How to Start a Landscaping Business in Georgia: Live Plant License, Pesticide Rules and Irrigation
Plain landscaping and lawn maintenance do not require a state contractor license in Georgia. “Landscape and Irrigation” appears on the State Licensing Board’s Traditional Specialty Contractors list, so the general contractor licensing law does not apply to it. That list is a Board policy list marked “subject to change,” so confirm its current status before you rely on it.
What does apply is a short set of agency rules tied to what your business actually does: selling or installing live plants, applying pesticides for pay, installing irrigation, and disturbing soil. This guide walks through each rule, then covers the entity, tax and insurance steps every new landscaping company handles. If you want the lawn side in more depth, read our Georgia lawn care business guide.
What You Need Before You Start
- A written list of every service you plan to sell at launch, such as mowing, mulching, planting, fertilizing, weed control, insect treatments, sprinkler installation and grading
- A business name and an entity choice (most owner-operators form an LLC)
- About $110 for Articles of Organization ($100 filing fee plus a $10 service charge), and $35 if you want to reserve a name for 30 days
- Access to the Georgia Tax Center for sales tax registration
- The address of your yard or shop, so you know whether the city or the county issues your local certificate
- The Georgia Department of Agriculture fee page and the Georgia technical college schedule for the pesticide exam
- Quotes from an insurance agent for general liability and, once you have three or more workers, workers’ compensation
- A list of your trucks, trailers and equipment, which your insurer and your local permit office may ask about
Step 1: Match Each Service to the Rule That Applies
Before you file anything, tag each service you plan to offer. Most landscaping companies trigger only one or two of the rules below. Use this table as your checklist.
| Business activity | Rule that applies | Where to confirm |
|---|---|---|
| Selling or installing live plants | Live Plant License | Georgia Department of Agriculture |
| Applying herbicides, insecticides or fungicides for pay | Commercial Applicator license and Pesticide Contractor license | Georgia Department of Agriculture |
| Installing sprinkler systems | Plumbing rules for the piping and the backflow preventer; a master plumber or utility contractor for tapping the water line | A licensed plumber and the local water utility |
| Grading or disturbing soil | Local erosion and sediment control permits; possibly a Level 1A erosion control certification | Local permit office and Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission |
| Stamped design drawings | Landscape architecture, a separate licensed profession | Georgia Secretary of State |
Step 2: Form Your Business Entity
Most owner-operators file Articles of Organization with the Georgia Secretary of State Corporations Division. The filing fee is $110 in total, whether you file online or on paper. Online filings through eCorp at https://ecorp.sos.ga.gov/ take about 7 to 10 business days, and paper filings take about 15 business days. If you need speed, expedited review costs $120 for 2 business days, $275 for same-day review if received by noon, or $1,200 for one hour on business days.
Your name must include a limited liability company designator, such as LLC, and it must be distinguishable on the Secretary of State’s records. Check the Secretary of State’s name rules before you file. You can reserve a name for 30 days for $35.
An LLC files its first annual registration in the year after it forms. The annual registration is $60 ($50 plus a $10 service charge) and is due between January 1 and April 1 each year. Check the Secretary of State for the current window and the late penalty. A late filing carries a $25 penalty, and an entity that stays delinquent can be administratively dissolved. Reinstatement costs about $260. For the full formation process, see our guide to starting an LLC in Georgia.
If you will operate under a name other than your LLC’s legal name, you need a trade name (DBA) registration. Trade names are not filed with the Secretary of State. You file with the Clerk of Superior Court in the county where the business is chiefly carried on. The clerk fee is about $165 plus a newspaper charge, because notice must run once a week for two weeks in the county legal organ. Confirm the amount with your county clerk. Details are on the Secretary of State’s business division FAQ.
On taxes, Georgia levies no franchise tax on a typical single-member or partnership LLC. An LLC taxed as a corporation owes the net worth tax, which runs from $0 to $5,000 depending on net worth. Income passes through at one flat rate: 5.19% for 2025 and 4.99% for 2026. For how these pieces fit together, read our Georgia business taxes overview.
Step 3: Register With the Georgia Department of Revenue
Register through the Georgia Tax Center if you sell taxable goods, such as plants, mulch, stone or other materials you resell to customers, or if you have employees. Registration is free. Sales tax registration is not a business license, and it does not replace the local certificate in Step 4.
The state sales tax rate is 4%. Combined state and local rates run from 6% to 9% depending on the county and city, and Atlanta’s combined rate is 8.9%. Confirm with the Department of Revenue which of your charges are taxable, because the answer depends on what you sell and how you bill it. When you buy materials to resell to customers, you use Form ST-5, the certificate of exemption. Georgia issues no separate resale permit.
Step 4: Get Your Local Occupation Tax Certificate
Georgia issues no general statewide business license. The Secretary of State issues none, and sales tax registration is not one. The local license is an occupation tax certificate, often called a business license, issued under O.C.G.A. Title 48, chapter 13. A city issues it for businesses inside city limits, and the county issues it for unincorporated areas. More than half of Georgians live outside any city, so the county is their issuer. A business inside a city pays the city, not the county.
