In-Depth Articles Starting a Small Business   Whether you are starting your first small business from an idea or have decided to purchase an existing business and are wondering what to do next, we at Hughes Snell & Co PA are here to help. Our professional and courteous staff has a wealth of knowledge and experience in all aspect of starting your own business. You’ve taken the first step but you’re not done yet. We have compiled a checklist of things to consider as you embark on this exciting journey.   Select a professional to help you with the process. This could be an attorney, certified public accountant or a business mentor. Choose an appropriate entity type for your business and form your company using an on-line service or with the aid of an attorney depending on the complexity required. Working with a tax professional can help you better take advantage of the tax laws and an attorney should be consulted if your business model is complex, you have multiple owners or complex repayment schedules with investors. Once the company has been formed you should obtain an employer or tax identification number from the IRS. Now is also a good time to complete any required forms such as those for electing entity tax treatment or the electing of S corporation status. The EIN/TIN can be obtained on-line at www.irs.gov. Be certain to research and complete any required city, county or state license applications. You may also need to register with the state for the collection of sales tax or to meet certain other state tax requirements. Consider your need for payroll processing. You will need to be able to process payroll if you have employees or even just for yourself depending on the entity type you selected. Be sure to consider a payroll service or an employee leasing company and assess workers compensation availability and cost. Assess your software and record keeping needs and select the appropriate software and provider. You may have need for a full point-of-sale retail system or you may just need a basic bookkeeping and accounting application in order to run reports and summarize data at year-end.   We at Hughes Snell & Co PA will be more than happy to help guide you through this entire process, help with any of the items above or with any other questions you may have about starting your business, please contact us for assistance. Help is also always available on the web.  Click here to be redirected to our Links page that outlines many helpful websites for small business. Back to In-Depth Articles Back to Resources   To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the IRS, we inform you that any tax advice contained in this communication is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding penalties assessed under the Internal Revenue Code.