Oklahoma has the seventh-lowest tax burden and the second-lowest cost of living index of 86.8 this makes Oklahoma a great choice for business people. Diversity is a field of interest in Oklahoma as well.
Businesses can be certified as belonging to minorities or women-owned, which opens up further opportunities throughout the state. Maybe that’s why 90,316 of Oklahoma’s 712,582 employees, work for licensed minority-owned small businesses.
Oklahoma also enjoys reduced operating costs and rewards for companies with no more than 90 workers, such as the Small Employer Quality Jobs Program. Despite the low business situation in the country itself, Oklahoma City has been recently announced as the best large city in the country to start a business.
Steps to Start a Painting Business in Oklahoma:
- Getting Started
- Write a Business Plan
- Name and Legal Structure in Business
- How to Register your Painting Business Name in Oklahoma
- How to Register or File a Formal Legal Structure
- Employer’s Identification Number
- Employee Income Tax and Other Payroll Benefit Withholdings
- Open a Business Checking Account
- Get Liability Insurance
- Get Health Insurance
- Final Thoughts
Getting Started
Oklahoma’s state government maintains a few useful websites to assist you in starting your business.
- Oklahoma Secretary of State:
The official website of the Secretary of State, Oklahoma has listed a few straightforward steps to assist you in completing your painting business registration process. The measures are applicable to almost all new business ventures.
- Oklahoma Commerce
Oklahoma Commerce assists companies in growing in a variety of industries, from aerospace to agribusiness and financial services to startups. Although operating a company can be difficult, Oklahoma has eliminated hurdles and simplified the process to make it easier for businesses to expand and grow.
With housing costs up to 40% lower than the national average and world-class workforce growth services, they’re making it easier for businesses to connect to the Oklahoma business community, gaining access to the people, programmes, and opportunities that help real-time business decisions.
Write a Business Plan
A prospective company owner is often advised to create a written business strategy to complete the above-mentioned initial steps and decisions. The initial measures mentioned above are included but a written outline may be a useful guide to cover the other fields of business.
Create a One-Page Business Plan
You should be able to complete your one-page business plan in less than 20 minutes. It’s super-simple: Print our free PDF template and write down one to two sentences to the questions in the free template below:
Download template: PDF
Name and Legal Structure in Business
When starting a painting business, two of the initial decisions are selecting a business name and determining the legal system in which the painting business will run. A business’s legal structure can be described as the structure that governs how taxes are filed and published, as well as how lawsuits are incurred.
When a company is established, managed, and run by a single individual without additional formalities, it is classified as a sole proprietorship. If a company is formed and run together by two or more individuals without any such formalities, the legal arrangement is a general partnership.
The most often used legal arrangements for small business owners are sole proprietorships and general partnerships. Under these two systems, company owners face increased personal liabilities from litigation and increased taxes as a result of their failure to take advantage of such advantageous circumstances.
How to Register your Painting Business Name in Oklahoma
If you have chosen a name for your painting business, you can apply to trademark the business name for exclusive use in the state. To do so, the individual(s) responsible should contact the Oklahoma Secretary of State’s Office (SOS) and complete a Trade Name Report. If the new company or trade name is available, it can be reported by paying the existing $25 report charge.
As an alternative to registering the business name, the proposed name will be kept for a 60-day term for a cost of $10 until all business arrangements are finalized, including the creation and filing of all of the structured legal frameworks.
Additionally, if the owner then changes the legal arrangement of the company to one of the formal forms, the same core name that was registered as a sole proprietorship or general partnership may be used. Similarly, to establish the names and addresses of all partners, a partnership may be needed to receive a Certificate of Partnership Fictitious Name. This credential is available for a nominal charge from the SOS.
Freebie: Business Card Templates for Painting Contractors
How to Register or File a Formal Legal Structure
As noted, a business owner may opt, in order to minimize the vulnerability of personal responsibility from litigation or higher taxes, to act under one of the following structured legal structures: a common company (also referred to as a C-Corp), a Subcorp S (or S-corp), a limited liability company (LLC), a limited partnership or other kinds (click for legal structure descriptions).
These structured arrangements must be submitted to the SOS, as illustrated in the relevant processes and formats of the Organisation. After submitting the documentation required and paying the associated fees, the SOS will issue a certificate (or recognition) accepting the filing for the specific structure.
However, whether the owner is to start or change into one of the formal legal systems, he may require the support and advice of specialist practitioners, such as lawyers or CPAs working in this field for small businesses. For example, if the LLC is not properly managed or controlled, the owner can face the opportunity to be taxed as an ordinary C-corporation.
Employer’s Identification Number
In the event of a company running as an individual owner without an employee, the owner may use his Social Security number as the identifying number for his financial and tax filings.
Nevertheless, associations and other companies grouped into one structured legal arrangement must acquire and use the identifying number of a federal employer (also called either a FEIN or EIN). This number is provided by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Furthermore, all companies with staff, including single ownership companies, have to procure and use a FEIN. As mentioned in the contact information at the end of this document, it is easy to obtain the number from the IRS.
Employee Income Tax and Other Payroll Benefit Withholdings
New companies with workers in Oklahoma must establish an account with the Oklahoma Tax Commission (OTC) to exclude and remit State income taxes from compensation paid to their employees. Those companies must then establish an account to refuse and remit state unemployment taxes to the Oklahoma Job Security Commission from employee profits.
In addition, employers have to cover their workers in Oklahoma with Workman’s Compensation Benefits either by an insurance provider or by the state-owned, non-profit insurance firm CompSource Oklahoma.
Company owners of employers are also expected to receive the form required to establish IRS-based accounts to deduct and collect federal income and social security taxes on their workers’ earnings and salaries.
Visit Oklahoma Tax Commission’s website here→
Open a Business Checking Account
No small business owner in common sense would consider working without a business checking account. Not only does keeping a separate account for business purchases simplify small business accounting, but it is also necessary for any business conducted as a separate legal entity from the owner.
Often banks would request sole proprietors to receive a Certificate of Fictitious Name before authorizing financial transfers and opening a bank account. This document recognizes the person who is the sole owner of the company. This credential can be issued for a nominal fee from the county clerk’s office in the business’s county of residence.
Get Liability Insurance
Most small business owners need protection from small businesses. It will help secure the livelihood that you have struggled to create. The best small business insurance will to offset costly damages and proceedings from:
- Casualties
- Natural catastrophes
- Professional errors
- Claims for benefits for workers
Get Health Insurance
Offering health insurance can be a great incentive for employing and retaining people if you own a small business. However, unlike large companies with a considerable workforce, small companies have different health insurance needs, especially if you have a limited budget or just a couple of employees.
Small business health insurance companies offer flexible plans, good customer service, and an extensive network of providers. They also have membership benefits, such as wellness incentives and rewards.
Final Thoughts
You can be your own boss by starting a painting company, particularly if you don’t mind dirtying your hands with a little paperwork, cash, and drive, you will expand your company without moving mountains and get ready for prime time.
As long as you reach the correct business structure, permits, insurance, and strategy, your paint rollers should be ready to roll.
Read our complete guide on How to Start a Painting Business