How to Start a Business in Newnan, Georgia
How to Start a Business in Newnan, Georgia
Newnan has grown 173% since 2000. That’s not a typo. A city of 16,000 has become nearly 47,000 people, making it one of the fastest-growing cities in Georgia — and one of the more interesting places to open a business right now.
It’s also not just suburban sprawl. Newnan has a real downtown, a genuine history, and a customer base with money to spend. The median household income sits at $80,299. The median age is 35.9. That’s a young, employed population who moved here on purpose and tends to support local businesses.
This guide covers everything you need to do — state registration, Newnan’s occupation tax certificate, zoning, inspections, and the affidavits that trip people up — in the right order.
Why Newnan for Your Business
The short version: Newnan is 40 miles southwest of downtown Atlanta via I-85, close enough to draw Atlanta-area customers and talent, far enough to have lower overhead than anything inside the perimeter. GRTA Xpress Route 453 connects the Newnan Park & Ride directly to MARTA’s Lakewood/Ft. McPherson station, so your employees don’t all need cars to get to work.
The demographics are genuinely strong. Per capita income is $54,292. The population skews young — median age under 36 — which means growing families, first-time homebuyers, and people who haven’t locked in their loyalty to any particular service provider yet. That’s opportunity.
The city’s history adds something you can’t manufacture. Newnan’s antebellum architecture survived the Civil War because the city served as a hospital for both Union and Confederate troops — neither side had reason to burn a hospital town. Walk the courthouse square today and you’re looking at buildings from the 1800s. That’s a legitimate draw for visitors and a real asset if you’re thinking about retail or hospitality downtown.
The tornado in March 2021 is worth mentioning. An EF4 hit Newnan on March 26, 2021, damaging historic downtown and destroying Newnan High School. The city rebuilt faster than anyone expected. That kind of resilience signals something about the community — people invested in this place and weren’t leaving. The rebuilding brought updated infrastructure and renewed attention from the city government.
Beyond downtown, The Forum at Ashley Park is a major open-air retail center south of downtown with national retailers and local businesses. A public trolley connects the Forum to the courthouse square, which matters if you’re thinking about foot-traffic patterns. Two distinct commercial zones, linked.
On the education side: the University of West Georgia has a Newnan campus with nursing and early childhood education programs. Mercer University has a regional center here, opened in 2010. West Georgia Technical College operates a campus in Coweta County. That’s a pipeline of educated workers who may want to stay local rather than commute to Atlanta.
And if you need to move product or people: Coweta County is a recognized distribution and logistics hub, Piedmont Newnan Hospital is one of the major employers, and the Newnan–Coweta County Airport handles chartered air service and flight training. The state of Georgia has designated Coweta County an Entrepreneur Friendly Community — which means there are actual programs designed to help you get started.
Choose Your Business Structure
Before you touch any city paperwork, you need to know what kind of legal entity you’re operating.
LLC is the most common choice for small businesses. File online at ecorp.sos.ga.gov for $100. Processing takes 5–12 business days standard, or you can pay $100 for 2-day expedited, $250 for same-day. After that, you owe $60/year in annual registration fees to the Secretary of State (due between January 1 and April 1 — don’t miss it).
Sole proprietorship is the simplest structure, but if you’re operating under a name other than your legal name, you’ll need to register a DBA (trade name) with the Coweta County Superior Court Clerk. No Secretary of State filing required for the business itself, but you still need to go through all the local licensing steps.
Corporation costs the same to form as an LLC — $100 online through the Secretary of State’s eCorp portal. More administrative overhead, but worth it for certain situations (investors, equity compensation, etc.).
One thing specific to Newnan: the city allows licensed professionals — lawyers, physicians, CPAs, engineers, architects — to pay a flat $400 per practitioner occupation tax instead of the gross-receipts-based calculation. If you’re a high-revenue solo professional, run the math before you assume the gross receipts method is cheaper. It often isn’t.
Register with the State
After you’ve decided on structure, do the state-level registrations before you apply for local licensing.
Secretary of State — File your LLC or corporation at ecorp.sos.ga.gov. This is where your entity becomes legally real in Georgia.
EIN — Get your Employer Identification Number from the IRS at irs.gov/ein. Free, takes about 10 minutes online. You’ll need this for your bank account, tax registrations, and the city’s affidavit requirements.
