Ontario, CA Business Filing Deadlines & Ongoing Requirements
What a business in Ontario keeps doing after it opens: recurring filings, renewals and the events that trigger new obligations. Change the business details to fit yours.
Where Ontario, CA filings and renewals are tracked
City of OntarioNo official page confirmed either way yet. Checked 2026-10-13.
San Bernardino CountyHas its own business licenses, taxes or permits (listed below). Checked 2026-10-16.
Local items to renew or file
City business tax certificate — Ontario, San Bernardino County, California · City finance/business tax office: Ontario / San Bernardino County (city)
Obtain certificate of occupancy for premises in Ontario · Ontario (San Bernardino County) building department (city)
File San Bernardino County business personal property return · San Bernardino County Assessor-Recorder-Clerk (county)
Renewals, filing triggers and recurring deadlines in Ontario
7 items in your plan repeat on a schedule. Each one lists its authority and when it comes due.
Recurring filings and renewals
File federal income tax return: Form 1040 with Schedule C · every year · April 15 · IRS
File Statement of Information (California) · every two years · Within the anniversary month and the 5 months before it, every 2 years · California Secretary of State
Register for and file California entity-level taxes · every year · California Franchise Tax Board
Pay California minimum franchise tax ($800) · every year · 15th day of the 4th month of the tax year (estimated); return due 15th day of 3rd/4th month after year end · California Franchise Tax Board
File the annual unclaimed property holder report (California) · every year · October 31 · California unclaimed property program
City business tax certificate — Ontario, San Bernardino County, California · every year · City finance/business tax office: Ontario / San Bernardino County
File San Bernardino County business personal property return · every year · April 1 (penalty after May 7) · San Bernardino County Assessor-Recorder-Clerk
Filings triggered by an event
Notify residents and regulators of a data breach within 30 days (California): applies when Business operates in CA
Businesses holding property that has gone unclaimed — uncashed payroll or vendor checks, customer credits and refunds, unused gift cards, deposits — must report and turn it over to the state each year, after sending the owner a due diligence notice before the deadline. The annual report and payment are due October 31 for general property. California splits the filing: a preliminary report is due October 31 and the final remittance between June 1 and June 15. Which state's law applies depends on the owner's last known address, or the business's state of incorporation when there is none, so a business can owe reports to several states.
If personal information of residents of the state is acquired without authorization, notify affected residents within 30 days of discovering the breach and the Attorney General if more than 500 residents are affected (Cal. Civ. Code 1798.82 as amended effective January 1, 2026). This is an event-driven duty, so it has no calendar date. Sources in the PR describe the state's rule in different words; check the statute for the exact trigger and content of the notice.
California business property statements (Form 571-L) are due April 1 and a 10% penalty applies if not filed by May 7. This is the Business Property Statement; businesses with $100,000 or more of taxable property must file even without a request.
Why it appliesBusiness is located in San Bernardino County, CA
Quarterly wage report and contribution payment. California taxes the first $7,000 of each employee's wages (2026); new employers pay 3.4%, and experience-rated rates range from 1.5% to 6.2%.
Employers with at least one W-2 employee that do not offer a qualified plan must register and enroll eligible employees, or certify an exemption. The 1 to 4 employee deadline was December 31, 2025; a secondary source says employers that first have an employee in 2026 have until December 31, 2026. Penalty reported as $250 per eligible employee after 90 days of noncompliance, and another $500 after 180 days.
Why it applies1 employees in CA
ExceptionsEmployers that sponsor a qualified retirement plan (they still certify the exemption)
Employers with five or more employees must give supervisors two hours and other employees one hour of harassment prevention training every two years, and to new hires within six months of hire or promotion to supervisor (Government Code 12950.1).
Employers with more than 10 employees keep Forms 300 and 301 for work-related injuries and illnesses, and post the Form 300A summary for the previous year at each establishment from February 1 through April 30. Records are kept five years. Report a work-related fatality within 8 hours and an inpatient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours.
