Municipal

Municipal business licence

Every municipality on the Island requires a business licence — for a restaurant, café, shop or kitchen, for a business run from home, and for a food truck. For a storefront it is usually $100 to $200 a year, set by floor area; Nanaimo charges $165, Campbell River $150, and Courtenay’s fees rise in 2027. It is normally the last approval you get: most municipalities issue it only once ZoningThe municipal rules that say what each property may be used for. A café, a bakery or a food processor needs a property zoned for that use before any permit is worth applying for — check it before you sign a lease.All terms in the glossary, building, fire and Island Health have signed off, and you can’t open before it’s issued.

Changes are coming

  • Courtenay’s new business licence bylaw — takes effect 1 January 2027. What changes
  • Oak Bay’s business licence fee doubles — takes effect 1 January 2027. What changes
  • The updated Vancouver Island Inter-Community licence — proposed, no date set; it may not happen. What changes
Who issues it
Your municipality

Do you need it?

You need it if

  • You run any business in the municipality — a storefront, a business from home, or a food truck.
  • You sell from a truck in more than one town: you need each town’s licence, or a shared licence that covers it (trucks are often excluded).

You don’t need it if

  • You sell only at a market or event whose organizer holds the licence for its vendors — Esquimalt’s licensed markets, and some events in Nanaimo and Campbell River. Ask the organizer.
Where this comes from

Sources

How to get it

For a storefront, the licence comes last. The municipality checks that your zoning, building permit, fire inspection and Island Health permit are in place before it issues one — so apply once those are under way, not first.

  1. 1

    Line up the other approvals

    Zoning confirmed, building permit and occupancy, the fire department’s inspection where your municipality does one, and Island Health’s permit or approval. Victoria, Saanich, Nanaimo and Courtenay say outright the licence waits for them.

  2. 2

    Gather what the application asks for

    Usually: a floor plan (a restaurant shows its seats), a parking plan, your Island Health permit, a liquor licence if you have one, incorporation papers for a company, and the property owner’s authorization if you lease.

  3. 3

    Apply

    Most municipalities take it online; Oak Bay, Duncan, North Cowichan and Campbell River by email or in person. The table below says how in each.

  4. 4

    Pay

    Some take the fee when you apply (Esquimalt, Colwood, Victoria online); others only after every department approves (Saanich, Langford, North Cowichan).

  5. 5

    Wait for it before you open

    Every municipality forbids operating before the licence is issued. Most take two to four weeks; North Cowichan says up to two or three months.

Where this comes from

Sources

Working in more than one town

A business that moves between municipalities, such as a caterer, can share one licence. The Greater Victoria Inter-Municipal licence is honoured across the 13 Capital Region municipalities and bought from the one where your office is. The Vancouver Island Inter-Community licence costs $170 on top of your local licence under the newest bylaws, but the updated bylaw several municipalities have adopted excludes food trucks, carts and trailers — it starts once every participating municipality has adopted it — and North Cowichan’s mobile food licence can’t be used across municipalities.

Where this comes from

Sources

Business licence fees in each municipality

What each municipality charges a storefront food business — a restaurant, café, shop or commercial kitchen — and what it charges a business run from home.

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:No restaurant line: a business not named in the bylaw pays $100 a year, and so does a licensed (food primary) restaurant; catering is $60. A shop selling 10 or more distinct lines of goods is listed at $3,000 — ask whether that covers a grocery. Licences run January 16 to January 15, with no proration.

    How to apply:Apply last, once the City and other regulators have signed off — online (MyCity, Food and Beverage) with a credit card, or by email. Attach your Island Health certificate and liquor licence, if any. About 10 working days; the fire inspection is arranged after you apply.

    Run from home:$100 a year for a home-based business (the bylaw lists catering separately at $60 a year); a $25 late fee after February 15

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$100 a year under 5,000 sq ft, $200 over; half price for a new business after July 31.

    How to apply:Online through MySaanich. Planning, Inspections, Fire and Island Health all sign off, and the fee is charged once they have. If you are altering the space, the licence waits for the building inspection.

    Run from home:Home-based: $100; Home crafts: $50 (handmade articles — food is not named); Mobile Food Vendors: $100

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$100 under 5,000 sq ft, $200 over — paid once, since a resident licence never expires.

    How to apply:Online, by email or in person, with a floor plan, a parking plan, Island Health approval and the owner’s authorization. Planning, bylaw, building and fire review it in 2–4 weeks; you pay after approval, by debit, cash or cheque.

    Run from home:“Home Occupation or Home Office Fee: $100” (current application form) — paid once, since a resident licence doesn’t expire

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$100 under 5,000 sq ft, $200 over; $120 for a restaurant with a liquor licence. Prorated by quarter; renew by January 31 or pay a $25 late fee.

    How to apply:Online (MyEsquimalt), paying when you apply. Contact Island Health first; attach its permit or inspection report, and a liquor licence if you have one.

    Run from home:Home Occupations $100.00; Home Crafts $50.00 (its definition lists handmade articles, not food); late fee $25.00

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:Restaurants and shops: $100 for up to 1,000 sq ft, plus $7.25 for each extra 100 sq ft as we read the bylaw’s table, to a $2,000 maximum. Half price after June 30.

