How to Start a Restaurant in West Virginia: Health Department Permit, ABCA Licence and City Taxes

Informational content only. This article is not legal or tax advice. Restaurant rules depend on your menu, building and city, so have a West Virginia business attorney and a CPA review your plan before you sign a lease or buy equipment.

Learning how to start a restaurant business in West Virginia means learning that there is no single restaurant license. You will deal with the Secretary of State for your company, the State Tax Division for a registration certificate and sales tax, your county, city or regional health department for the food permit, the Alcohol Beverage Control Administration (ABCA) if you will sell beer, wine or liquor, and your city for a business licence and its own gross receipts tax. Each agency has its own fees, forms and order of operations. Doing them in the wrong order is the most common reason openings slip.

Materials and information to gather first

Assemble these before you file anything. Most of them are reused across agencies, so keep one folder.

• A one-page concept summary and draft menu. State whether you will serve beer, wine or liquor, because that decides which ABCA license applies.
• Your preferred restaurant name plus one or two backups. Check availability in the Secretary of State business search at http://apps.sos.wv.gov/business/corporations/.
• A target address and a signed lease or letter of intent. The health, city and ABCA reviews all depend on the address.
• A floorplan drawn to scale showing kitchen, dining room, restrooms, storage and any bar area. ABCA requires a floorplan for alcohol applications.
• A federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS.
• A startup budget that lists every fee in this guide, with a placeholder for the local health permit fee, which you must confirm with your local office.

Step 1: Form your company with the Secretary of State

Most restaurant owners form an LLC. The formation document is Articles of Organization (Form LLD-1). The filing fee is $100, and standard processing takes 5 to 10 business days. Expedited options cost extra on top of the filing fee: $25 for in-person same day, $25 for next business day, $250 for 2 hour and $500 for 1 hour. Online filings through the WV One Stop Business Portal at https://business4.wv.gov/ add a $1.00 processing fee.

The LLC name must include “limited liability company,” “limited company,” or an abbreviation such as LLC, L.L.C., L.C. or LC. The name must also be distinguishable from every other name already registered or reserved. To hold a name while you finish paperwork, reserve it for 120 days for $15 at https://sos.wv.gov/reserveregister-business-name.

A registered agent is optional. The Secretary of State is appointed attorney-in-fact for every entity that files organizing documents, so it can accept legal papers for you. If you name an agent anyway, changes are filed on Form AAO for $15.00.

If you will trade under a name other than the LLC name, register a trade name (DBA) with the Secretary of State, not a county clerk. An LLC pays $25.00 plus a $1.00 online processing fee on Form NR-3. Details are at https://sos.wv.gov/business/registration-and-waivers/register-trade-name-dba.

Put the annual report on your calendar now. Every LLC files a $25 annual report between January 1 and June 30 each year. A filing after June 30 costs $75 because of a $50 late fee.

Step 2: Register with the State Tax Division

West Virginia has no general statewide business license. The closest thing is the Business Registration Certificate from the State Tax Division. Every individual or business entity must obtain one before engaging in business activity. The one-time fee is $30.00, filed on Form WV/BUS-APP or online at https://business4.wv.gov/. Each fixed location needs its own certificate, and it stays valid until the business name, location or ownership changes. Registering with the Secretary of State does not replace it.

Apply for your sales tax permit through the Tax Division at https://tax.wv.gov/Business/BusinessRegistration/Pages/BusinessRegistration.aspx. Keep this account in good standing, because the ABCA checks it before it reviews an alcohol application.

Step 3: Get the food service permit from the local health department

Your food permit comes from the local health department, which may be a county, city or regional office. The state food establishment rule is 64 CSR 17, but each local board of health sets its own permit fee schedule under W. Va. Code 16-2-11(a)(9). You cannot copy a fee from a neighboring county. Call the office that serves your address and ask three things: the permit fee, the plan review process and the timeline.

Ask for plan review before any buildout starts. Expect to submit a kitchen layout, equipment specifications, your menu and a description of how food is handled, but confirm the exact list with your office. Also ask whether it requires a certified food protection manager on staff, since that detail varies by office and is not settled in this guide.

The costliest mistake here is ordering a hood system, walk-in cooler or sinks before plan review. A layout change after equipment is set can mean tearing out finished work.

Step 4: Confirm zoning and city requirements before you sign the lease

Your city determines which licence you need and what it costs, so settle the address before you commit to a buildout. In Charleston, for example, the city licence requires Zoning, Building and Fire sign-off before the city will issue it. Ask the city zoning office whether a restaurant is a permitted use at the address, whether outdoor seating or a bar needs a separate approval, and what the city licence process requires.

Step 5: Hire licensed trades for the buildout

A restaurant buildout usually involves electrical, plumbing and HVAC work, and West Virginia licenses each of those trades:

• General contractors: The Contractor Licensing Board requires a license above $5,000 of residential work or $25,000 of commercial work. A restaurant buildout is commercial work, so most projects need a licensed contractor.
• Electricians: Licensed by the State Fire Marshal.
• Plumbers and HVAC technicians: Licensed through the Division of Labor.