Why it applies15 employees, above the 10-employee threshold
ExceptionsEmployers with 10 or fewer employees (except for fatality and severe-injury reporting); Establishments in partially exempt low-hazard industries such as retail, finance, insurance, real estate and many services (29 CFR 1904 Appendix A)
Applicable large employers (50 or more full-time employees, counting part-time hours as full-time equivalents) give each full-time employee a Form 1095-C. The January 31 deadline is extended automatically by 30 days, to March 2 in most years (March 1 for the 2026 forms).
Why it applies50 full-time employees, at or above the 50 that make an applicable large employer
The transmittal Form 1094-C and each Form 1095-C are due to the IRS at the end of February on paper or March 31 electronically; employers filing 10 or more information returns in total must file electronically. Penalties apply per late or incorrect form.
Why it applies50 full-time employees, at or above the 50 that make an applicable large employer
Private employers with 100 or more employees file annually through the EEOC's online system; federal contractors with 50 or more employees and certain contracts have also filed. The EEOC sets each year's window (the 2024 report was due June 24, 2025, with no extensions), so check its data collections page.
Why it applies100 employees, at or above the 100 that require an EEO-1 report
Establishments with 250 or more employees submit their Form 300A summary through OSHA's Injury Tracking Application by March 2. Establishments with 20 to 249 employees in designated higher-hazard industries must also submit the summary, and those with 100 or more in the most hazardous industries submit Forms 300 and 301 data.
Why it applies500 employees, at or above the 250 that require electronic submission
Under the Freelance Worker Protection Act (SB 988, from January 1, 2025), hiring a single-person freelancer for $250 or more, counting contracts in the previous 120 days, requires a written contract itemizing the services, their value and the rate and method of pay, with the parties' names and mailing addresses and the payment date. Give the freelancer a signed copy and keep it four years; pay by the contract date or within 30 days of completing the work. Retaliation is prohibited. Damages are in Business and Professions Code section 18100 and following.
California presumes a worker is an employee unless the business shows all three prongs of the ABC test: the worker is free from its control, does work outside its usual course of business, and is customarily engaged in an independent business (Labor Code section 2775, AB 5), with exemptions for some occupations. Misclassification means back wages, payroll taxes, unemployment and disability contributions and penalties.
Collect sales tax from customers and remit on the filing frequency assigned by the state. Local sales taxes are collected and remitted on the same state return; the rate depends on the delivery location.
These items in your plan repeat on a schedule for Ontario:
File federal income tax return: Form 1040 with Schedule C · every year · April 15
File Statement of Information (California) · every two years · Within the anniversary month and the 5 months before it, every 2 years
Register for and file California entity-level taxes · every year
Pay California minimum franchise tax ($800) · every year · 15th day of the 4th month of the tax year (estimated); return due 15th day of 3rd/4th month after year end
File the annual unclaimed property holder report (California) · every year · October 31
City business tax certificate — Ontario, San Bernardino County, California · every year
File San Bernardino County business personal property return · every year · April 1 (penalty after May 7)
Some filings are not on a calendar. They are due when something changes:
Notify residents and regulators of a data breach within 30 days (California): applies when Business operates in CA
Once you are open in Ontario, filings go to four levels. California handles state taxes and annual reports; the city and county handle local licenses and taxes.
Federal (2): Obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN); File federal income tax return: Form 1040 with Schedule C
State (6): Maintain a registered agent in California; File Statement of Information (California); Register for and file California entity-level taxes; Pay California minimum franchise tax ($800)…
County (1): File San Bernardino County business personal property return
City (2): City business tax certificate — Ontario, San Bernardino County, California; Obtain certificate of occupancy for premises in Ontario
The rules for Ontario were checked against official sources as of October 16, 2026. Agencies change dates and fees, so confirm on the agency site before you file.