🌺 Hawaii Business Hub

Everything You Need to Run a Business in Hawaii — In One Place

From registration to payroll to taxes to compliance: plain-English guides written for Hawaii business owners.

Browse All Guides Starting a Business? Start Here →

Hawaii Business Basics

The essential topics every Hawaii business owner needs to understand.

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Starting a Business

Step-by-step guides to registering with DCCA, getting your GET license, and setting up your business the right way.

Read the guide →
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Payroll

Hawaii payroll is uniquely complex: state withholding, UI, TDI, and Prepaid Health Care. We break it all down.

Read the guide →
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Bookkeeping & Taxes

GET filing, income tax, quarterly deadlines, and record-keeping requirements explained in plain English.

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HR & Employment

Minimum wage, overtime, new hire reporting, workers’ comp, and anti-discrimination laws for Hawaii employers.

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Business Insurance

Hawaii requires workers’ comp, TDI, and Prepaid Health Care. Know what’s mandatory vs. recommended.

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Hawaii Tax Calendar

Every deadline for GET, payroll taxes, W-2s, annual reconciliations, and estimated tax payments in 2026.

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Why Hawaii Is Different

Running a business in Hawaii isn’t like running one on the mainland. Here’s what catches people off guard.

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GET Is Not a Sales Tax

Hawaii’s General Excise Tax is a gross receipts tax on all business income. It is not a point-of-sale tax on consumers. The effective rate is 4.5% statewide (4% + 0.5% county surcharge). You pay it on everything you earn, even if the customer doesn’t pay you.

Learn about GET →
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TDI + Prepaid Health Care

Hawaii is the only state that requires employers to provide health insurance through the Prepaid Health Care Act. Plus, TDI (Temporary Disability Insurance) is mandatory. Most mainland payroll systems don’t handle these.

Insurance requirements →
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12-Bracket Income Tax

Hawaii has 12 income tax brackets (more than any other state), with a top rate of 11%. State withholding uses its own form (HW-4, not the federal W-4), and brackets are quite different from federal.

Payroll details →
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County-Level Nuances

All four counties (Honolulu, Maui, Hawaii, Kauai) now impose a 0.5% GET surcharge. Each county has different business license requirements, zoning rules, and permitting processes that can trip up new business owners.

County surcharges →

Need Help With Payroll or Bookkeeping?

You don’t have to figure it all out alone.

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Pacific Data Services: Local Since 1969

Pacific Data Services (PDS) has been helping Hawaii businesses with payroll and bookkeeping since 1969. Founded by Phil Bennet in Honolulu, PDS is one of the longest-running local payroll companies in the state.

PDS handles payroll processing, bookkeeping, GET filing, tax deposits, W-2s, HW-14, UI filings, direct deposit, and ACA 1095-C filings for employers with 50+ FTEs. No long-term contracts. Personal service from a team that actually knows Hawaii’s laws.

Get a Free Consultation →

Featured Guides

Our most popular articles for Hawaii business owners.

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Starting a Business

How to Start a Business in Hawaii: Complete Guide (2026)

Step-by-step walkthrough from choosing your entity type to getting your GET license and setting up payroll.

12 min read
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Taxes

Hawaii General Excise Tax (GET): Complete Guide

Everything you need to know about Hawaii’s most important business tax: rates, filing, county surcharge, and common mistakes.

10 min read
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Starting a Business

How to Form an LLC in Hawaii: Step-by-Step

Articles of Organization, GET license, EIN, operating agreement, annual report. Everything you need.

7 min read
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Taxes

Hawaii Business Tax Calendar 2026

Every deadline you need to know: GET, payroll taxes, W-2s, estimated payments, annual reconciliations.

7 min read

Ready to Get Your Hawaii Business on Track?

Whether you’re just starting out or need help with payroll and bookkeeping, PDS has been the trusted local choice since 1969.

Get a Free Consultation →
✅ Serving Hawaii since 1969 ✅ Local team in Honolulu ✅ No long-term contracts

Local Expert Spotlight

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Reasons to Choose Pacific Data Services

Hawaii payroll is genuinely complicated: five overlapping tax obligations, state-only mandates like TDI and the Prepaid Health Care Act, and penalties that off-the-shelf software routinely misses. PDS has been managing payroll for Hawaii businesses since 1969. That’s not a marketing line. It’s 55+ years of filing HW-14s, handling UI reports, and knowing exactly what the Hawaii DOL expects.

If you want a local team that knows Hawaii law, handles everything in-house, and picks up the phone when you call, PDS is worth a conversation.

✓ Honolulu-based, serving all 50 states since 1969 ✓ Full payroll + bookkeeping under one roof ✓ Local Honolulu team, not outsourced or automated ✓ No long-term contracts required
1 Pacific Data Services
Get a Free Consultation → On Pacific Data Services’ Website
Services Payroll + Bookkeeping
In Business Since 1969 — 55+ Years
Location Local Honolulu Team