Newport News, VA Local Taxes & Fees: Business Tax Classification (2026)
Key Facts
- Contracting rate
- $0.16 per $100 gross receipts
- Retail rate
- $0.20 per $100 gross receipts
- Financial/professional rate
- $0.58 per $100 gross receipts
- Filing deadline
- March 1 annually
Summary
Newport News sorts every business into one of four BPOL license-tax classes, contracting, retail, financial/real estate/professional, or the catchall repair-and-services category, each carrying its own gross-receipts tax rate.
Every person or entity engaged in repair, personal and business services, and all other businesses and occupations not specifically listed or excepted shall annually pay to the city a license fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) when total gross receipts are fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) or less...or a license tax at the rate of thirty-six cents ($0.36) per one hundred dollars ($100.00) on total gross receipts when total gross receipts are in excess of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00).
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 81).
Full Breakdown
The city's business license (BPOL) tax sorts every business into one of four rate classes set out in Chapter 23, Article II: contractors pay $0.16 per $100 of gross receipts (§23-33), retailers pay $0.20 (§23-34), financial/real estate/professional services pay $0.58 (§23-35), and repair, personal, business, and any other unlisted service business falls into the $0.36 catchall class (§23-36). Businesses with $50,000 or less in gross receipts pay a flat $30 fee; between $50,000 and $100,000, a flat $50 fee. Licenses are issued annually by the Commissioner of the Revenue.
Violations & Fines
Operating without the required license is a misdemeanor under §23-6; the Commissioner may also assess an additional 10 percent late-payment penalty plus 8 percent annual interest on unpaid tax.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which class covers a general 'other services' business?
Is there a flat fee for small businesses?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Newport News
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