Mississippi Gaming Commission Licensing: Casino Suppliers, Manufacturers and Distributors
Mississippi Gaming Commission Licensing: Casino Suppliers, Manufacturers and Distributors
If you sell gaming equipment, games, or related products to a casino in Mississippi, you may need a supplier license from the Mississippi Gaming Commission. This Mississippi gaming license guide explains who needs one, what it costs, the bond you must post, and the order of steps that gets you there. It covers vendor licensing only. It is not a guide to betting.
Casino gaming in Mississippi is governed by the Gaming Control Act (Miss. Code 75-76-1 et seq.). Supplier licensing sits inside that framework. The Commission licenses the companies, and the Department of Revenue collects the fees and holds the bonds.
Informational content, not legal or tax advice. This guide summarizes Mississippi fees and requirements as of October 2026 for general reference. Rules, amounts, and procedures can change, and your situation may differ. Confirm every figure with the agency named, and speak with a Mississippi gaming attorney and a CPA before you apply, sign a contract with a casino, or commit to a budget.
Mississippi has no general business license
Mississippi does not issue a single statewide business license. Several filings get mistaken for one, so it helps to sort them out first:
- Secretary of State filings form your entity. They are registrations, not licenses. The LLC Certificate of Formation (Form F0100) costs $50, and Articles of Incorporation (Form F0001) also cost $50.
- The Department of Revenue sales tax permit is a tax registration. There is no fee for it, although a bond may be required for applicants with no permanent Mississippi location.
- City privilege licenses are issued by every city, town and village under Miss. Code 27-17. Counties license only businesses located outside municipalities. Amounts vary, so confirm the figure with the city or county where you will operate.
- The Gaming Commission supplier license is the one this guide is about. It is a regulatory license with its own fees and bond, and it sits on top of the registrations above.
Who needs a supplier license
The Commission licenses two main supplier categories:
- Manufacturers that make gaming devices, equipment, or related products for use in a Mississippi casino.
- Distributors and sellers that sell or distribute those products to casinos.
Casino operators hold a different license. The $5,000 application fee and $5,000 annual fee in Miss. Code 75-76-183 apply to gaming establishment (casino) licenses, not to suppliers. Do not budget that figure for a supplier application. If you are unsure which category fits your business, ask the Commission before you quote a casino, because the fee and bond differ by category.
Supplier fees and the bond
The table below shows the supplier figures stated in the Mississippi Code and the Department of Revenue rule.
| License type | Annual fee (Miss. Code 75-76-79) | Minimum bond (DOR rule 35.V.2.01, rev. 2021) |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | $1,000 per year | At least $5,000 |
| Distributor or seller | $500 per year | At least $5,000 |
| Holding both a manufacturer and a distributor or seller license | Confirm with the Commission how the fees apply | At least $10,000 |
Fees are due before the license is issued and again on each anniversary of the license. Fees are reported and paid through the Department of Revenue's TAP portal. The bond is also handled through the Department of Revenue, so plan for the bond before you file.
Suppliers may also bear the cost of the Commission's investigation into the company. This guide does not state a published amount for that cost. Ask the Commission how investigation costs are billed and what they typically run before you commit to a budget.
Steps to get a Mississippi Gaming license as a supplier
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Check your entity name. Search the name on the Secretary of State's business search (corp.sos.ms.gov). An LLC name must contain the words “limited liability company,” the abbreviation “L.L.C.,” or “LLC,” and it must be distinguishable from every entity and reserved name on state records. You can reserve a name for 180 days for $25.
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Form the entity. File the Certificate of Formation or Articles of Incorporation through the Secretary of State's online portal. Most documents filed online are approved immediately, and filings that need staff review are normally returned within 24 hours. Every Mississippi LLC must also keep a registered office and a registered agent. The agent must be a Mississippi resident, or an entity authorized to do business in Mississippi, with a physical Mississippi street address. A commercial registered agent files a listing statement with the Secretary of State for $100.
