I am trying to get licensed and bonded for my cleaning business in Virginia. What are the steps that I need to take? Is it through the government or a privately owned business?|||In regards to a license, you should check to see if your local community requires a business license for general cleaning, many don't. Insurance is for your protection, you should discuss it with a local insurance agent. As for bonding, that's for your client's protection and could help you get work. What you are looking for is a Janitorial Bond. It is a form of a fidelity bond and very similar to insurance. It protects your clients in the event an employee is arrested and convicted for stealing from them. You will not be expected to cover the loss. The rates are based upon the number of employees and the amount of coverage. They range from a $5000 bond with less than 5 employees at $100 to a $100,000 with 25 employees less than $800. These are instant issue bonds are readily available on the internet. You can run a Google search for Janitorial Bond and find a site that has on line submissions. One of those sites processing on line applications is www.southcoastsurety.com. You can get more information on this bond and a link to the application at http://southcoastsurety.com/fidelity-bon鈥?/a>|||You will have to do some legwork to find out who regulates the license you are looking to obtain. You will want to ask the licensing department what their requirements for obtain a license are to ensure you can meet all of their standards. Some common requirements include, but are not limited to: passing a test, meeting certain financial requirements, industry experience, clean criminal records, and of course, a surety bond. I can not comment too much on licensing requirements, as they vary greatly depending on occupation and the location of where you are planning on operating. Fortunately, I can go into great detail about getting bonded! As stated above, you are going to want to make certain you can meet all of the requirements to qualify for a license. This is extremely important, as most bonding companies will not do pro-rated returns on cancellations of first year bonds. To get bonded, you will need to find a bond producer (also known as a bond agent). Just as in any profession, the level of competence varies greatly. If you are in need of a bond producer, you should read our article What Makes A Good Surety Bond Producer.|||A bond is an insurance product; so you'd start with the guy who does your business insurance or your house or car insurance, to see if he can write a bond for you. If he can't, he can give you a referral to a LOCAL agent who can. Keep in mind, a bond probably doesn't do what you probably think it does - it's payable to ONLY the obligee (person) and isn't transferrable. The only person who can "claim" on it, is the person you named when you first take it out.

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