Nothing else in your registration works until this number exists. It is the first real step, and it is free-ish and fast.
A UBI — Unified Business Identifier — is the nine-digit number Washington uses to track your business across agencies. You get it by registering your business with the Department of Revenue (or, if you form an LLC, through the Secretary of State, which coordinates the UBI). L&I will not register you as a contractor without it.
Register the business and get the UBI first. Then your bond, insurance, and contractor application all reference the same registered name and number. Skip ahead and buy a bond before your business exists, and you risk a name mismatch that stalls everything.
Pick your exact business name once and use it everywhere — DOR, the bank, the bond, the insurance certificate, the L&I application. “Andy's Plumbing” and “Andy's Plumbing & Drain LLC” are different names to a computer. Consistency here prevents 80% of the paperwork headaches downstream.
When you register with DOR you also handle your business license and any tax registrations. If you are going to hire, this is where the path to a workers' comp account begins too. Decide LLC or sole proprietor before you file, because it changes how you register.
The free builder points you to the DOR and UBI path. The paid roadmap goes deeper on name consistency and filing order.
Build My Free RoadmapA UBI, or Unified Business Identifier, is the nine-digit number Washington uses to track a business across state agencies. The Department of Revenue, Labor & Industries, and the Secretary of State all reference the same number.
By registering the business with the Department of Revenue. Forming an LLC through the Secretary of State also coordinates a UBI.
Yes. L&I will not register a contractor without one. The business registration and UBI come first, then the bond, insurance, and contractor application all reference that same name and number.
Primary Washington state agencies first, then supporting references. Figures verified July 2026 — always re-check current amounts before you file.