Lexington Cleaning Business License Requirements
Launching a cleaning business in Lexington, Kentucky requires coordinating registrations across state and (where applicable) local agencies. There is no specialized "janitorial contractor license" in Kentucky — cleaning companies operate under general business licensing and state entity registration rules.
| Requirement | Agency | Fee | Resource |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky entity registration (LLC or Corp) | KY SOS | $40 (LLC) / $40 (Corp); Annual Report: $15 | sos.ky.gov |
| Annual state fee / franchise tax | State revenue or SOS | KY Annual Report: $15; LFUCG Occupational Tax: 1.75% net profits | See state filing portal |
| Local business license / registration | City/County of Lexington | 1.75% net profits tax on Lexington-sourced income; license base fee: $25/yr | www.lexingtonky.gov |
| State sales/excise tax permit | State DOR | Free (registration) | State tax portal |
| EIN (Federal) | IRS | Free | irs.gov |
Step-by-Step Registration Process
Step 1 — Form Your Entity. Register your LLC or corporation with KY SOS at https://sos.ky.gov/bus/business-filings/. Fee: $40 (LLC) / $40 (Corp); Annual Report: $15.
Step 2 — Obtain Your EIN. Apply for a federal Employer Identification Number at irs.gov. Free and immediate. Required before opening a business bank account.
Step 3 — Local Business License. Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government (LFUCG) Occupational License. Fee: 1.75% net profits tax on Lexington-sourced income; license base fee: $25/yr. Obtain at: https://www.lexingtonky.gov/revenue-division.
Step 4 — Sales Tax Registration. Cleaning services are EXEMPT in Kentucky. Kentucky does NOT tax cleaning/janitorial services. KY DOR has ruled cleaning services are nontaxable. KY has a flat 6% state sales tax with no local additions. Cleaning supplies sold to clients are taxable at 6%.
Step 5 — Workers' Compensation. Required for 1+ employee (KY Department of Workers' Claims, labor.ky.gov).
Special Permits
KY KDEP permit for regulated waste; LFUCG Public Works permit not typically required for standard cleaning.
Insurance Minimums
| Coverage | Minimum | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| General Liability (per occurrence) | $1,000,000 | Many commercial property managers require $2M |
| GL Aggregate | $2,000,000 | Healthcare and government may require $5M umbrella |
| Workers' Compensation | Required for 1+ employee (KY Department of Workers' Claims, | State-specific threshold applies |
| Commercial Auto | $100,000/$300,000 | If employees drive to job sites |
Sales Tax: Lexington (6.0%)
Kentucky does NOT tax cleaning/janitorial services. KY DOR has ruled cleaning services are nontaxable. KY has a flat 6% state sales tax with no local additions. Cleaning supplies sold to clients are taxable at 6%.
Union Considerations
Kentucky is right-to-work. Low BSC union density. University of Kentucky and Lexington Fayette County government generate institutional cleaning RFPs.
Free Tool
Get your complete compliance checklist for Lexington — licenses, insurance, tax, and more.
Lexington Local Market Context
Lexington's cleaning market is anchored by University of Kentucky (one of the largest universities in the Southeast), Lexington medical corridor (UK HealthCare, CHI Saint Joseph), horse farm facilities in the Bluegrass Region, and a growing tech sector (Red River Technology). The downtown Short Street and Chevy Chase commercial areas are growing small-operator markets. BLS 2024 median janitorial wage: $14.90/hr.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is Lexington's occupational tax, and is it different from what Louisville charges?
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government charges 1.75% on net business profits sourced from Lexington, which comes in slightly under Louisville's 2.2%. The base license fee is a flat $25 per year. You register and file through the LFUCG Revenue Division at lexingtonky.gov/revenue-division. If you work both markets, remember the tax follows where the profit is sourced, so the two cities are calculated separately rather than as one Kentucky number.
Do I need to charge sales tax on the cleaning services I invoice in Lexington?
No. Kentucky exempts cleaning services from its flat 6% state sales tax, and there are no local sales tax additions layered on top in Lexington. Where it gets tricky is product: cleaning supplies you sell to a client are taxable at 6%. So if you resell paper goods or chemicals alongside your service, that invoice needs two treatments — an exempt service line and a taxable goods line.
How do cleaning contracts at the University of Kentucky actually get advertised?
UK runs custodial RFPs through its own eProcurement portal at purchasing.uky.edu, so you register there directly rather than watching a general state feed. It is worth the setup time: UK is one of the largest employers in Kentucky, which means both the contract volume and the square footage behind these solicitations are substantial for a Lexington-based operator.
Which public buyers besides UK put cleaning work out to bid around Lexington?
LFUCG posts cleaning contracts for city-county facilities, and Kentucky state government buildings in the area do as well. Those state opportunities run through the Kentucky eProcurement portal at ebidnow.ky.gov, which is a separate registration from UK's purchasing site. Getting into both systems, plus LFUCG, covers the three main public pipelines available to a Lexington cleaning company.
How we built this guide
Opora editorial sources from BLS OEWS wage tables, ISSA-447 production rates, NCCI workers' compensation classifications, EPA List N, OSHA 29 CFR standards, and primary state regulatory filings. We don't recycle blog posts — we audit primary documents.
Methodology · Editorial standards · Corrections policy · About Opora