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11 permits · verified 2026-09-28

What permits do you need to open a retail store in Montgomery County Al?

In short

A retail store in Montgomery County Al, AL has 2 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 9 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. Montgomery County Probate Court, Licenses Division charges $2 a flat $2 total per single location ($1 state license fee plus $1 issuance fee); the statute directs that no county portion is due for this classification (Ala. Code §40-12-315, Article 6 — Store License) for the general county privilege license — store license. 5 of the 11 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-28 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a retail store in Montgomery County Al

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
General County Privilege License — Store LicenseMontgomery County Probate Court, Licenses Division$2 a flat $2 total per single location ($1 state license fee plus $1 issuance fee); the statute directs that no county portion is due for this classification (Ala. Code §40-12-315, Article 6 — Store License)annual; due October 1, delinquent November 1 (§40-12-26); 15% delinquency penalty plus 6% annual interest (§40-12-10(e))2026-09-28
MCHD Retail Food Service Permitonly if it applies to youMontgomery County Health Department / Montgomery County Board of Health, Environmental Health Division$85–$175 a year, by store size — under 2,500 square feet $85 (code 674), 2,500 square feet or more $175 (code 676); MCHD Environmental Health Division Fee Scheduleannual2026-09-28
Alcoholic Beverage License (state ABC Board; Montgomery County is Wet)only if it applies to youMontgomery County Commission (county governing body)No feenot applicable at the county level2026-09-28
Store Licenseonly if it applies to youAlabama Department of Revenue, Business and License Tax Division$2 for a single store including the issuance fee, then $16 each for stores two to five, $23.50 for six to ten, $38.50 for eleven to twenty and $113.50 each beyond thatannual — 1 October to 30 September2026-09-03

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

Local permits that apply to every type of business in Montgomery County Al

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Building Permit — Unincorporated Montgomery Countyonly if it applies to youMontgomery County Engineering DepartmentVaries — formula on the Montgomery County Al pageone-time, per permit2026-09-28

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

AL registrations that apply to every type of business

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
State and County Business Privilege Licenseonly if it applies to youAlabama Department of Revenue, Business and License Tax DivisionVaries — formula on the AL pageannual — 1 October to 30 September, delinquent 1 November2026-09-03
Certificate of Formation (LLC)only if it applies to youAlabama Secretary of State, Business Services$200 one-time filingperpetual — Alabama abolished the annual report in 20242026-09-03
Certificate of Incorporationonly if it applies to youAlabama Secretary of State, Business Services$200 one-time filingperpetual — Alabama abolished the annual report in 20242026-09-03
Corporation Annual Report (abolished)only if it applies to youAlabama Secretary of State, Business ServicesNo feenot applicable — the filing no longer exists2026-09-03
Business Privilege Taxonly if it applies to youAlabama Department of Revenue, Sales and Use Tax DivisionVaries — formula on the AL pageannual — due when the matching federal return is due2026-09-03
Sales Tax LicenseAlabama Department of Revenue, Sales and Use Tax DivisionNo feeannual — renew online between 1 November and 31 December2026-09-03

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

How much does it actually cost to permit a retail store in Montgomery County Al?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 11 records listed for a retail store in Montgomery County Al, AL, 2 apply to every business of this type and 9 are conditional. Adding every fee on the page together would overstate what most operators pay, because it would include permits they never need.

Of the 2 that always apply, 1 carry a flat fee, coming to $2.00. That is a floor, not a total. 5 of the 11 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 3 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:

MCHD Retail Food Service Permit: $85–$175 a year, by store size — under 2,500 square feet $85 (code 674), 2,500 square feet or more $175 (code 676); MCHD Environmental Health Division Fee Schedule

Store License: $2 for a single store including the issuance fee, then $16 each for stores two to five, $23.50 for six to ten, $38.50 for eleven to twenty and $113.50 each beyond that

The other 3 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Montgomery County Al permits page and the AL state page.

Which offices issue these permits in Montgomery County Al?

Permits for a retail store in Montgomery County Al, AL come from 7 separate offices: Montgomery County Engineering Department, Montgomery County Probate Court, Licenses Division, Montgomery County Health Department / Montgomery County Board of Health, Environmental Health Division, Montgomery County Commission (county governing body), Alabama Department of Revenue, Business and License Tax Division, Alabama Secretary of State, Business Services, Alabama Department of Revenue, Sales and Use Tax Division. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.

What does a retail store need in Montgomery County Al that other businesses do not?

2 of the 4 permits particular to a retail store here apply to no other business type we cover in Montgomery County Al: General County Privilege License — Store License and MCHD Retail Food Service Permit.

