{"title":"Squamish home-based business rules","question":"Can I run a business from my home in Squamish?","slug":"home-based-business","place":{"path":"ca/bc/squamish","name":"Squamish","region":{"code":"bc","name":"British Columbia"},"country":{"code":"ca","name":"Canada"}},"category":{"slug":"business","name":"Starting and running a business"},"owner":"municipal","owner_label":"Municipal","owner_body":{"name":"District of Squamish","url":"https://squamish.ca"},"short_answer":"Use Squamish’s home-based business licence form and identify the home occupation that fits your activity. Email the completed application to businesslicence@squamish.ca or take it to Community Planning.","aliases":[],"cost":null,"how_long":null,"where":[],"documents":[],"forms":[],"related":[{"slug":"backyard-chickens","title":"Squamish backyard chickens, bees and livestock rules","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/squamish/backyard-chickens/"},{"slug":"zoning-lookup","title":"Squamish zoning: find your zone and what it allows","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/squamish/zoning-lookup/"},{"slug":"short-term-rental","title":"Squamish short-term rental rules (Airbnb, Vrbo)","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/squamish/short-term-rental/"}],"nearby":[{"place":"ca/bc/lions-bay","name":"Lions Bay","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/lions-bay/home-based-business/"},{"place":"ca/bc/bowen-island","name":"Bowen Island","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/bowen-island/home-based-business/"},{"place":"ca/bc/west-vancouver","name":"West Vancouver","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/west-vancouver/home-based-business/"},{"place":"ca/bc/gibsons","name":"Gibsons","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/gibsons/home-based-business/"},{"place":"ca/bc/north-vancouver-district","name":"District of North Vancouver","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/north-vancouver-district/home-based-business/"},{"place":"ca/bc/north-vancouver","name":"North Vancouver","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/north-vancouver/home-based-business/"}],"topic":{"title":"Home-based business rules in British Columbia, by municipality","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/home-based-business/"},"facts":{"allowed":{"label":"Allowed","value":"Office uses may operate in a residential dwelling, secondary suite or accessory building in a residential zone. Residential home occupations are generally limited to single-unit and two-unit dwellings. Special rules apply to child care.","short":"Office uses in residential zones; others limited","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://squamish.civicweb.net/document/269651","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, 2011, consolidated September 2026","section":"Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, section 4.18(a)–(d)","quotes":["4.18 HOME OCCUPATION Home Occupations, where permitted in this Bylaw, shall hold a valid District Business License and satisfy all of the following conditions: (a) Shall be carried out wholly within a principal Dwelling Unit with or without a Secondary Suite, or within an Accessory Building; (b) Home Occupation, Office is permitted in any residential Dwelling Unit, Secondary Suite or Accessory Building in a residential zone; (c) Home Occupation, Residential is permitted in any single-unit or two-unit residential Dwelling Unit; (d) Notwithstanding 4.18 (c), a Child Care Facility, Residential may be permitted as a Home Occupation, Residential use in a multi-unit dwelling as permitted in this Bylaw and is a permitted use in a Secondary Suite provided that there will only be one such use per property;"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-09"}},"licence":{"label":"Business licence","value":"Use Squamish’s home-based business licence form and identify the home occupation that fits your activity.","short":"Yes; home-based licence form, fee not stated","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://squamish.ca/assets/BLDG/BL-Home-Based-App-Form-Feb-2025.pdf","title":"Home-based business licence application (PDF)","section":"PDF p. 1 / PDF p. 4","quotes":["Business Licence Application Form – Home Based Business Application Date: TYPE OF BUSINESS (check one box only): □ Home Occupation Office □ Home Occupation Residential □ Childcare Facility (Residential) Do you want to renew your Business Licence annually? □ No □ Yes","Completed forms can be emailed to businesslicence@squamish.ca or dropped off at Community Planning"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-09"}},"limits":{"label":"Limits","value":"One residential home occupation per dwelling, with or without a suite. Its floor area may be up to 37 m² except for residential child care. At most two commercial deliveries per day and one non-resident worker on site at a time.