Home based business licence cost in Ontario, by city

What this municipality does not publish

• This records that Toronto zones home occupations rather than licensing them. It is not a statement that a home business needs no permission, because the activity itself may still be licensable: a personal service setting run from home still needs the $450.91 licence, and a contractor still needs the Building Renovator licence and its examination.
• By-law 1508-2025 was adopted in November 2025 and voted in December 2025, so anything written about Toronto home occupations before that date describes the previous rules. This is the most recently changed regime on the site.
• Altering the dwelling for the business may require a building permit, which is priced separately and is not a licensing fee.

What this municipality does not publish

• The licence table gives the fee and names the governing by-law without a number or an effective date, so there is no way to judge from the page how current $80.00 is.
• The page does not set out the conditions attached, such as floor area or visitor limits, so what the licence actually permits has to be read elsewhere.

What this municipality does not publish

• This is the only home occupation licence Oshawa publishes and it is food specific. A consultancy, a trade or any other business run from a dwelling is not covered by it, and whether Oshawa regulates those through zoning instead is not answered on the licensing pages.
• The licence is valid for two years, so it is not directly comparable with the annual licences elsewhere on this page. The annual equivalent is about $137.50.
• Selling only low risk pre-packaged food needs no licence at all, so the same kitchen is licensable or not depending on whether anything needs refrigeration.
• A Durham Region health inspection with a Green Dine Safe designation is required and is a separate authority with its own process.
• A basic floor plan showing the area of the home dedicated to the business, with room measurements, is required on a new application.

What this municipality does not publish

• The schedule does not distinguish a new application from a renewal, so the ongoing annual cost cannot be stated separately.
• The same schedule prints two consecutive rows both labelled Food Vehicle (one day) at two different prices, so this document is known to contain at least one labelling error and should be read with that in mind.

What this municipality does not publish

• Because the licence expires on a fixed date rather than an anniversary, a first year bought late is not a full year and the schedule does not prorate it.
• The fee by-law does not set out what conditions attach to operating from a dwelling, so the price is published where the rules are not.

What this municipality does not publish

• This records what Brampton publishes: a home occupations page describing permission by zoning with no licence and no fee, and a business licence list containing no home based category. It is not a claim that a home business needs no permission at all, because the activity itself may still be licensable. A hairdresser working from home still needs Brampton's personal services facility licence.
• The conditions are strict and are the real requirement: one office per dwelling unit, one visitor at a time, a maximum of fifteen square metres, operated by the occupants, and no more than one employee living elsewhere. No sale of goods or merchandise on the premises.
• Repairing or servicing motor vehicles or engines from a home is prohibited outright, as is anything creating excessive noise or vibration, or emitting gas, fumes, dust, glare or objectionable odour.