A halophilic bacterium, strain BH030017(T), showing optimum growth at 2-5 % (w/v) NaCl was isolated from solar-saltern sediment from the Tae-An area of Korea and was characterized taxonomically. The cells of strain BH030017(T) were Gram-positive, motile, short rods containing cell-wall peptidoglycan based on meso-diaminopimelic acid. The major cellular fatty acids were anteiso-C(15 : 0) and iso-C(15 : 0). The DNA G+C content was 36 mol% and the predominant lipoquinone was MK-7. The major cellular phospholipids were phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylethanolamine. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain BH030017(T) formed a cluster with Bacillus clarkii DSM 8720(T) and Bacillus agaradhaerens DSM 8721(T) within the family Bacillaceae. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities with respect to closely related type strains were less than 95.1 %. On the basis of its phylogenetic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic properties, strain BH030017(T) represents a novel species within the genus Bacillus, for which the name Bacillus taeanensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is BH030017(T) (=KCTC 3918(T)=DSM 16466(T)).