How to Start a Solar Installation Business in Utah: Contractor Licence and Utility Interconnection

If you want to know how to start a solar installer business in Utah, plan on three tracks running at the same time: forming the company, getting the right state contractor classification, and meeting the utility's rules so your customers' systems can be connected to the grid. This guide covers each track in the order most installers handle them, with the fees we could verify and a clear note wherever you need to confirm a number yourself.

Informational only: This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Entity choice, licensing eligibility and tax treatment depend on your facts. Consult a Utah business attorney and a CPA before you sign leases, hire crews or sign customer contracts.

What you need before you start

Gather these items before you file anything. Several of them depend on each other, so the order matters.

• A business name that is distinguishable on the Division's records and meets Utah's entity name rules
• A registered agent with a Utah street address
• Filing fees for the entity you choose: $59 for an LLC Certificate of Organization or corporate Articles of Incorporation
• Your S202 Solar Photovoltaic Contractor application and the experience, bond and insurance documents DOPL requires for that class
• A licensed E200 or E201 electrical contractor on staff or under subcontract for any wiring work
• A city or county business license application for every place you will operate
• A Utah sales tax license from the Tax Commission, if you have an established presence in Utah as a seller
• The current Rocky Mountain Power net billing terms and interconnection forms, if your customers are in its territory

Step 1: Form the company and register the name

Most installers form an LLC. Utah files it as a Certificate of Organization with the Utah Division of Corporations and Commercial Code in the Department of Commerce. The filing fee is $59. Most online filings made through the Utah Business Registration System at businessregistration.utah.gov are approved instantly. Filings that need manual review are stated at 2 to 4 business days from receipt, and the Division has posted 7 to 10 business days during backlogs. Expedited processing adds $75 per filing.

Your name must contain 'limited liability company,' 'limited company,' or an accepted abbreviation such as LLC or L.L.C. It must be distinguishable on the Division's records and cannot imply that you are a state agency or political subdivision. If you need to hold a name while you finish paperwork, a name reservation costs $22 and lasts 120 days.

Every entity must name a registered agent for service of process. The agent needs a Utah street address, and a PO box may be listed only in addition to a street address. A commercial registered agent is an option if you do not want to use your own address. Commercial registered agent registration costs $52.

An LLC is taxed by default as a partnership or sole proprietorship. Income passes through to the members and is taxed at Utah's flat 4.45 percent individual income tax rate (2026). An LLC that elects corporate treatment pays the 4.45 percent corporate franchise and income tax, with a $100 minimum tax. The only recurring state filing cost is the $18 annual renewal, due one year after registration and every year after. The renewal window opens 60 days before the anniversary date, and a late renewal adds a $10 fee. Ask a CPA which structure fits your ownership and payroll plans before you choose.

A corporation files Articles of Incorporation for the same $59 fee and renews with an $18 annual report in its anniversary month.

If you will market under a name other than your legal name, register an assumed name (DBA). Assumed names are filed with the state Division, not the county. Registration costs $22, and renewal is $18 per year.

Step 2: Get the S202 solar contractor license from DOPL

The Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) licenses solar installers as contractors under Utah Admin. Code R156-55a-301. The classification you want is S202, Solar Photovoltaic Contractor. It covers fabrication, construction, installation and replacement of photovoltaic modules and related components.

Know the boundary before you sell. The S202 excludes wiring, connections and wire methods governed by the National Electrical Code. An S202 may hire or subcontract an E200 or E201 electrical contractor for that work. If you bid a full job without an electrical employee or subcontractor, you are bidding work your license does not cover.

DOPL sets the experience, bond and insurance rules for this class. Confirm the current requirements, application fees and processing times directly with DOPL at dopl.utah.gov before you set a launch date. This guide does not state those figures as settled.

Step 3: Line up your electrical partner

Decide before your first sale how the wiring and connections will be done. You can hire an E200 or E201 electrician or subcontract the work to one. Get a signed subcontract that names the electrician's license number, defines the wire-method scope and states who pulls the permits. Check that license with DOPL before each project, because an electrical partner is only useful while the license is active.

Step 4: Get the city or county business license

Utah has no statewide general business license. Registering your entity with the Division is a registration, not a license. After registering, get a business license from the city or town where you are located or operating. Outside city limits, the county issues the license. A city license does not transfer to another city, so a shop in one city does not cover crews working in the next. Apply in each jurisdiction where you keep a shop, store equipment or work jobs, and ask for the current fee, because local rates are not stated in this guide.

