Kansas Business Center and Business One Stop: The Official Startup Wizard, Starter Kits and What It Skips

If you search for the Kansas Business Center, you will find a state system that has been reorganized more than once. The address many people remember, kansas.gov/businesscenter, now redirects to the Kansas Secretary of State website. The current home for state startup help is the Kansas Business One Stop at ksbiz.kansas.gov. It is an inter-agency site run with the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Revenue and the Secretary of State. It is a good place to build a plan and learn which agencies you will deal with. It is not a complete checklist, and it does not file your paperwork for you.

This guide covers what the official tools do, how the nine Business Starter Kits work, and the gaps you will need to fill yourself. This is informational content, not legal or tax advice. For entity choice, tax treatment, or anything with real money or personal liability at stake, talk with a Kansas attorney or a CPA before you file.

What the Kansas Business One Stop Covers

The Business One Stop is a coordination site, not a single agency. Each agency keeps its own rules, forms and staff. The site organizes the process into five stages: Plan, Start, Operate, Grow, and Sell or Close. You can jump around, but most first-time owners work through Plan and Start before they think about the rest.

Use the site to answer one question first: which state agencies touch my business? Everything else follows from that answer.

The Business Startup Wizard

The centerpiece is the Business Startup Wizard, hosted at ks.accessgov.com and linked from the Business One Stop. The wizard asks about your business activity and location, then points you to the state registrations and licenses that may apply. Treat the result as a starting list, not a legal determination. Answer for the activities you actually perform. If you run a food truck and also sell catering, answer for both, because the state treats them differently.

The wizard is most useful for owners who do not yet know what they need. If you already know your activity and your entity type, you can go straight to the Research Licenses and Permits page described below.

The Nine Business Starter Kits

Starter kits are guided packages for industries that usually need several agency approvals. Kansas publishes nine:

• Auto Repair
• Cosmetic Services
• Real Estate
• Child Care Provider
• Health Care and Social Services
• Restaurant
• Construction or Contracting
• Microbrewery or Distillery
• Trucking and Transportation

If your business is not on the list, the kits will not help directly, but the rest of the site still applies. A kit covers the state side of an industry. It does not cover your city or county, and for construction in particular, the local side is where most of the work sits.

Research Licenses and Permits

This is the page most owners should bookmark. It lists common business activities, the licensing agency for each one, and that agency's phone number. It also links to county and city contacts. Kansas has no general statewide business license, so this list is how you find out which agency, if any, governs your activity. Expect a mix. The agencies that most often come up include:

• Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA): food, pesticides and pet animals
• Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE): home health
• Kansas Office of Early Childhood: child care
• Kansas Department of Revenue (KDOR): liquor, cigarettes and dealers
• Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC): motor carriers, and oil and gas
• Office of the Kansas Attorney General: roofing
• Kansas Real Estate Commission (KREC): real estate
• Cosmetology and barbering boards, along with other professional boards

Child care licensing moved from KDHE to the Kansas Office of Early Childhood on July 1, 2026, so confirm the current requirements for your program with that office before you apply. Confirm fees on each agency page too. This guide does not list agency license fees, because the verified figures for them are not settled.

Hiring Employees

The Hiring Employees section tells employers to open a Kansas Department of Labor (KDOL) account. Do it before your first hire, not after. Owners who wait often discover the registration is one more task in the same week they are trying to onboard someone.

Phone Help

The directory lists Business Center phone help at 785-296-4564. Olathe's city materials list an older number, 785-296-5059. Call the directory number first, and confirm which line is current before you rely on either one. If neither answers your question, the Secretary of State and KDOR sites have their own contact information.

What the Wizard Skips

The wizard is a state tool, and several of the costliest surprises are local. Plan for these yourself:

• City and county licenses and permits. Kansas has 105 counties and 624 cities. Every incorporated place is legally a city, with no towns or villages to sort out, but each city sets its own rules.
• Zoning. Whether your use is allowed at a specific address is a city or county question. Check before you sign a lease.
• Local sales tax rates. The state sales tax rate is 6.5%. Cities and counties can add their own rates, and the wizard does not list them by city. Confirm the combined rate for your location with KDOR before you set prices or open your register.
• Trade licenses. Kansas has no statewide general contractor, electrician, plumber or HVAC license. Cities and counties license these trades, so the requirements change at each jurisdiction line.

