Links to Organizations & Agencies
While this site provides access to basic information for starting and operating a business in Missouri, it is only a starting point. It is not intended to provide legal advice or replace the services of an attorney, accountant or other professional.
The Business Portal is a gateway to your business in Missouri, a one-stop shop for business owners to access on-line information on operating businesses in this state. The site focuses on four key areas in business operations: research, registration, maintenance and resources. There is information to guide business owners through the procedures and regulations for starting a business, growing a business and wrapping up a business. It also provides links to other state and federal agency websites with information on employment taxes, development and capital raising programs and business consulting.
MOSourceLink connects small business owners with a network of nonprofit resource organizations that provide business-building services. They facilitate the linking of these resource organizations to one another and to established, emerging and start-up small businesses throughout the region.
The Resource Navigator allows you to do your own customized online search for the network resources in your area that can meet your needs. You can use the Resource Navigator in addition to talking to a real person at MOSourceLink, or you can begin your search with the Resource Navigator.
The Missouri Department of Revenue site provides tax forms, publications, information, answers to frequently asked questions, court case summaries, and letter rulings relating to income, sales/use, and other business taxes.
If you plan to conduct business in Missouri, make retail sales or hire employees you must register with the Missouri Department of Revenue. For information on how to register, visit their website at http://smallbiztax.mo.gov/.
This Internal Revenue Service site includes information about federal taxation and reporting.
Business owners are faced with a maze of legal and regulatory requirements concerning their employees. This Missouri agency provides helpful information on issues such as disability, discrimination, job seeking services, labor market, labor laws, unemployment, workers' compensation, and worker safety.
If asked in writing by OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Administration) or BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) or a state agency operating under the authority of OSHA or the BLS. All employers, including partially exempted by reason of company size or industry classification, must report to OSHA any workplace incident that results in a fatality or work related injury. Below are some websites that you can visit to access OSHA Recordkeeping requirements and BLS Survey Occupational Injury & Illness Survey information.
OSHA Recordkeeping Requirements
BLS Occupational Injury & Illness Survey
Department of Labor & Industrial Relations
New employers are required to file an Unemployment Tax Registration with the Division of Employment Security (DES) to determine whether or not they are liable to provide unemployment coverage to employees.
New employers that employ five or more employees (or one or more if in the construction industry) are required to carry workers' compensation insurance. Employers are also required to report any workplace injuries that require medical treatment (other than immediate first aid) or cause an employee to miss work to the Division of Workers' Compensation within 30 days of knowledge of the injury. Workplace fatalities are also required to be reported within that same time frame.
All employers are required to post several workplace posters containing state and federal laws in a visible location in the place of employment for all to see. Posters can be downloaded or requested free of charge by visiting https://labor.mo.gov/posters or calling 573-751-4091.
The division provides administrative support to 40 professional licensing boards and commissions responsible for licensing and regulating the activities of approximately 430,000 Missourians.
The division exists to serve and protect the public from incompetency, misconduct, gross negligence, fraud, misrepresentation or dishonesty by providing an accessible, responsible and accountable regulatory system that licenses only qualified professionals by examination and evaluation of minimum competency and enforces standards by implementing legislation and administrative rules.
The division provides services for businesses and job seekers through the Missouri Career Centers and jobs.mo.gov. The division works with a number of strategic partners to “skill-up” Missouri’s workforce for today’s business and industry needs. A wealth of information and resources about workforce services can be found on WorkSmartMissouri.
Access to capital is important for a business' growth and success. But it is also important to be aware that, like all states, Missouri regulates how businesses can legally raise capital.
The Missouri Linked Deposit Program partners with lending institutions to provide low-interest loans to help create and retain jobs, expand the economy and strengthen communities statewide. By reducing the interest rate on certain loans that borrowers can use to improve their businesses, the program helps qualified lenders from Missouri better serve Missouri-based companies and agricultural operations. The program also provides funds for local governments to serve the interests of their constituents. Using the program allows lenders to lower the interest rates to the borrower by about 2-3 percent.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) is a federal agency that offers a wide variety of services for new and expanding businesses, including business seminars on advertising/marketing, financial sources, record-keeping, insurance, legal considerations, computers, and business loan programs. SBA also offers free counseling to small businesses through the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE). The Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) provide management assistance to current and prospective small business owners in regional branch locations.
(Minority Owned & Women Owned Businesses)
The office of Equal Opportunity exists to promote a diversified workforce within state government and to assist women and minorities in developing opportunities to contract with the state economically empowering traditionally underserved communities and improving the overall fiscal vitality of the State of Missouri.
This link provides websites for the Missouri legislature and elected officials, and links to most agencies and departments of the executive branch of Missouri state government