $25
• Registered agent: keep an agent in place at all times. Changing the agent or office costs $25 online or $30 on paper.

Tips and Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Assuming Kearney has one business license. It does not. Each activity has its own tax or permit, so build your list from the activity table.
• Using the old hotel rate. The hotel tax rose from 2% to 3% on November 1, 2025. Make sure your billing and remittance systems reflect the current rate.
• Charging the restaurant tax on alcohol without confirming. Get the answer from Kearney Finance in writing before you configure receipts.
• Skipping the newspaper publication. New LLCs and corporations must publish for three successive weeks and file proof with the Secretary of State.
• Letting the registered agent lapse. Losing your agent can lead to administrative dissolution.
• Missing the June 16 biennial report deadline. LLCs filed in odd-numbered years can lose good standing after this date.
• Assuming the GBOT applies everywhere. It applies only inside the mapped Enhanced Employment Areas.
• Choosing a name without searching. Names may not be the same as or deceptively similar to a name already on record.

What Completing These Steps Can Help You Do

Working through this list in order can help you avoid the most common reasons businesses in Kearney fall behind: unregistered activities, missed remittances, and expired filings. Owners who calendar their recurring deadlines often find the ongoing paperwork easier to manage. Results depend on your activity, your location, and the agencies' current rules, so treat this list as a starting point rather than a guarantee of compliance.

Where to Get Free Help

The Nebraska Business Development Center at the University of Nebraska at Omaha offers start-up guidance. Visit the Nebraska SBDC start and growth page. For federal resources in the state, see the SBA Nebraska district page. For official state guidance on corporate filings, see the Secretary of State Business Services page, and for tax registration, the Nebraska Department of Revenue.