Georgia Tax Center — Register at gtc.dor.ga.gov for sales tax collection, employer withholding, and any other state tax accounts. If you’re selling taxable goods or services in Newnan, the sales tax rate is 7% — that’s the 4% state base rate plus a 1% LOST (Local Option Sales Tax), 1% ESPLOST (Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax), and 1% SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) in Coweta County. Know this number before you set your prices.
Georgia’s state income tax is a flat 5.19% for 2025, dropping to 5.09% in 2026. No local income tax anywhere in Georgia — that simplifies things.
Get Your Newnan Occupation Tax Certificate
This is the main event for local licensing. Every business physically located in Newnan must obtain an Occupational Tax Certificate and display it at the place of business. No exceptions.
Where to go:
City Hall
25 LaGrange Street, Newnan, GA 30263
Phone: 678-673-5478 (ask for the Licensing Specialist)
Website: newnanga.gov
Applications are accepted online or in person. Not by email. Not by mail. Plan accordingly.
How the Tax Is Calculated
Newnan uses a profitability-ratio system, which is less common than the flat-rate or employee-count methods you’ll see in other Georgia cities. Your occupation tax equals your gross receipts multiplied by a profitability-ratio multiplier that varies by your industry’s SIC code — plus a $25 administrative fee on top.
The multiplier table isn’t something you can easily look up in a public chart. It’s tied to your specific industry classification. Call 678-673-5478 and give the Licensing Specialist your business type — they’ll tell you your exact rate. Don’t guess.
When you’re a new business, your initial tax is based on estimated gross receipts. When you renew, you report prior-year actuals. That means your first year is an estimate; subsequent years are reconciled against what you actually made.
Special categories worth knowing:
- Licensed professionals (lawyers, physicians, CPAs, engineers, architects, and others defined by city ordinance): can elect the flat $400 per professional + $25 admin fee instead of the gross receipts calculation. Each professional must individually apply if using this method. If you’re a solo practitioner expecting strong revenue, this cap often saves money.
- Insurance agents: flat $100 per location annually.
- Non-profits: $25 administrative fee only. You’ll need to provide your IRS 501(c) documentation.
- Qualifying disabled veterans (10%+ service-connected disability, under O.C.G.A. §§ 43-12-1 through 43-12-8): no fee. Certificate is issued at no charge.
The Application Process
Here’s the sequence:
- Complete the New Business Occupational Tax Certificate Application (available at newnanga.gov or in person at City Hall).
- Get zoning approval from the Planning & Zoning Department — located on the 2nd floor of City Hall. This step happens before your certificate is issued, no exceptions.
- If your location requires a building inspection or Fire Marshal review, that gets completed at this stage.
- Submit everything to the Finance Department with all required affidavits.
Mandatory Affidavits — Don’t Show Up Without These
Georgia state law requires two affidavits for every business license application in the state. Newnan enforces both.
SAVE Affidavit: verifies your lawful presence in the United States under O.C.G.A. § 50-36-1. Must be notarized. Bring a Secure and Verifiable Document — a driver’s license or passport works.
Private Employer Affidavit (E-Verify): if you have 11 or more employees, you must be registered for E-Verify and provide your user number. If you have fewer than 11 employees, you file an exemption affidavit. Either way, you need to address this on your application. Bring a copy of your driver’s license for each signer.
These aren’t optional formalities. Missing either one means your application doesn’t move forward.
Renewal Deadlines and Penalties
Certificates expire December 31 each year. Renewals are due January 1, with a grace period through April 15 — no penalty if you renew by then.
After April 15, an 11.5% penalty applies. That’s steeper than most Georgia cities. And postmarks are not accepted — if you’re paying by mail (which you shouldn’t, since applications go online or in person), the payment date is when it arrives, not when you sent it.
One more thing: if your business owes any delinquent amounts to the City of Newnan — unpaid taxes, yes, but also property tax liens, grass-cutting fees, anything — your certificate will not be issued until those are cleared. The city cross-references before approval. Check for any open balances before you apply.
Zoning, Inspections, and Special Requirements
Every new business needs zoning approval from the Planning & Zoning Department before the occupation tax certificate can be issued. This isn’t negotiable, and it happens at City Hall before you complete your application.
