Commercial cleaning and janitorial insurance in Nevada

Nevada licenses and payroll taxes every cleaning company handles

Nevada's list is short on cleaning-specific rules and long on business taxes. Here's the order most owners work through it.

State filing and the State Business License

Entities file with the Nevada Secretary of State through SilverFlume. Nevada has no state-level janitorial license, but nearly every business needs a State Business License under NRS chapter 76. It costs $200 to apply and $200 to renew each year, or $500 for corporations organized under NRS chapters 78, 78A or 78B and foreign corporations filing annual lists. The renewal goes in with your annual list. Confirm the current fees with the Secretary of State.

The county or city license

Local licensing starts with where your business is located, not its mailing address. Clark County is made up of six jurisdictions, each with its own licensing agency, and the county itself licenses businesses in unincorporated areas, which take in much of the valley with a Las Vegas mailing address. A company based in a city that also works in unincorporated county areas may need a county license on top of its city license. Confirm your jurisdiction before you file.

Sales tax and the two business taxes

Nevada's sales tax falls on retailers for selling tangible personal property at retail (NRS 372.105). Cleaning is a service, so your cleaning fees aren't taxed, and you pay tax when you buy supplies for your own use. A seller's permit is needed only if you sell goods.

Payroll is where the state collects. Every employer files the quarterly Modified Business Tax (MBT) return, even when nothing is owed. For general businesses, the rate is 1.17% on wages above $50,000 in a calendar quarter. If your Nevada gross revenue tops $4 million a year, you also owe the Commerce Tax. Administrative and support services, the NAICS 561 sector that includes janitorial work, pay 0.154% on revenue above $4 million, and half the Commerce Tax you pay can be credited against the MBT. Check the details with the Nevada Department of Taxation or your CPA.

Wages and school contracts

No Nevada law targets janitorial employers. The statewide minimum wage is $12.00 an hour, a single rate since July 1, 2024.

If you clean public schools, NRS 391.905 requires a contractor to keep a record for each employee who may have direct contact with pupils and, before assigning one, to tell the district about any known employer investigation or finding of a sexual offense involving that worker. Willful violations can cost up to $10,000 each and put you on a state list of contractors that districts can't hire (NRS 391.930).

Nevada workers' comp for janitorial employers

Unless a statute excludes them, every Nevada employer with one or more employees must provide comp, according to the Division of Industrial Relations. Nevada is an NCCI state, so janitorial contractors are normally rated under class 9014. A sole proprietor with no employees doesn't have to cover themselves but may choose to.

DIR also describes a rule that can treat subcontractors, independent contractors and their workers as employees of the principal contractor when they lack coverage (NRS 616A.210). We haven't confirmed how it applies to janitorial subcontracting, so collect a current comp certificate from every sub crew before it starts.

The penalties for going without are steep: an administrative fine of up to $15,000, premium penalties, an order closing the business until you're covered, responsibility for every cost of a work injury, and possible criminal penalties in the worst cases. Our workers' comp page explains how payroll and audits set your premium.

What Nevada agencies look for in a janitorial bid

State work in Nevada can ask for more than a certificate. The State's Risk Management Division, in its insurance guidelines for state contracts, says to ask for employee dishonesty coverage when a contractor handles money, securities, other valuable property or data. It says that coverage should be endorsed for third-party fidelity, with the State as loss payee. A crew with keys to a state office fits that description. Its guidance also says comp is required when a contractor is incorporated or uses other people's services on the contract.

We didn't find a current Nevada janitorial solicitation with its insurance exhibit, so we won't quote limits. Read each solicitation's attachments before you price, and line up fidelity coverage early. Our guides to janitorial bonds and contract insurance requirements explain what each request means.

Get a quote for your cleaning business →

Nevada risks that show up on cleaning claims

Split shifts and daily overtime

A cleaner who finishes an office shift and then covers a second account for a sick co-worker can earn overtime that night under Nevada's daily rule. That overtime is payroll, and it raises the base your comp premium is figured on.

The guest who slipped

Nevada bars a claim only when the injured person's negligence is greater than the defendants' (NRS 41.141). Otherwise damages are reduced by their share. Example scenario: A convention attendee slips on a spilled drink your porter missed during a break between sessions. Even if she was looking at her phone, she can still recover part of her loss from your company.

Running uninsured

A Nevada business caught without comp can be ordered closed until coverage is in place, on top of fines up to $15,000. For a cleaning company, a closure means missed shifts and clients looking for a replacement.

Nevada places and what each one means for your paperwork

What affects cleaning insurance cost in Nevada

Payroll drives most of it. Nevada's $12.00 minimum wage is a single statewide rate, and we found no local minimums on top of it, but daily overtime can lift what you actually pay. Payroll is also what your MBT and comp premium are measured on, so a bigger crew raises all three. Bonds and limits required by public buyers add their own cost.

A janitorial bond's price usually depends on the bond amount and how many employees it covers, and some bonding companies also weigh your credit or time in business.

Your price depends on the payroll in each class code, your annual sales, the kinds of buildings you clean, how much specialty and chemical work you do, the vehicles your crews drive, your claims history and the limits your contracts require.

Our guide to cleaning insurance costs covers the rest. Get a quote for your cleaning business →

Commercial Cleaning Insurance Group is a brand of The Allen Thomas Group, licensed in Nevada (License #3933246, NPN 7642818). For a Nevada quote, send your quarterly payroll and any state solicitation you're answering, and our team will match the bond and policies to it.