General County Privilege License — Store License

Any retail store in Montgomery County, regardless of what it sells, is a 'store' under Title 40-12's Article 6 Store License provisions and owes a flat $2 total per single location: $1 state license fee plus $1 issuance fee, with the statute stating plainly that 'no license fee or license shall be due or payable for the use of any county' for this classification. This is separate from, and in addition to, whatever specific classification applies to the particular merchandise the store sells, if any (for example firearms or radios have their own Title 40-12 classifications). Montgomery County's own local-acts chapter contains no privilege-license fee schedule of its own — Title 45, Chapter 51, Article 20 ('Licenses and Licensure') consists of a single section, §45-51-200, marked 'Reserved' — so this statewide Article 6 schedule is the only mechanism that applies, collected through the Probate Court's Title 40-12 process.

MCHD Retail Food Service Permit

A retail store in Montgomery County that prepares or handles food for sale on-site — for example a grocery deli counter or a market selling prepared foods — needs this annual Retail Food Service permit from MCHD, priced by store size under MCHD's own Environmental Health Division Fee Schedule: $85 for under 2,500 square feet and $175 for 2,500 square feet or more. As with the food establishment permit, this fee schedule is printed 'Effective Date July 1, 2004' and is the schedule MCHD currently publishes on its own website. A retail store that only resells sealed, already-packaged food made elsewhere does not need this particular permit.

Alcoholic Beverage License (state ABC Board; Montgomery County is Wet)

Montgomery County itself charges no fee for alcohol sales: the license to sell or serve alcohol comes entirely from the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, recorded at the state layer, not from Montgomery County. Montgomery County is affirmatively listed Wet on the ABC Board's own current Wet Cities page, so no part of the county is dry. Getting the state ABC license itself requires an approval letter from the relevant local governing body — the county commission or the relevant city/town council, whichever has jurisdiction over the specific premises — a statewide ABC Board procedural step applying in every Alabama county, not something Montgomery County invented. Inside the City of Montgomery, that approval comes from the Montgomery City Council; for a premises in unincorporated Montgomery County, the Montgomery County Commission is listed here as the agency for that role; confirm with the Commission office which county body issues the unincorporated-area approval letter. A restaurant, coffee shop or retail store selling alcohol also still owes every other county requirement recorded as a separate requirement.

Store License

The store license reaches essentially every retail and wholesale merchant, which makes it the closest thing Alabama has to a universal business license — and it is remarkably cheap for a single-location business at $2 all in. The price climbs per store as a chain grows, reaching $113.50 for each store past the twentieth. Unlike the privilege license, this one is state-only: the statute says expressly that no fee is due for the use of any county. An auto repair shop needs it only if it sells parts to the public over the counter; keeping a stock of parts to fit to customers' vehicles does not trigger it, even where the parts are itemised on the repair bill.

The other 1 local permit in the tables apply to every type of business in Montgomery County Al, AL; what each one involves is set out on the Montgomery County Al permits page. The 6 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across AL and are covered on the AL state page.

How does a retail store compare with other businesses in Montgomery County Al?

The closest match is a auto repair shop, which shares 1 of these permits. A retail store also needs General County Privilege License — Store License, MCHD Retail Food Service Permit and Alcoholic Beverage License (state ABC Board; Montgomery County is Wet). A auto repair shop needs General County Privilege License — Junk Dealers and Car Crushers, General County Privilege License — Automobile Garages and Shops and Garage and Repair Shop Privilege License, which a retail store does not.

Permits particular to each business type in Montgomery County Al, AL, compared with a retail store
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a retail storeOnly a retail store needsOnly it needs
Auto repair shops4133
Restaurants5134
Coffee shops6135
Childcare centres2042
Contractors and trades3043
Fitness studios2042
Food trucks3043
Salons and barbers3043
Veterinary clinics3043

Sources

Every figure for the permits explained on this page was read from one of these government pages on the date shown. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Montgomery County Al permits page and the AL state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. Alabama Department of Revenue — Handbook of Privilege and Store Licenses, October 2022, with the fee schedule for each business typeAlabama Department of Revenue · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
  2. Montgomery County Probate Court — Business Licenses pageMontgomery County Probate Court · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-28
  3. Code of Alabama, Title 45, Chapter 51, Article 20 (Licenses and Licensure) — §45-51-200, ReservedJustia (Code of Alabama) · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-28
  4. MCHD Environmental Health Division Fee Schedule (printed effective date July 1, 2004; confirmed unchanged via Wayback Machine CDX snapshots, Aug 2024-Nov 2025)Alabama Department of Public Health, Montgomery County · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-28
  5. Food Establishment Sanitation program pageAlabama Department of Public Health, Montgomery County · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-28
  6. Wet Cities determination — Madison County listed 'Wet,' no city-level carve-outsAlabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-28

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