---
title: Vernon home-based business rules
question: "Can I run a business from my home?"
place: Vernon, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/vernon
category: Starting and running a business
owner: municipal
owner_body: City of Vernon
sources_read: 2026-11-05
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/vernon/home-based-business/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/vernon/home-based-business.json"
---

# Vernon home-based business rules

**Question:** Can I run a business from my home?

**Short answer:** Yes, in the City of Vernon, with a home occupation business licence ($50 application plus $90 a year). You must live there, work inside the home or one accessory building, have no more than two clients on site at once, and use no more than 30% of the floor area, up to 50 m².

**Who handles it:** Municipal (City of Vernon, https://www.vernon.ca)  
**Cost:** Home occupation licence $50 application fee plus $90 per year; halved for businesses that become liable after July 1 (Fees and Charges Bylaw 3909; Business Licence Bylaw 6100).  
**How long:** The City's sources do not state a processing time.  
**Where:**
- Phone: Business Licensing, 250-550-3634
- In person: Community Services Building, 3001 32 Avenue, Vernon, BC V1T 2L8 (Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

## Key facts

- **Allowed:** Yes. A home-based business is an accessory use in housing zones and is also listed as an accessory use in the rural, resort and commercial mixed-use zones. It must be run by a resident of the dwelling and operated at the licensee's principal residence.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 6000, section 3.3.8, Definitions](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/6000%20Zoning%20Bylaw%20-%20COMBINED.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Home Based Business means a business operated primarily inside a Dwelling Unit or an"
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 6000, Section 5 Specific Use Regulations (5.4), s. 5.3.1](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/section-5-specific-use-regulations.pdf)
  - Official wording: "All Home Based Businesses shall be Accessory Uses and must comply with the"
  - Source: [Business Licence Bylaw 6100, s. 5.4](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/6100%20Business%20Licence%20Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "A Home-Based Business must be operated at the Licensee's principal residence."
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 6000, Section 9.1 MUS Multi-Unit Small Scale, s. 9.1.2](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/section-9_1-mus.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Commercial Home Based Business"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Business licence:** Yes. A business licence is required: $50 application fee and $90 per year for a home occupation licence. Applicants must sign the Home Based Business form.
  - Source: [Fees and Charges Bylaw 3909, consolidated, Schedule A, s. 14 a. and e.](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/fees_and_charges_bylaw_3909_consolidated.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Home Occupation $ 50 per application" … "e. HBO - Home Occupation $ 90 per year"
  - Source: [Business Licences & Permits, Home Based Businesses](https://www.vernon.ca/business/business-licences-permits)
  - Official wording: "For anyone intending to operate a "home-based business", please ensure that you have read the home-based business form below and that you are able to comply."
  - Source: [Home Based Business form, Home Based Business Form](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/business/home_based_minor.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Mandatory to submit with any Home Based Business License Applications"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Limits:** Run inside the home and/or one accessory building; no outdoor storage or operation; no change to the home's housing appearance or external structure; no more than two clients on site at once; only residents of the dwelling may work in it; all customer parking on the lot, clearly marked; business takes up no more than 30% of the dwelling's floor area, up to 50 m².
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 6000, Section 5 Specific Use Regulations (5.4), s. 5.3.1.1-.6](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/section-5-specific-use-regulations.pdf)
  - Official wording: "no outdoor storage for, or outdoor operation of, a Home Based Business shall be permitted;" … "the Home Based Business shall not generate more than two clients to the Site" … "no person other than residents of the Dwelling Unit shall be engaged in the Home" … "the total area of Home Based Businesses shall not occupy more than 30% of the"
  - Source: [Business Licence Bylaw 6100, s. 5.5-5.6](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/6100%20Business%20Licence%20Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "All parking for customers of a Home-Based Business must be contained on the" … "Parking spaces identified for a Home-Based Business are for the exclusive use of"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Businesses not allowed:** Food and Beverage Service, Vehicle Support Services, and Light Industrial uses of any kind.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 6000, section 3.3.8, Definitions](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/6000%20Zoning%20Bylaw%20-%20COMBINED.pdf)
  - Official wording: "This Use does not include Food and Beverage Service, Vehicle Support Services or Light" … "Industrial Uses of any kind."
  - Source: [Home Based Business form, Home Based Business Form](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/business/home_based_minor.pdf)
  - Official wording: "The Home Based Business use does not include Food and Beverage Service, Vehicle Support Services or Light"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** Zoning Bylaw No. 6000, s. 5.3 (Home Based Businesses); Business Licence Bylaw 6100, 2025, s. 5.4 to 5.6; Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 3909, Schedule A, s. 14
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 6000, Section 5 Specific Use Regulations (5.4), s. 5.3](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/section-5-specific-use-regulations.pdf)
  - Official wording: "5.3 Home Based Businesses"
  - Source: [Business Licence Bylaw 6100, s. 1.1](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/6100%20Business%20Licence%20Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Business Licence Bylaw 6100, 2025"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