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Register any assumed name. If you will do business under a name other than your legal name, file a Fictitious Business Name Registration (Form F0070) for $25. It is filed with the Secretary of State, not the county.
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Get your local privilege license. Apply with the city, town or village where you will operate under Miss. Code 27-17. If your location is outside any municipality, the county issues it instead.
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Register for a sales tax permit if you make retail sales. Apply through the Department of Revenue. The permit has no fee. Mississippi's state sales tax rate is 7%, with no county add-on, and city levies apply only in Jackson and Tupelo. Whether a particular equipment sale is taxable depends on the transaction, so confirm the treatment with the Department of Revenue.
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Apply for the supplier license with the Gaming Commission. Request the current application forms and checklist directly from the Commission. Expect the Commission to review the company and the people behind it, and be ready for investigation costs as described above. This guide does not list the forms or a processing time, so get both from the Commission.
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Post the bond and pay the fee through the Department of Revenue. The fee and bond must be in place before the license is issued. Keep your TAP portal login and payment records, because the same portal is used for reporting.
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Renew on each anniversary and keep the entity current. The supplier fee is due on each anniversary. Separately, a profit corporation files its annual report by April 15 for $25, and an LLC files its annual report by April 15 at no fee. Both must be filed online. An LLC that misses its annual report can face administrative dissolution.
How your entity is taxed
The way your entity is taxed changes what you owe beyond the Commission. An LLC treated as a pass-through entity reports its income on its members' Mississippi returns. An LLC taxed as a corporation, and any corporation, pays Mississippi corporate income tax at 0% on the first $5,000 of taxable income, 4% on the next $5,000, and 5% on taxable income above $10,000.
The franchise tax applies to corporations, not to an LLC taxed as a partnership. For tax year 2026 it is $0.50 per $1,000 of capital in excess of $100,000, with a $25 minimum. The franchise tax steps down to $0.25 for 2027 and is repealed effective January 1, 2028. Check the current year's treatment with a CPA, because the franchise tax changes over the next two years.
What the failed 2026 betting bills mean for suppliers
Retail sports betting is allowed only inside licensed casinos. Two 2026 bills did not change that. HB 1581, which would have covered mobile betting, died in a Senate committee on March 3, 2026. SB 2104, a sweepstakes ban, passed the Senate but died in the House. Neither became law, so do not design a product or a sales plan around either one. This guide does not cover betting rules. For questions about how a product may be used in a casino, ask the Commission or an attorney.
Common mistakes suppliers make
- Budgeting the $5,000 casino application and annual fees for a supplier license.
- Filing an assumed name with the county instead of the Secretary of State.
- Treating the Secretary of State filing as the Gaming license. It is only the entity registration.
- Forgetting the supplier fee on each anniversary, or the April 15 annual report.
- Assuming a city privilege license applies everywhere. Each city, town and village sets its own, and the county handles locations outside municipalities.
Where to get help
- Mississippi Secretary of State, Business Services Division: https://www.sos.ms.gov/business-services for entity filings, name searches, and the assumed name form.
- Mississippi Department of Revenue: https://www.dor.ms.gov/ for supplier fees, bonds, the TAP portal, and sales tax permits.
- Mississippi Gaming Commission: the Commission licenses suppliers and sets the application process. Find its official website through the state's official portal, and contact it directly for forms, investigation costs, and questions about your category.
- Mississippi Small Business Development Center Network: https://www.mississippisbdc.org/, with 19 locations statewide, for free or low-cost planning help.
- SBA Mississippi district office resources: https://www.sba.gov/district/mississippi.
Next steps
A supplier license involves recurring fees, a bond, and a background review of your company. Before you sign a casino contract or file an application, confirm your category, fee, and bond with the Commission and the Department of Revenue. Then have a Mississippi gaming attorney review the licensing path and a CPA review how your entity will be taxed. This guide is a starting point, not a substitute for that advice.