Step 5: Register for sales tax

A seller with an established presence in Utah needs a sales tax license from the Utah State Tax Commission. Apply through the TAP system at tap.tax.utah.gov. The state sales tax rate is 4.85 percent, and combined state and local rates run from 6.35 to 10.05 percent depending on the jurisdiction. Ask the Tax Commission and your CPA how sales tax applies to installed systems and to equipment you sell separately, because installation contracts and equipment sales can be treated differently.

Step 6: Confirm insurance and bonding

Pull the current bond and insurance rules for the S202 class from DOPL before you buy coverage. Then talk to an insurance agent about general liability for rooftop work, and about workers' compensation once you hire employees. Do not treat your coverage as settled until the agent has reviewed your actual scope, including any subcontracted electrical work.

Step 7: Set up utility interconnection with Rocky Mountain Power

In Rocky Mountain Power territory, solar customers are served under net billing through Schedule 137. The program applies to agreements filed after October 30, 2020. The export credit rate is reset every year, so do not quote a fixed export rate from an old article, including this one. The 2026 update was made in Public Service Commission of Utah docket 26-035-T03. Check that docket and the current utility tariff for the rate in force.

Build your quoting process around the utility's requirements. Confirm the current interconnection application, the system information Rocky Mountain Power requires and its review timeline before you sign a contract with a customer. If a job sits in another utility's service area, that utility's tariff governs, and you need to check it separately.

Step 8: Check solicitor rules before you knock on doors

Door-to-door solar sales can require a solicitor license, and the rules are set city by city and county by county. Two examples from official 2026 pages: Lehi requires a $50 license per solicitor, along with a BCI report. In unincorporated Summit County, the solicitor license is $200, plus a $20 badge. Confirm the current requirements with each city or county where you plan to canvass before you schedule a crew. A missing solicitor license can stop a whole sales day, so put the check on your planning calendar.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Bidding wiring as part of the S202 scope. The license excludes National Electrical Code wiring and connections, so an E200 or E201 must perform or be subcontracted for that work.
• Treating a state filing as a business license. The Division registration does not replace the city or county license.
• Assuming one city license covers a neighboring city. A city license does not transfer between cities.
• Filing a DBA with the county. Assumed names are filed with the state Division.
• Quoting an export rate from memory. Schedule 137 resets yearly, so check the current figure in the PSC docket or the tariff before each quote.
• Skipping solicitor checks because you already hold a state contractor license. Door-to-door sales can trigger local licensing on their own.

What to expect once you are operating

Once your entity, S202 license, city or county license, sales tax account and interconnection process are in place, you can bid residential and commercial jobs. Results depend on the roof, location, system size and utility rules. A customer may see lower utility bills, but the actual effect depends on the system and the export credit rate in effect at the time. Do not promise specific savings, offset percentages or payback periods unless you can document the basis for them.

Fee and renewal summary

Item	Agency	Cost	Renewal or timing
LLC Certificate of Organization	Division of Corporations and Commercial Code	$59	$18 annual renewal, $10 late fee
Expedited processing	Division of Corporations and Commercial Code	$75 per filing	Optional
Name reservation	Division of Corporations and Commercial Code	$22	Holds the name for 120 days
Assumed name (DBA)	Division of Corporations and Commercial Code	$22	$18 per year
Commercial registered agent registration	Division of Corporations and Commercial Code	$52	Confirm with the Division
Sales tax license	Utah State Tax Commission (TAP)	Confirm on TAP	Confirm with the Tax Commission
S202 Solar Photovoltaic Contractor license	DOPL	Confirm with DOPL	Confirm with DOPL
City or county business license	Each city, town or county	Varies, confirm locally	Varies, confirm locally

Where to confirm current figures

• Utah Division of Corporations and Commercial Code
• Utah Business Registration System
• Utah State Tax Commission and its sales tax account on TAP
• Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL)
• Public Service Commission of Utah, for docket 26-035-T03
• Rocky Mountain Power, for the current Schedule 137 tariff
• Utah Small Business Development Center for planning help

Next steps

Work through this list in order. Confirm your name and file the entity, pull the DOPL requirements and line up your electrical partner, then apply for your city or county license and the sales tax account. Before you quote any customer, check the Rocky Mountain Power terms in force. A CPA can advise on entity tax treatment, and a Utah business attorney can review your customer contract and subcontract. This guide is informational, not legal or tax advice, so verify each figure with the agency before you rely on it.