    How to apply:No online form: email, drop off or mail the commercial application with a floor plan (required) and your seat count. How fast it’s approved depends on Island Health’s review.

    Run from home:Type 1 $100, Type 2 $150, Type 3 $200 (Bylaw No. 4979, reported adopted September 2026); the last consolidated bylaw shows “Home Based Business” $50.00

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$125 up to 464.5 m² (5,000 sq ft), $200 over.

    How to apply:Online form. Development services, engineering, bylaw, building and fire review it before it is issued; the fee is paid in advance and isn’t refundable.

    Run from home:“Home Crafts/Home Occupation $100”, charged once when you apply; licences renew automatically each year

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$100 a year; $200 over 500 m². Renewal is free if made by February 28.

    How to apply:Online or by email to licensing@sidney.ca. After you pay come the inspections, Island Health approval and floor plans — a café or restaurant shows its tables and chairs. Planning, building and fire sign off.

    Run from home:"Home Occupation $100.00"; "Minor Home Occupation $50.00" (a hobby shop, craft shop, instructor or private teacher)

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$165 a year — one rate for most businesses, food included; prorated by quarter.

    How to apply:Online form. Zoning, Building Code, Fire Code and health approvals may be needed before it’s issued, and if you need a building permit the licence isn’t processed until that permit is complete.

    Run from home:"All other businesses $165.00" (the fee table has no separate home-based line); non-profits $50.00

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$100 a year on commercially zoned property — $125 if paid after March 1, $50 if issued after July 1.

    How to apply:In person, by email or by mail; no online form. Island Health must inspect and approve any food business, and the property owner signs the application. Processed within two weeks of payment.

    Run from home:"an annual fee of $100.00" ($125.00 if paid after 29 February; $50.00 for new licences issued after 1 July)

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$100 a year, $50 if you start after July 1; renewing after February 28 costs $125.

    How to apply:Email the checklist and form with satisfactory Island Health and fire department reports and a floor plan. You pay only after approval; it takes a few weeks to two or three months.

    Run from home:"Yearly Licence Fee $100"; late fee $25 after February 28 (February 29 in a leap year); pro-rated $50 after July 1

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:2026: a restaurant pays $150; a shop $100 under 4,000 sq ft, more for larger stores. From January 1, 2027, a resident business pays $350 new or $250 to renew, plus a $50 application fee.

    How to apply:Online only, uploading floor and parking plans, your lease or the owner’s authorization, your Island Health operating permit and the fire inspection report. Planning, building and fire review it; allow at least two to three weeks.

    Run from home:2026: Home Occupation $75.00; Restaurant $150.00; Snack Bar $50.00. From 2027: Home Occupation $150; a restaurant or snack bar is a Resident Business at $350 new, $250 to renew; plus a $50 application fee

  • Restaurant, shop or kitchen:$150 a year for restaurants, cafés, groceries, bakeries and food manufacturers alike; licences expire February 27.

    How to apply:Email the form to business.licence@campbellriver.ca with your Island Health permits. Staff check the zoning, building and fire inspectors review it, then the licence inspector approves.

    Run from home:"$150 per year"; seasonal (six-month) licences "$75 per season"

Where this comes from

Sources

Once you have it

  • Renew every year — except in Langford, where a resident’s licence never expires. Renewal dates differ: Victoria’s licences run from January 16, Campbell River’s expire February 27, and Sidney renews free until February 28.
  • Late renewals cost more: $25 extra in Victoria and Esquimalt, $125 instead of $100 in Duncan and North Cowichan.
  • Courtenay’s new bylaw takes effect January 1, 2027, with new fees, a $50 application fee and renewal due by January 31.
Where this comes from

Sources

What comes next

WorkSafeBC coverageWorkSafeBCGST registrationCanada Revenue AgencyPatio and sign permitsYour municipality

Which businesses need it

Restaurants & cafésLast: approved once the other sign-offs are inBakeriesA commercial bakery, with or without a counter.Caterers & personal chefsCooking for events, offices or private clients.Food trucks & cartsSelling from a truck, trailer or cart.Delivery-only & ghost kitchensCooking for delivery and pickup only, with no dining room.Home-based food makersCheck your municipality; some markets hold one for all vendorsPackaged food makersMaking sauces, preserves, snacks, frozen meals or other packaged food to sell.Kombucha, juice & coffee makersMaking non-alcoholic drinks, or roasting coffee.Breweries, wineries, cideries & distilleriesMaking beer, wine, cider, mead or spirits.Grocers & specialty food shopsRunning a grocery, market store, deli counter or specialty food shop.Butchers, delis & fishmongersCutting and selling meat, fish or deli foods.Farmers’ market vendorsSome markets hold one licence for all vendors

The rules behind this page

Last checked 5 November 2026. We check this guide regularly against Island Health, provincial and municipal sources, but regulations and laws change often and we can’t guarantee it is complete or current. Confirm with Island Health and your municipality before you apply, build or sell.

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