The good news: it’s often fast. If your building was recently inspected or is already in a commercial zone appropriate for your use, approval can happen the same day while you wait. If an on-site inspection is needed, it typically gets done within 24 hours. This isn’t a multi-week bureaucratic hold — plan for a day or two, not a month.
Home-based businesses still need an occupation tax certificate. But you’ll likely skip the building inspection step, since there’s no commercial space to inspect. Zoning still needs to approve your home address for the business type.
Alcohol
If you’re selling alcohol, there’s a separate licensing layer. You’ll need an annual certificate for on-premises or off-premises sales (separate permits for each), plus a 3% monthly alcohol excise tax and quarterly sales reports to the city. Start this process early — alcohol licensing takes longer than standard business licensing.
Health Department and State Licenses
Some businesses require approvals beyond the city:
- Health Department (Coweta County): 770-254-7422. Required for food service, childcare, and certain personal services.
- Georgia Department of Agriculture: 404-656-3645. Required for businesses selling food products, operating commercial kitchens for distribution, etc.
- State professional licenses: if you’re in a regulated profession (contractor, cosmetologist, real estate agent, etc.), your state license needs to be in order before or concurrent with your city application.
Buying an Existing Business
If you’re purchasing an existing Newnan business rather than starting from scratch, the previous owner must close out their license and pay all associated taxes in full before a new certificate can be issued in your name. Get written confirmation of this before you close on a purchase. Inheriting someone else’s tax delinquencies — even indirectly, through a blocked license — is not a situation you want to be in on day one.
Open for Business
Once your certificate is in hand, a few more items to close out before you open the doors.
Workers’ compensation insurance: required in Georgia once you have three or more employees. If you’re starting as a solo operation or with one other person, you’re not required to carry it yet — but the threshold comes fast if you grow.
Property tax check: if you’re purchasing real property for your business, or if you have personal property (equipment, inventory) on your books, make sure there are no delinquencies. As noted above, the city checks before issuing a certificate. Better to discover a lien during due diligence than at the licensing counter.
Coweta County: if your business is located inside Newnan city limits, the city occupation tax certificate is all you need at the local level. If you’re operating in unincorporated Coweta County — outside city limits — the county has its own business license requirement. Don’t assume city licensing covers county territory.
Resources Worth Using
Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce: genuine value for new businesses. Ribbon cuttings, business highlights in their e-newsletters, networking events, and introductions to other local business owners. If you’re new to the area, this is how you get known quickly.
Downtown Newnan / Main Street programs: if you’re leasing on or near the courthouse square, ask about Main Street programs and historic district incentives. There are sometimes grant opportunities and design assistance programs available for businesses in the historic core — worth a conversation before you sign a lease.
University of West Georgia–Newnan Campus: if you need to hire, the UWG nursing and education programs produce graduates who want to stay in Coweta County. Same with West Georgia Technical College. Build those relationships early.
The Sequence, Summarized
Start here if you want the checklist version:
- Choose your business structure (LLC, corporation, sole proprietorship, or DBA)
- File with Georgia Secretary of State at ecorp.sos.ga.gov if forming an LLC or corporation — $100
- Get your EIN from the IRS at irs.gov/ein — free
- Register with Georgia Tax Center at gtc.dor.ga.gov for sales tax and withholding
- Call 678-673-5478 to find out your occupation tax rate before you apply
- Complete your New Business Occupational Tax Certificate Application
- Get zoning approval from Planning & Zoning, 2nd floor, City Hall
- Complete building inspection / Fire Marshal review if required
- Submit application to Finance Department with SAVE Affidavit (notarized), Private Employer Affidavit, and driver’s license copies
- Display your certificate at your place of business once issued
The whole process, done right, can move fast. Zoning approval is often same-day. The city is set up to issue certificates relatively quickly once your paperwork is complete and your affidavits are in order.
The things that slow people down: missing affidavits, unresolved delinquencies, or trying to submit by email (which won’t work). Get those right on the front end and you won’t have a reason to make a second trip to City Hall.
Call the Licensing Specialist at 678-673-5478 with any question before you apply. That’s what they’re there for, and they can tell you your exact occupation tax rate, confirm what inspections you’ll need, and flag anything specific to your business type before you show up.