Nye County Business License: Pahrump and Other Towns
Last verified: November 5, 2026
Nye County does not run a general business license. In Pahrump, the license you need comes from the Town of Pahrump, and in Tonopah and Beatty it comes from town rules written into the county code. The county's own Licensing Department handles liquor, gaming and brothel licenses. This page is for someone opening in Pahrump first, with a shorter section for the other towns.
Quick answer for a business in Pahrump:
- Issuing office: the Town of Pahrump Business License Department, 2100 E. Walt Williams Drive, Suite 100, Pahrump (775-727-2815). It is a town license, not a county one.
- Fee: $50 a year for a sole proprietor, $60 for a partnership, $75 for a corporation or LLC, $100 for a local company with more than 100 employees, $150 for a company without a Pahrump location.
- You need first: a Nevada State Business License, a Nye County Planning approval letter, a sales and use tax permit (or proof you do not need one), and a notarized or counter-signed application.
- Time: 3 to 5 business days after a complete application.
- Renewal: yearly. Late fees start 11 days after the due date.
Sources are linked in each section and listed at the end. The statewide Nevada business license guide covers the state side in more depth.
Who Issues What in Nye County
Pahrump, Tonopah, Beatty, Amargosa Valley and Gabbs are all unincorporated towns under the county code, so none of them is a city with its own charter. That is why the license depends on where your address is, not on the county name.
| Where you operate | Local business license | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Pahrump | Town of Pahrump business license, fee set by license type, yearly | Town of Pahrump: Business License |
| Tonopah | Town business license and a quarterly license tax, issued by the town manager | Nye County Code chapter 22.04 |
| Beatty | Quarterly license, application made to the county sheriff | Nye County Code chapter 19.08 |
| Amargosa Valley | Title 18 covers the transient lodging license tax; confirm with the county whether any other license applies | Nye County Code title 18 |
| Gabbs | Chapter 21.12 is titled business licenses and regulations (not reviewed for this page) | Nye County Code title 21 |
| Anywhere in the county | County privilege licenses for liquor, gaming and brothels; special event permits; outdoor festival licenses | Nye County Licensing Department |
Title 5 of the county code, which is the county's business licenses title, lists liquor, gaming, outdoor assemblies, fictitious names, locksmiths, pawnbrokers and cannabis, and points to the Beatty and Tonopah chapters for general licensing. We found no countywide general license there. If your site is outside every town, call the Licensing Department (775-751-7075 in Pahrump, 775-482-8192 in Tonopah) before you assume you are exempt.
Step-by-Step: Pahrump Business License
The Town's own application packet sets the order. Do not file the town application first, because it asks for the state license number and the planning approval letter.
Step 1: Get the Nevada State Business License
The Town will not issue a license without it, and the state license comes from the Secretary of State, not the Department of Taxation. The fee is $200 a year, or $500 for a corporation, under NRS 76.100. The Secretary of State's State Business License FAQ says the initial list and license are due by the last day of the month after you file your formation documents, and that a late renewal carries a $100 penalty (read from a Wayback snapshot dated October 14, 2026). Registration runs through the Nevada Orion business portal. If you are forming an LLC first, see our LLC guide.
Step 2: Get the Planning Department approval letter
Every new business with a Pahrump address must submit the online Business License Review to the Nye County Planning Department and print the approval letter. The packet gives 3 to 5 business days for review and 775-751-4249 for questions. The same review applies to an address change. The application you sign later states that the license does not exempt you from Pahrump zoning and conditional use permit rules, so a bad zoning answer here can stop the whole process.
Step 3: Register for sales and use tax
The Town asks for a Nevada Sales and Use or Consumer Use Tax Permit number, or proof that you do not need one. Register through My Nevada Tax. The Department of Taxation lists a $15 sales tax permit fee per location.
Step 4: Complete the workers' compensation affirmation
The packet includes the state Division of Industrial Relations Affirmation of Compliance, and you must complete it even with no employees. You sign one of the declarations: you carry workers' compensation, you are exempt or have no employees or subcontractors, or you hold a certificate of self-insurance.
Step 5: File a fictitious firm name if your name differs
You need a DBA only if the business name on your application differs from the name on your Nevada State Business License. File the original notarized form in person or by mail with the Nye County Clerk, 2100 E. Walt Williams Drive, Suite 200, Pahrump. The Town's packet gives the Clerk's fee as $25 ([email protected], 775-751-4720). Under Nye County Code 5.20.020 a certificate expires five years after filing. Our DBA guide covers the statewide rules.
Step 6: Add the fire form if customers or employees will be on site
If anyone besides you will ever be at a Pahrump location, the packet requires a Pahrump Valley Fire form with a $50 fee, and an inspection happens later. Home-based owners should read our home-based business guide first, since the answer to the customer question changes what you file.
Step 7: Submit the application and pay
Sign the application in front of a Business License technician, or have it notarized. Pay at the Town office by cash, card or check made out to Town of Pahrump, or email a notarized application to [email protected] and wait for a card payment link. If your work needs a specialized license, such as a contractor, include a copy. The Town has a separate packet for handymen, and our contractor license guide explains when the state board licenses the work instead.
