south carolina knife makers!: do i need a permit to sell knives

TheSnakeman

TheSnakeman

Joined
Dec 27, 2012
Messages
810
hi
do i need a busness permit if i am making and selling knives as a hobby type thing?
thanks
Thomas
 
is there any point that i would need one?
my family is worried about this so i want to make sure
 
No. There is no restricting of the making of bladed weapons federally or in any state that I am aware of. There are hardly any regs on selling them either, and I'm not aware of any in SC. Just laws about carrying them... Guns and anything the BATFE can consider an AOW (any other weapon) do carry restrictions that must be abided by for production or sale.

You will need the requisite business licenses and tax documents if you meet certain thresholds.

If you are that concerned about it, pick up the phone and call your local District Atty's office. They'd be the ones prosecuting you so they would likely know. And most are friendly and helpful. They are elected officials after all... :)
Most state code books are online and fairly easily searchable.


-Eric
 
There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of articles on the web about the differences between a hobby and a business. Legally, you are required to pay taxes on any profits you make in any activity. The difference in the IRS perspective really comes down to deducting losses and depreciating assets. That is when they will exercise a litmus test to determine if you have a hobby or a business by their definition.

There are activities in some hobbies that require licensing. Hobby farming comes to mind; you don't need a license to be a hobby farmer but you may need a license to spray certain chemicals or buy/administer certain vaccines for livestock. Knifemaking as a hobby may not require any license but that doesn't mean that you are not bound to the local laws for selling, transporting, distributing certain kinds of knives.

Your last post makes it sound like you are intending to make money at knifemaking at some point. When you begin to streamline your processes, manufacture in quantity, and buy in bulk, you will need to start looking at business licensing as required for your area.

Bob
 
Your local laws may vary. Each define "business" differently and some municipalities prevent businesses from operating in residential areas. Where I live I cannot act as a business because of residential zoning.
 
Snakeman- all the advice here is sage and to the point. The one place I would steer you is to contact your local SBDA (Small Business Development Association) and as well go to the IRS website and look up sole-proprietorship business. These are the rules the IRS and your local city/county Commissioner of Revenue (the tax folks!) will use to determine your interest is a "Hobby" or a legally taxable "Business".

Have a conversation with a local accountant as well- ask specifically what labels you a "business" in the eyes of the government.

Learn the rules and the standard you will be held to- so you know how far a "hobby" is versus a "business." Ignorance is not an excuse the tax man, code official, fire marshal, or the government will accept.
 
I don't know about South Carolina, but I created a business through the State of Texas so that I can collect sales tax, and then give it to the state. Here, if you are manufacturing or selling goods, then sales tax is supposed to be collected. I followed the rules just to be sure that I stay out of trouble.

Mike L.
 
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