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Langford home-based business rules

Can I run a business from my home?

Langford, British ColumbiaChecked against official textSources read 2026-11-05

Short answer

Yes. In Langford you can run a home occupation as an accessory use if you get a City business licence ($100 for a home occupation or home office on the City's application form) and follow Zoning Bylaw 300: use no more than 25% of the home's floor area and limit employees and visitors.

Key facts

AllowedYes, as an accessory use. A home office is allowed in any dwelling unit. A home business is allowed with a one- or two-family dwelling on a lot under 4,000 m² (1 acre). A home industry is allowed with a one- or two-family dwelling on a lot of 4,000 m² or larger.Zoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999 (consolidated June 29, 2026), section 3.09, s. 3.09.01(1) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
A home office is permitted as an accessory use in any dwelling unit, including one- and
A home business is permitted as an accessory use to a one- or two-family dwelling
located on a lot with a lot area less than 4,000 m2 (1 ac)
A home industry is permitted as an accessory use to a one- or two-family dwelling
Business licenceYes. The operator of every home occupation must get a City of Langford business licence. The application form lists Home Occupation or Home Office at $100.Sources differ: Business Licence Bylaw 216 Schedule A (consolidated to 2016) lists Home Crafts at $50; the City's current application form says $100 for home occupation. Home crafts is a narrower category (handmade articles).Zoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999 (consolidated June 29, 2026), section 3.09, s. 3.09.01(9); Business Licence Application form, Licence type · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
The operator of every home occupation must obtain a Business License issued by the City of
Langford.
Home Occupation or Home Office Fee: $100
LimitsHome use: 25% of floor area at most (home office or business 65 m² max; home industry 90 m²). One non-resident employee. Parking demand may not exceed that of two visitors per hour 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays and one per hour otherwise. One unlit sign up to 0.2 m². Storage only in permitted buildings.Zoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999 (consolidated June 29, 2026), section 3.09, s. 3.09.01-3.09.04 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
Not more than 25% of the gross floor area of a dwelling unit may be used for home occupation
A home occupation may not employ more than one employee who does not reside on the
associated with two visitors per hour to residential premises between the hours of
one unilluminated sign not exceeding 0.2 m2 (2.2 ft2) in area
(699.7 ft2) of total gross floor area on any lot may be used for home office purposes.
(968.8 ft2) of gross floor area on any lot
no more than 500 m2 (5,382 ft2)
greater than or equal to 550 m2 (5,920.2 ft2) of lot area
9:00 am and 6:00 pm, Monday to Friday, and one visitor per hour at other times.
Businesses not allowedProhibited for all home occupations: dance instruction (except children under 16 in classes of six or fewer), band training, restaurants, manufacturing/welding/light industrial, auto salvage or repair, businesses needing marshalling of automobiles, storage of more than one vehicle over 8,600 kg GVW on lots under 1 acre, and retail or wholesale sale of goods not made in the home business.Zoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999 (consolidated June 29, 2026), section 3.09, s. 3.09.01(3) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
The following uses are prohibited for all types of home occupation:
Orchestra or band training;
Restaurant;
Manufacturing, welding, or any other light industrial use;
Retail or wholesale sale of goods except for goods manufactured or produced as part of a
BylawZoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999, s. 3.09 (Home Occupations); Business Licence and Business Regulation Bylaw No. 216, 1997Zoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999 (consolidated June 29, 2026), section 3.09, s. 3.09; Business Licence and Business Regulation Bylaw No. 216 (consolidated to September 2016), title · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
3.09 Home Occupations 3.09.01 All Three Types Three types of home occupation are permitted depending on the type of dwelling unit in which the
3. Citation This Bylaw may be cited for all purposes as "Langford Zoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999". READ A FIRST TIME this 18th day of January, 1999.
Business Licence and Business Regulation Bylaw 216, 1997

How it works

Zoning Bylaw 300, section 3.09, allows home occupations as an accessory use. A home office is allowed in any dwelling unit. A home business is allowed with a one- or two-family dwelling on a lot under 4,000 m² (1 acre). A home industry is allowed with a one- or two-family dwelling on a lot of 4,000 m² or larger. The operator of every home occupation must get a City of Langford business licence.

Steps

  1. Work out which type fits your home and check that your business is on the allowed list for that type in section 3.09.
  2. Apply for a business licence online or by email, and say it is a home occupation.
  3. Pay the fee when the City asks after approval. The City's application form lists Home Occupation or Home Office at $100.

Good to know

  • Limits: at most 25% of the floor area (home office or home business 65 m² maximum; home industry 90 m²), and one non-resident employee.
  • Parking demand may not exceed that of two visitors per hour from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and one per hour otherwise.
  • One unlit sign up to 0.2 m². Storage only in permitted buildings.
  • Not allowed for any home occupation: dance instruction (except children under 16 in classes of six or fewer), band training, restaurants, manufacturing, welding or light industrial, auto salvage or repair, selling goods not made in the home business, and storing more than one vehicle over 8,600 kg GVW on lots under 1 acre.
  • Food businesses need Medical Health Officer approval.
  • The old Bylaw 216 fee schedule lists Home Crafts at $50, which differs from the $100 on the current form. Confirm with the City.

Official forms and pages

The same question in other places

Highlands · Colwood · View Royal · Esquimalt · Metchosin · Sooke

Home-based business rules in British Columbia, by municipality →

Sources

  1. Zoning Bylaw No. 300, 1999 (consolidated June 29, 2026), section 3.09 (PDF) (read 2026-11-05)
  2. Business Licensing, City of Langford (read 2026-11-05)
  3. Business Licence Application form, City of Langford (PDF) (read 2026-11-05)
  4. Business Licence and Business Regulation Bylaw No. 216 (consolidated to September 2016) (PDF) (read 2026-11-05)

Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 5 of 5 facts was matched to the official text. How answers are checked.