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://squamish.civicweb.net/document/269651","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, 2011, consolidated September 2026","section":"Section 4.18(e), (f), (l) and (m)","quotes":["(e) Only one (1) Home Occupation, Residential operation shall be permitted per residential dwelling, with or without a Secondary Suite; (f) The area used for Home Occupation, Residential shall not exceed a maximum gross floor area of 37m², except in the case of a residential child care facility;","(l) Shall not require more than 2 deliveries per day to be made by commercial vehicles or trailers; (m) Shall be conducted by at least one resident of the dwelling unit to which it is accessory and not more than 1 non-resident person shall be employed in such use on the premises at any one time;"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-09"}},"not_allowed":{"label":"Businesses not allowed","value":"Small-scale manufacturing is prohibited on lots under 2.02 ha. No outdoor storage of materials used or produced by the business.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://squamish.civicweb.net/document/269651","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, 2011, consolidated September 2026","section":"Section 4.18(g)–(k)","quotes":["(g) Shall not involve Small Scale Manufacturing where lot size is less than 2.02 hectares. (h) Shall not discharge or emit odorous, toxic, or noxious vapours or matter, heat, glare, radiation, electrical interference, or noise; (i) Shall be carried on with no exterior indication of the home occupation as a result of outdoor storage, display, flood-lighting, or signs, except as permitted in the Sign Bylaw; (j) Shall not use materials or processes that produce flammable or explosive vapours or gases under ordinary temperatures; (k) Shall not involve the outdoor storage of materials used directly or indirectly for the processing or resulting from the processing of any product of such occupation;"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-09"}},"bylaw":{"label":"Bylaw","value":"District of Squamish Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, 2011, consolidated September 2026.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://squamish.civicweb.net/document/269651","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, 2011, consolidated September 2026","section":"PDF p. 7 / PDF p. 1","quotes":["This Bylaw may be cited for all purposes as the District of Squamish Zoning Bylaw No. 2200,","No. 2200, 2011                     Consolidated September 2026"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-09"}}},"facts_summary":{"total":5,"stated":5,"matched":5,"none":0,"unknown":0},"body_markdown":"## How it works\n\nDescribe how the work would change daily activity at the home. A desk used by one resident presents different zoning questions from customers visiting the property, employees coming to work or goods being stored outdoors. Office uses may operate in a residential dwelling, secondary suite or accessory building in a residential zone. Residential home occupations are generally limited to single-unit and two-unit dwellings. Special rules apply to child care.\n\n## Steps\n\n1. Check the local business instructions in [Home-based business licence application (PDF)](https://squamish.ca/assets/BLDG/BL-Home-Based-App-Form-Feb-2025.pdf). Write down the proposed service, floor area, number of workers, customer visits, deliveries, signs and storage. Identify the property's zoning.\n2. Compare the activity with the home-business provisions and the local licensing instructions. Give the office your operating details if the business could fit more than one category.\n\n## Good to know\n\n- One residential home occupation per dwelling, with or without a suite. Its floor area may be up to 37 m² except for residential child care. At most two commercial deliveries per day and one non-resident worker on site at a time.\n- Small-scale manufacturing is prohibited on lots under 2.02 ha. No outdoor storage of materials used or produced by the business.\n- Find your Squamish property on the Parcel & Land Use Map.\n- Review the rules again before changing the operation, particularly if you plan to add staff, receive customers or use a detached building.\n- Read the applicable provisions in [Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, 2011, consolidated September 2026](https://squamish.civicweb.net/document/269651).","sources":[{"url":"https://squamish.ca/assets/BLDG/BL-Home-Based-App-Form-Feb-2025.pdf","title":"Home-based business licence application (PDF)","accessed":"2026-11-09"},{"url":"https://squamish.ca/building-and-land-development/building-permit/faq-building-permit/","title":"FAQ - Building Permit","accessed":"2026-11-09"},{"url":"https://squamish.civicweb.net/document/269651","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 2200, 2011, consolidated September 2026","accessed":"2026-11-09"}],"sources_read":"2026-11-09","review":{"status":"machine_checked","badge":"Checked against official text","label":"Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 5 of 5 facts was matched to the official text."},"urls":{"html":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/squamish/home-based-business/","markdown":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/squamish/home-based-business.md","json":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/squamish/home-based-business.json"}}