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Ventura County

Ventura County RMA Planning Division

In short

Ventura County RMA Planning Division issues 2 permits we publish for Ventura County, last verified 2026-10-02. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.

What this agency issues

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Alcohol — Public Convenience or Necessity (PCN) Determinationonly if it applies to youVentura County RMA Planning Division$783 Nonrefundable, per applicationNonrefundable, per application2026-10-02
Zoning Clearance (unincorporated area)Ventura County RMA Planning Division$193 Nonrefundable, per application — Ministerial Tenant Change in an Existing Commercial or Industrial Building Tenant Space, the scenario on the RMA Planning Division Fee Schedule that matches these 10 industries opening in existing unincorporated commercial space. Other scenarios on the same schedule are priced separately for different scopes of work, for example $93 for a Home Occupation not requiring a waiver, $333 plus $50 per additional unit for an addition to an existing building, and $444 plus $50 per additional unit for a new residential unit.Nonrefundable, per application2026-10-02

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

About each permit

Alcohol — Public Convenience or Necessity (PCN) Determination

All retail alcohol licenses in Ventura County are issued by the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), a state agency, not the county. The county's role is limited to land-use review: a Conditional Use Permit or Planned Development entitlement where the zoning requires one, and a county Determination of Public Convenience or Necessity (PCN) when ABC finds an applicant's location in an area of 'undue concentration' under Business and Professions Code §23958.4. The RMA Planning Division charges a nonrefundable $783 fee for a PCN determination, listed under Miscellaneous Fees on the same fee schedule that prices the Zoning Clearance (listed as its own requirement). This applies to a restaurant or coffee shop seeking on-site alcohol service and a retail store seeking off-sale alcohol sales, in the circumstances where ABC requires a PCN.

Zoning Clearance (unincorporated area)

Before any of the 10 tracked industries can obtain a County Business Tax Certificate or a Building and Safety sign-off for a location in unincorporated Ventura County, the RMA Planning Division must first confirm through a Zoning Clearance that the use is allowed at that site. For a business opening in an existing commercial or industrial tenant space — the scenario that matches a restaurant, retail store, salon or similar business moving into existing unincorporated commercial space — the fee is a nonrefundable $193, labeled on the fee schedule as the 'Ministerial Tenant Change' tier. A business instead undertaking new construction, an addition, a home occupation or another distinct scope of work is priced on a different tier of the same schedule. This Zoning Clearance is a prerequisite to, not a substitute for, the County Business Tax Certificate and the Building and Safety permit, each listed as its own requirement.

Contact

Jurisdiction
Ventura County
Phone
805-654-2488

Contact details are taken from the agency’s own site or its published fee schedule. Where we have not verified a phone number we leave it blank rather than guess.

Sources

Every fee and term above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.

  1. Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Alcohol License ReviewVentura County RMA Planning Division · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02
  2. Planning Division Fee Schedule, Attachment 1 Schedule B (revised May 19, 2026, effective July 18, 2026)Ventura County RMA Planning Division · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02

Other offices serving Ventura County

The full permit list for this jurisdiction

Industry permit lists that include this agency

California jurisdictions

Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.