What do these permits involve in Ventura County?

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County Business Tax Certificate (unincorporated area)

Every business, trade, profession or occupation conducted in the unincorporated area of Ventura County must hold a County Business Tax Certificate from the Treasurer-Tax Collector, including a business based inside one of the county's 10 incorporated cities that delivers, solicits or otherwise operates in the unincorporated area. The Rate Sheet groups businesses by type rather than naming every one of the 10 tracked industries individually — it does not name 'coffee shop' or 'food truck' as such — and the Tax Collector makes the final classification call for a given applicant; a coffee shop or food truck is applied to Group 1 alongside restaurants and retail establishments. Issuance requires, at minimum, a prior Zoning Clearance and Building and Safety Division sign-off, each listed as its own requirement for unincorporated Ventura County. The City of San Buenaventura (Ventura) and the county's other nine incorporated cities each run a separate, identically named 'Business Tax Certificate' program of their own, administratively distinct from this county certificate and not satisfied by holding it.

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.

Onsite Wastewater Treatment System (OWTS/Septic) Permit

Any of the 10 tracked industries operating from a location in unincorporated Ventura County that is not connected to a public sewer system needs an Onsite Wastewater Treatment System (OWTS, commonly called septic) permit from the RMA Environmental Health Division, whether for a new system, certification of an existing one, a repair, or a modification. The FY 2026-27 fee schedule prices each service separately rather than as a single permit fee: a new conventional system costs $1,273 to apply for and an alternate system $2,424, while certifying an existing system costs $1,171 and a narrower setback certification costs $154 to $415. A business connected to a public sewer system, which includes most commercial space inside the incorporated cities, does not need this permit.

Building and Safety Division Permit

Any of the 10 tracked industries undertaking new construction, a tenant improvement or a change of use requiring building alterations in unincorporated Ventura County needs a building, electrical, plumbing or mechanical permit from the RMA Building and Safety Division. A new tenant occupying existing commercial space pays a $267 Certificate of Occupancy review in addition to the $74 application fee and the relevant issuance fee ($59 single-trade or $133 combination); new construction or a larger remodel is priced on the project's construction valuation under Table 1-A, starting at $57 and rising by $6.22 per $1,000 of valuation above $1,000,000. A failed inspection that must be repeated costs a flat $178 reinspection fee. This fee schedule shares its adoption and effective dates (revised May 19, 2026, effective July 18, 2026) with the RMA Planning Division's Zoning Clearance fee schedule (listed as its own requirement), as both are attachments to the same Board of Supervisors fee resolution.

Permit	Issuing agency	Fee	Renews	Last checked
County Business Tax Certificate (unincorporated area)	Ventura County Treasurer-Tax Collector	Group 1 (restaurants, retail establishments, automobile repair, food storage, farming, manufacturing, child nurseries/private schools, studios, towing, wrecking/dismantling, woodworking, etc.): gross receipts x 0.0005, $35 minimum. Group 2 (contractors, subcontractors, electricians, plumbers, landscapers, manicurists, animal hospitals/kennels/stables, barbers/beauty shops, health clubs/massage establishments, dry-cleaning, bars, junk dealers, etc.): gross receipts x 0.001, $35 minimum. Group 3 (professional services such as medical, dental, financial, insurance, engineering, accounting and real estate; laboratories; security/detective services; mortuaries; oil wells; waste treatment): gross receipts x 0.0015, $35 minimum. Group 4 (12 flat-rate sub-types covering carnivals and temporary structures, art/antique shows, auctioneers, bankruptcy sales, filming, machines, produce stands, principal and individual solicitors, vendors, warehouses and cell towers) ranges from $10 to $350 depending on the specific sub-type. Group 5, the 'wheel tax' for a business based outside the unincorporated area that operates there by vehicle: $50 for the first vehicle plus $30 for each additional vehicle. Group 6 (an administrative headquarters with no direct product or service): $0.50 per $1,000 of prior-year gross payroll, $50 minimum. Group 7 activities — charitable and nonprofit benefit activities, up to two yard sales a year, a minor under 18 or an adult over 65 with gross receipts under $2,000/year, qualifying agricultural growers or producers, and disabled veterans — are exempt under Ordinance Code §§2006.1-2006.7. Every applicant additionally pays a $4 state-mandated fee under Government Code §4467 and a $40 county processing fee.	Annual, license year July 1 through June 30; prorated quarterly for a mid-year start unless the annual fee is $10 or less	2026-10-02
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 application	2026-10-02
Onsite Wastewater Treatment System (OWTS/Septic) Permitonly if it applies to you	Ventura County RMA Environmental Health Division	$154–$2,424 Per service, Schedule of Fees for Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems (OWTS), 2026-27. New conventional OWTS application $1,273; new alternate OWTS application $2,424; conventional permit-to-construct $573; alternate permit-to-construct $677; full certification of an existing OWTS $1,171; setback certification $415; mini setback certification $154; repair or replacement of a dispersal area $367; alternate methods/materials evaluation $560; non-hazardous liquid waste holding tank $1,344; septic pumping vehicle annual registration $292.	Per service; the septic-pumping-vehicle registration is annual	2026-10-02
Building and Safety Division Permitonly if it applies to you	Ventura County RMA Building and Safety Division	Application fee $74; single-permit issuance $59; combination-permit issuance $133; Table 1-A valuation-based building permit fee, from $57 for $1-$500 of valuation up to $10,260 plus $6.22 per $1,000 of valuation above $1,000,000; plan review 85% of the permit fee minus the application fee; demolition $311; manufactured home set-up $445 (single) / $488 (double) / $533 (triple); review of a new tenant or business in an existing building (Certificate of Occupancy) $267; records update or reissue of a Certificate of Occupancy $89; reinspection $178; temporary or partial Certificate of Occupancy $355.	Per permit; expiration governed by the County Building Code	2026-10-02

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