Business Licences
The City of Sarnia by-laws provide that certain businesses require a municipal licence before it may begin operation in the City. These licences are renewable annually for a fee that is set by City Council. A complete list of all fees are available on the Clerks Department 2013 fee schedule. The City also has passed Business Licensing By-laws for those businesses which require city licences. They include: Adult Video Stores, Auctioneers, Bed and Breakfast Establishments, Body Modification, Circuses/Midways, Commercial Cattery and Dog Kennels, Eating Establishments and Food Store (Restaurants), Master Plumbers, Pet Shops, Public Halls, Refreshment Vehicles, Room or Boarding House, Salesperson (resident/non-resident).
Pawn Brokers and Pawn Shops, taxis and vehicles for hire, salvage shops, salvage yard, second-hand goods dealers and shops, and persons who deal in old gold, precious metals, old jewelry, etc. for the purpose of smelting and receiving gold are licensed by the Sarnia Police Services Board.
An application form for these licences is available from the City Clerk’s Department or by downloading the application from this site and listed below. For certain types of business, you will also require inspections such as a fire inspection and/or a building inspection and these are noted on the form.
There is also a separate by-law that details the licencing requirements for adult entertainment parlours.
Starting a Business
In addition to the possible need for a business licence from the City, you will also need to ensure that the City’s Official Plan and Zoning By-law provide for the type of business to be operated on the specific piece of property where it will be located. To obtain this information, you may contact the City’s Planning & Building Departments and visit our Business venue
When starting a business, there are also a number of requirements of the Province of Ontario. The Provincial Ministry of Consumer and Business Services’ provides an excellent resource for this information. Their web site www.cbs.gov.on.ca under “Serving Business” provides information, contacts and forms for such things as registering your business, its name, business information returns and links to Ontario Business Contacts, an online service to provide a one-window access to range of other applicable sites and services.
Business Application Forms