Georgia has 159 counties and about 537 cities and towns, and each sets its own formula, deadlines and prerequisites. Ask the office that issues the certificate what it charges and what documents it needs. Private employers with more than 10 employees must file an E-Verify affidavit to get the certificate (O.C.G.A. 36-60-6). Also ask about zoning if you plan to store trucks and equipment at your home. For more on local licensing, see our Georgia business license guide.
Step 5: Apply for the Live Plant License
The Georgia Department of Agriculture requires a Live Plant License of live plant dealers and growers. The Department names landscapers and florists among dealers. Its fee table lists $75 for a florist or landscaper and $125 for dealers, re-wholesalers, agents or brokers.
Check the Department’s fee page, and confirm with the Department that the landscaper category fits your business before you pay. Ask specifically whether a company that sells or installs plants for customers is covered. The Department inspects licensees at random, so keep records of where your plants come from and keep your nursery stock labeled and documented.
Step 6: Get Both Pesticide Licenses If You Apply for Hire
Anyone who applies any pesticide, general use or restricted use, to another person’s property for a fee needs both a Commercial Applicator license and a Pesticide Contractor license. Herbicides, insecticides and fungicides all count. For lawns and ornamental plants, the category is Category 24 (Ornamental and Turf).
- Pass the applicator exams. The applicator passes the general standards exam and a category exam, with a score of 70 percent to pass. The exam is given through the Georgia technical colleges at $45 per attempt. After you pass, the Department charges $90 for the commercial applicator license.
- Get the contractor license. The Pesticide Contractor license costs $55 a year and runs on the calendar year. A late renewal adds a 50 percent penalty. Your company must employ at least one full-time certified commercial applicator, and it must meet financial responsibility requirements. Ask the Department what insurance or bond amount applies, because this guide does not state an amount.
- Keep your credentials current. Recertification for Category 24 requires 10 hours of continuing education.
Unlicensed application can bring a fine of up to $1,000 per violation. Get your applicator certified before you bid any spraying job, and do not let a crew member spray for pay under someone else’s credentials.
Step 7: Follow the Irrigation Rules
Irrigation work has its own limits, and the most common mistake is assuming it needs a broad specialty license. Any person may install the plumbing part of a lawn sprinkler system that sits downstream of a backflow preventer, provided a licensed plumber installed that preventer. Tapping into the water line itself requires a master plumber or a utility contractor. Low voltage contractor licensing is not the requirement for irrigation work.
Customers, property managers and some utilities may ask for a certified irrigation contractor credential. It is a useful marketing and bidding credential, but it is not a state requirement for every irrigation job. Ask the customer or utility what they need before you price a job.
Step 8: Check Grading and Erosion Rules
Grading or soil disturbance can require local erosion and sediment control permits. Some projects may call for a Level 1A erosion control certification. Check with the local permit office and with the Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission to learn what applies in your area and to your project. Not every landscaper needs this certification. Routine planting, mulching and mowing usually do not disturb soil in the way a grading project does.
Stamped design drawings are a different matter. Landscape architecture is a separate licensed profession under the Secretary of State. If a client needs stamped plans, hire a licensed landscape architect rather than drawing the plans yourself.
Step 9: Insure the Business and Hire Carefully
Get general liability insurance before your first job, and ask your agent how your pesticide and irrigation work affects your coverage. Workers’ compensation is required once you have three or more workers, and that count includes part-time workers. See our Georgia workers’ compensation requirements guide. Georgia has no state paid sick leave or family leave mandate, but check federal rules and your local requirements before you set your own leave policy.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Assuming there is a state business license. Georgia issues none. Your local occupation tax certificate is the license you need to check.
- Treating sales tax registration as a business license. It is a tax registration only.
- Filing a trade name with the Secretary of State. Trade names go to the Clerk of Superior Court in your county.
- Spraying for pay with only one license. Pesticide work for hire needs both the applicator and the contractor license.
- Missing the annual registration window. The LLC annual registration is due January 1 to April 1.
- Assuming every project needs Level 1A. Check the specific job with the local permit office.
- Hiring a third worker without workers’ compensation. The requirement applies at three or more workers, including part-time staff.
- Relying on the state contractor list without checking it. The Board list is marked subject to change, so confirm it before you bid.
What to Expect
Many owners find that the entity and tax steps move fastest, while the pesticide exam and local certificate take the most planning. Online Articles of Organization often take about 7 to 10 business days, so you may want to finish your bids and insurance setup while you wait. Exam scheduling at a technical college may depend on seat availability, so plan for the possibility that your first pesticide job starts after your entity is active. Results for your business will depend on your pricing, your service area and your customer base, and no outcome is guaranteed.
Disclaimer
This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Rules, fees and deadlines change. Confirm each figure with the agency named in the article before you file or pay. For complex situations, such as hiring a crew, structuring your entity, or handling pesticide liability, consult a qualified Georgia attorney or CPA.