A home-based business is an accessory use in housing zones and is also listed in the rural, resort and commercial mixed-use zones, under [Zoning Bylaw 6000](https://www.vernon.ca/homes-building/zoning-land-use/zoning-bylaw-6000) section 5.3. It must be run by a resident of the dwelling and operated at the licensee's principal residence. A business licence is required under Business Licence Bylaw 6100. Staff check that the zone allows your type of business when you apply.

## Steps

1. Read the Home Based Business form and make sure you can follow every rule.
2. Submit the signed form with your licence application.
3. Depending on the business, approval from the Fire Inspector, Building Inspector or Environmental Health Officer may be needed. The City says these inspections cost nothing when tied to a licence application.

## Good to know

- Run the business inside the home and/or one accessory building. No outdoor storage or operation.
- No change to the home's housing appearance or external structure.
- No more than two clients on site at once. Only residents of the dwelling may work in it.
- All customer parking must be on the lot and clearly marked. Spaces set aside for the business do not count toward the dwelling's required parking.
- The business may use no more than 30% of the dwelling's floor area, up to 50 m².
- Not allowed: Food and Beverage Service, Vehicle Support Services, and Light Industrial uses of any kind.
- An unlawful home-based business can bring a bylaw notice of $250 ($225 if paid within 14 days) or a municipal ticket of $500 ($450 early).

## What you'll need

- Signed Home Based Business form (required with any home-based licence application)

## Official forms and pages

- [Home Based Business form (PDF)](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/business/home_based_minor.pdf)
- [Business Licences & Permits (City of Vernon)](https://www.vernon.ca/business/business-licences-permits)

## Related questions

- [Vernon business licences: who needs one, fees and how to apply](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/vernon/business-licence.md)
- [Vernon zoning: find your zone and what it allows](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/vernon/zoning-lookup.md)
- [Vernon short-term rental rules (Airbnb, Vrbo)](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/vernon/short-term-rental.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Home-based business rules in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/home-based-business.md)
- [Coldstream](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/coldstream/home-based-business.md)
- [Lake Country](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/lake-country/home-based-business.md)
- [Spallumcheen](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/spallumcheen/home-based-business.md)
- [Armstrong](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/armstrong/home-based-business.md)
- [Lumby](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/lumby/home-based-business.md)
- [Enderby](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/enderby/home-based-business.md)

## Sources

- [Business Licences & Permits, City of Vernon](https://www.vernon.ca/business/business-licences-permits) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Home Based Business form (PDF)](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/business/home_based_minor.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Zoning Bylaw 6000, City of Vernon](https://www.vernon.ca/homes-building/zoning-land-use/zoning-bylaw-6000) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Business Licence Bylaw 6100 (PDF)](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/6100%20Business%20Licence%20Bylaw.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Fees and Charges Bylaw 3909, consolidated (PDF)](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/fees_and_charges_bylaw_3909_consolidated.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Bylaw Notice Enforcement Bylaw 6048 (PDF)](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/Bylaw%20Notice%20Enforcement%20Bylaw%206048.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw 6049 (PDF)](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/bylaws/Municipal%20Ticketing%20Information%20Bylaw%206049.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Zoning Bylaw 6000, section 3.3.8](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/6000%20Zoning%20Bylaw%20-%20COMBINED.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Zoning Bylaw 6000, Section 5 Specific Use Regulations (5.4)](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/section-5-specific-use-regulations.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Zoning Bylaw 6000, Section 9.1 MUS Multi-Unit Small Scale](https://www.vernon.ca/sites/default/files/docs/planning-building/zoning/bylaw6000/section-9_1-mus.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. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with City of Vernon. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/vernon/home-based-business/_