San Diego requires businesses operating within the city limits to be licensed.
Anyone doing business in San Diego, California, must have a license to conduct business activities. Depending on the type of business, additional licenses may be required by the city or other government agencies. This list includes home businesses as well as those that sell tobacco goods or use hazardous wastes in their operation.
Business Tax Certificate
The city requires businesses to apply for a Business Tax Certificate within 15 days of opening. The two-page application is available online, and asks for basic information including the type of business, whether tobacco products are sold, whether hazardous waste materials will be used, and if 50 or more people will be on site at any time. The form also asks for personal contact information on business owners, partners and corporate officers. You can submit the completed application electronically, in person or by mail. You'll have to pay a fee to cover the business tax and zoning fees. Additional fees may be required, such as for businesses employing more than 13 people, the city says, noting it will notify applicants after reviewing the form.
Police Permits
The San Diego Police Department requires certain businesses to have permits to operate, noting these permits are required to monitor businesses for illegal activity, such as selling tobacco to minors. "Commercial amusement establishments" also must have permits from the police. The city's Municipal Code says "commercial amusement establishments" include pool halls, skating rinks, bowling alleys and arcades, and any place which involves games of skill and chance, and which charges an admission fee or playing charge.
Other City Permits
San Diego residents who work out of their homes may need a Neighborhood Use permit from the city's Development Services Department.
Businesses which have hazardous materials on site need a permit from the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department. A permit also is necessary for special events involving a lot of people.
Other Government Permits
County, state and federal governments may also require permits based on the type of business to be conducted, according to an online city brochure, "10 Key Steps to Starting a Business." For example, businesses which sell goods by weight or volume need to register their scales with San Diego County's Agriculture, Weights and Measures office. Businesses which do such activities as selling food, operating a pool and handling hazardous materials, including medical wastes, or have underground storage tanks must contact the county's Department of Environmental Health.
California's Economic Development office maintains a database of permits required by businesses operating in the state, but it does not issue the permits itself, the website says. The database is known as CalGOLD.
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