Entity Filings Are Not Licenses

Forming an entity is a filing with the Kansas Secretary of State, not a license. Filing does not authorize you to operate in any regulated field. The key Kansas terms are:

• LLC formation: Articles of Organization, Domestic (Kansas) Limited Liability Company (Form DL). Filing fee: $85.
• Corporation formation: Articles of Incorporation, Domestic (Kansas) Corporation (Form AI). Filing fee: $85.
• Recurring filing: The Information Report is biennial, not annual. It costs $90 for an LLC (Form ILC) or a for-profit corporation (Form IFP). It is due every two years by April 15. An LLC formed in an even year reports in each succeeding even year, and one formed in an odd year reports in each succeeding odd year. A corporation reports in the odd or even year that matches its formation year. A three-month delinquency window follows the due date before forfeiture, so do not wait for a reminder.
• LLC name: Under K.S.A. 17-7920, the name must include L.L.C., L.C., LLC, LC, LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY or LIMITED COMPANY. If a similar name is already registered, a Consent to Use of Similar Business Name (Form CN) must accompany the formation document.
• Name reservation: $35, holds the name for 120 days, using form NR.
• Resident agent: Kansas uses this term. The resident agent must be an individual, a business registered in Kansas, or the entity itself. The registered office must be a Kansas street address where the agent can be regularly present. A PO box will not work. Update the agent or office whenever the name or address changes.

Search existing names on the Secretary of State business search. The Secretary of State's business page covers filing details and forms.

No State DBA, No Franchise Tax

Kansas does not register assumed, fictitious, trade or DBA names at the state level. If you operate under a name other than your legal name, check city and county requirements. To protect the name itself, look at a Secretary of State trademark or service mark registration instead.

Kansas has no LLC franchise tax. An LLC is generally a pass-through for state income tax, so members report their share on individual returns at 5.2% on Kansas taxable income up to $23,000 for single filers or $46,000 for married filing jointly, and 5.58% above those thresholds. An LLC taxed as a corporation pays the 3.5% corporate normal tax plus a 3% surtax on Kansas taxable income over $50,000. These are income tax rules, and how they apply to your business is a question for your CPA.

Which Kansas City?

Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri are different cities in different states. Only Kansas City, Missouri has a city earnings tax. Confirm which Kansas City you mean on every form, lease and address. If you are considering a Kansas City, Missouri location, its earnings tax is a separate question to confirm with the city or a CPA.

Sales Tax Registration

If you sell taxable goods or services, register with the Kansas Department of Revenue. Business tax registration with KDOR is free. Start at the KDOR business registration page and use the general KDOR business site for other tax types. Register for every tax that applies to you, not just sales tax.

A Practical Order of Operations

1. Settle your activity and entity type with an attorney or CPA if the stakes are high.
2. Search the Secretary of State database for your name. Reserve it if you need time ($35, 120 days).
3. File Articles of Organization or Incorporation with the Secretary of State.
4. Name a resident agent with a Kansas street address.
5. Work through the Business Startup Wizard and the Research Licenses and Permits page for state agencies.
6. Register with KDOR for every tax that applies, including sales tax if you sell taxable items.
7. Check city and county licensing, zoning and local sales tax before you sign a lease or buy inventory.
8. Open a KDOL account before your first hire.
9. Calendar the biennial Information Report, due April 15 in the required year.

Common Mistakes

• Treating the Secretary of State filing as the business license.
• Using a PO box as the resident agent's registered office.
• Calendaring an annual report when Kansas requires a biennial Information Report.
• Assuming a DBA is protected at the state level, when Kansas has no state DBA filing.
• Assuming the 6.5% state sales tax rate is the full rate you charge.
• Skipping the local check because the state wizard finished without errors.

Where to Get Help

The Kansas Small Business Development Center offers free advising, and the SBA Wichita district page lists local resources. For a complex structure, a licensed regulated industry, or a business with employees across state lines, paying for an attorney or CPA usually costs less than fixing a filing later.

Disclaimer

This guide is informational only and is not legal, tax or licensing advice. Requirements, fees and agency contacts change. Verify every figure on the official agency page before you file, and consult a qualified Kansas attorney or CPA for your situation.