Pahrump License Fees and Late Penalties
The Town says its fees are based on your Nevada State License. The yearly fees on the Town of Pahrump business license page are:
| License type | Yearly fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sole proprietor | $50 | Lowest tier |
| Partnership | $60 | |
| Corporation or LLC | $75 | Most small businesses fall here |
| Local company with more than 100 employees | $100 | |
| Company without a Pahrump location | $150 | Non-local packet applies |
| Non-profit corporation | $5 | Exempt entities need a yearly letter from the Secretary of State |
- 11 to 30 days late: an extra $25.
- 31 to 60 days late: another $25.
- 61 days or more late: a $50 reinstatement penalty on top.
The Town page does not say which date a license is due, so read it from your license or renewal notice. A short-term vacation rental follows a different packet: the Town's info packet lists a $200 registration fee and a $150 inspection fee, plus the same planning approval and state paperwork (Short-Term Vacation Rental info packet).
Licenses the County Issues: Liquor, Gaming and Brothels
These are the licenses Nye County itself runs, through the Licensing Department under Title 5 and, for brothels, chapter 9.20 of the county code. New applications are accepted by drop-off or mail, and renewals are paid in person or by mail. Pahrump's packet also tells liquor and gaming applicants to get the county license in addition to the Town license.
Brothel licensing is a real category here and is not an ordinary application. Chapter 9.20 sets a licensing board, an investigation, key employee approval and work cards, and it limits licensed brothels inside the town of Amargosa Valley to one or fewer. We do not list fees for it. Talk to a Nevada attorney who handles licensing before you buy or lease a property for it. The county also requires a license for outdoor events of 1,000 or more people on any day, and a Special Event Permit for a 72-hour liquor permit.
Tonopah, Beatty and the Rest of Nye County
Tonopah's chapter requires a town license before you offer any business, trade or profession, and it allows 10 days after you start to get one. Its license tax is $0.0125 per point per calendar quarter, with points set by business class, location, number of people, hours and rental units. Class A is professions such as attorneys and architects, class C is retail such as grocery stores, and class D covers services such as restaurants and barbershops. The tax is therefore specific to your business, and the town manager can tell you the points total before you apply.
Beatty's chapter 19.08 requires a license for any business within the town limits, issued by the county sheriff for a calendar quarter and valid for one location. The online text is old (the ordinance dates from 1964), so confirm the current fee and process with the Nye County Licensing Department at 775-482-8192 before you rely on it. In both towns the state business license comes first.
Taxes That Apply Wherever You Are in Nye County
- Sales tax: the Department of Taxation's rate list shows Nye County at 7.60%, from a rate sheet effective April 1, 2014. Confirm the rate for your address on the Department of Taxation sales and use tax publications page.
- Commerce Tax: it applies only to Nevada gross revenue over $4,000,000 in a fiscal year, and the return is due 45 days after June 30 (Nevada Department of Taxation: Commerce Tax).
- Modified Business Tax: 1.17% of quarterly wages above $50,000 for general businesses, and employers file even when nothing is due (Nevada Department of Taxation: Modified Business Tax).
Our Nevada business taxes guide explains who pays each one.
What a Pahrump Start-Up Costs
| Item | Cost | Source |
|---|---|---|
| State Business License | $200 a year, or $500 for a corporation | NRS 76.100 |
| LLC articles of organization | $75 once | NRS 86.561 |
| LLC initial list | $150, then $150 a year | NRS 86.263 |
| Town of Pahrump license | $50 to $150 a year | Town of Pahrump |
| Pahrump Valley Fire form | $50, if people will be on site | Local application packet |
| Fictitious firm name | $25, valid five years | Local application packet |
| Sales tax permit | $15 per location | Nevada Department of Taxation |
For a Pahrump LLC with a Pahrump storefront that adds up to $425 in state costs in year one ($75, $150 and $200), plus $75 to the Town, $50 for the fire form and $25 if you need a DBA. State costs recur at $350 a year after that. The Town fee and any industry license are extra. A registered agent with a physical Nevada street address is required for an LLC or corporation under NRS chapter 77, and the price of a commercial one is set by each company, so we do not quote one. To compare services, see our best LLC services in Nevada page.
Where This Page Stops
We read the Town's current packet and fee page and the county code, but we did not find a published due date for Pahrump renewals, a fee schedule for Tonopah or Beatty, or the current fees for county liquor and gaming licenses. Those answers sit with the Town of Pahrump at 775-727-2815 and the Nye County Licensing Department. Food businesses are sent by the packet to the state health department for a certificate, and contractors to the Nevada State Contractors Board.
Disclaimer
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Fees and forms change, so check them with the issuing office before you pay. For a brothel, gaming or liquor license, speak to a Nevada attorney, and for tax questions speak to a CPA.
Sources
- Town of Pahrump: Business License page, fees and penalties
- Town of Pahrump: Local Pahrump Business License Application Packet (PDF)
- Town of Pahrump: Short-Term Vacation Rental info packet (PDF)
- Nye County: Licensing Department
- Nye County: Nye County Code, title 5 (business licenses and regulations), plus chapters 9.20, 19.08, 22.04 and titles 18 and 21 linked above
- Nevada Legislature: NRS chapter 76, chapter 77, chapter 86
- Nevada Secretary of State: State Business License FAQ (Wayback snapshot October 14, 2026) and the Orion business portal
- Nevada Department of Taxation: Start and run a business, sales and use tax publications, Commerce Tax, Modified Business Tax, My Nevada Tax
- Nevada State Contractors Board: licensing
- Nevada Small Business Development Center: free advising