Ask each contractor for current license numbers and confirm them with the licensing agency before you sign. Put the scope in writing so the trade work matches what the health inspector will check.

Step 6: Apply for an ABCA license if you will serve alcohol

Alcohol is the step that trips up most first-time owners, because the license class sets your fees and what you can sell. Confirm the class that fits your concept before you apply.

License type	Annual fee	Notes
Private club restaurant	$1,150 under 1,000 members; $2,650 above 1,000 members	Plus a $100 operational fee per location. Confirm the tier boundary with ABCA.
Private wine restaurant, wine only	$250	Confirm what the class permits with ABCA.
Private wine restaurant, wine and beer	$400	Confirm what the class permits with ABCA.
Tavern	$150	Nonintoxicating beer.

The ABCA license year runs July 1 to June 30, and a late renewal adds a $150 reactivation fee. ABCA reviews an application only after the company is in good standing with the Tax Department, Workers’ Compensation, Unemployment and the Secretary of State, and it needs your floorplan. So finish Steps 1 and 2 first, confirm your Workers’ Compensation and Unemployment accounts, and have the floorplan ready. Ask ABCA whether any charges beyond the fees above apply to your application.

Step 7: Get the city business licence and understand city B&O tax

This is the part most guides get wrong. The state business and occupation (B&O) tax applies only to utilities. The gross receipts tax that hits restaurants, shops and services is levied by cities. Your city also issues a business licence and charges a weekly per-worker city service fee, so a restaurant can owe three separate city charges.

Rates differ by city. As of 2026, Charleston charges 0.5% on retail gross receipts, Fairmont charges 0.35% for retailers, and Huntington charges 0% for its retail and restaurant class, a rate in place since 2021. Whether your restaurant falls under a retail rate, a restaurant rate or another class depends on the city, so ask for the classification in writing. Do not assume a neighboring city’s rate applies to you.

Step 8: Plan for sales tax

The state sales tax rate is 6%. In 101 West Virginia municipalities, a 1% municipal sales tax sits on top of that, and the count rises to 107 places from January 1, 2027. Check whether your city is on the list before you set menu prices. Confirm with the Tax Division how prepared food, takeout, delivery and packaged retail items are taxed, because product lines can be treated differently.

Step 9: Check WVDA rules for any packaged products

If you plan to sell sauces, dressings, jarred goods, hemp-derived products or kratom, check with the West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) before launch. WVDA oversees cottage food, hemp, kratom and pesticides. Cottage food rules are built around home kitchens, so ask WVDA which permit applies to a restaurant selling packaged goods.

Step 10: Open and keep the company current

Before opening day, pass the final health inspection, confirm the city licence is issued, and confirm every state approval is in hand. After opening, your recurring obligations are:

• The $25 annual report with the Secretary of State, filed between January 1 and June 30 each year.
• ABCA renewal for the July 1 to June 30 license year. Renew before June 30 to avoid the $150 reactivation fee.
• The Tax Division certificate, which has no annual renewal but must be updated when the name, location or ownership changes.
• Health permit renewals and inspections on your local office’s schedule.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Signing a lease before checking zoning and the city licence requirements.
• Ordering equipment before the health department’s plan review.
• Applying to ABCA before your Tax Division, Workers’ Compensation, Unemployment and Secretary of State accounts are in good standing.
• Budgeting for a wine-only license when the menu includes beer, which moves the cost from $250 to $400.
• Assuming the state B&O tax covers restaurants. It does not. Cities levy the gross receipts tax.
• Using a neighboring city’s gross receipts or sales tax rate in your budget.
• Filing a DBA with a county clerk. Trade names go to the Secretary of State.
• Missing the June 30 annual report deadline, which raises the $25 fee to $75.

Tips that save time

• Call the health department and your city before you finish the floorplan. Their answers can change the kitchen layout.
• Use expedited Secretary of State options only when a lease or opening deadline forces it. Standard processing is 5 to 10 business days.
• Get help from the West Virginia Small Business Development Center at https://wvsbdc.com/ and review the West Virginia district resources at https://www.sba.gov/district/west-virginia.
• Have a CPA model how the city gross receipts tax and per-worker fee affect your margins before you set menu prices.

What to expect

A complete, correctly ordered filing package usually clears the Secretary of State and Tax Division steps within a predictable window: standard processing for the LLC runs 5 to 10 business days. Health, city and ABCA timelines depend on each office’s workload and on how complete your application is, so treat them as the longest part of your schedule. Build buffer time for plan review and inspections. The goal is an accurate plan, not a guaranteed opening date.

This article is informational and is not legal or tax advice. Fees, rates and deadlines change, so confirm each figure with the named agency before relying on it. For a complex structure, a multi-location plan, or any alcohol or tax question, consult a qualified West Virginia attorney and a CPA.