16 published records
Business licenses and permits in Nashua, New Hampshire
The City Clerk's Licenses & Permits page lists a narrow, enumerated set of licenses (Amusement Devices, Chauffeurs, Pawnbrokers & Secondhand Dealers, Shows, Taxicabs, Vendors) and names no general business license; unlike Manchester's list, it does not reach food service at all: a Nashua restaurant needs only the Division of Public Health's Environmental Health Department Food Service Establishment License (NRO Ch. 170), banded $25-$1,500 by category and seating (D-1, covering restaurants under 25 seats and also child-care facilities, is $200), the City's own self-inspecting authority under NRO Chapter 170 and the Department's current fee schedule. A food truck stacks three genuinely separate Nashua fees: the Environmental Health Department's $125.00 one-time plan review plus $200.00 annual Mobile Food Service License, the City Clerk's Vendor's (Hawker/Peddler) License ($10/day, $25/week, or $100/year, expiring every December 31 under NRO § 231-11), and Nashua Fire Rescue's own $30.00 annual Food Truck/Trailer Inspection fee. Childcare carries the same $200.00 Environmental Health food fee plus a separate, itemized Fire Marshal childcare inspection fee ($50.00-$150.00 by facility size, every two years) that Manchester's own fire schedule did not price. The Department of Building Safety prices a valuation-based building permit (Ordinance O-21-045: $0.28/sq ft new commercial, $0.18/sq ft commercial alterations, plus a $50.00 application fee) together with a genuinely distinct flat $50.00 Certificate of Occupancy fee (existing space/owner change) rather than folding occupancy into the building-permit formula as Manchester does, a Planning-and-Zoning review fee riding alongside every permit ($25.00-$300.00 or 25% of the building permit fee, by project type), and an itemized sign permit fee ($25.00 filing plus $55.00-$200.00 by sign area) published in the Planning Department's sign permit procedures. The Zoning Board of Adjustment prices variances and special exceptions at $330.00-$900.00 by type, plus abutter-notification and sign fees. Nashua Fire Rescue's own comprehensive Fee Schedule (Ordinance O-22-023) prices banded life-safety plan review, sprinkler and alarm system permits, and a flat $50.00 Place of Assembly Permit. The City Clerk's list names no additional local license for ordinary retail, auto repair, veterinary practices, fitness studios, salons, or contractors beyond this general layer.
What are you opening in Nashua?
- RestaurantsFull-service restaurants carry the densest permit load of any small business: food, fire, occupancy, waste, and usually alcohol.See the full permit list
- Coffee shopsCafés are permitted as food service establishments even where no cooking happens, and the plan review step catches most operators by surprise.See the full permit list
- Retail storesRetail is the lightest common permit load, but the sales tax permit and the certificate of occupancy are non-negotiable in every jurisdiction.See the full permit list
- Salons and barbersPersonal care is licensed at state board level as well as locally, so the shop license and the practitioner licenses are separate obligations.See the full permit list
- Food trucksMobile food is the one category with no certificate of occupancy — but it gains a commissary agreement, and the unit itself is inspected rather than the premises.See the full permit list
- Fitness studiosPrepaid memberships trigger state registration and often a surety bond, which catches operators who budgeted only for the fit-out.See the full permit list
- Childcare centresThe heaviest permit load of any small business: state agency licensing, per-person background checks, and a stricter fire standard than ordinary commercial use.See the full permit list
- Contractors and tradesLicensed at state board level rather than locally, and the only common category with no premises permits at all — the bond is usually the long pole.See the full permit list
- Auto repair shopsOrdinary commercial permitting plus an environmental layer: waste oil, solvents and stormwater are each registered separately.See the full permit list
- Veterinary clinicsA state facility permit, controlled substances registration at both state and federal level, and a medical waste manifest — none of which a general business license covers.See the full permit list
Permits that apply to every type of business in Nashua
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Building Permit | City of Nashua, Department of Building Safety | A $50.00 nonrefundable application/review fee on every permit, plus a per-square-foot construction fee: $0.28 per square foot for new commercial construction (including multifamily) and $0.18 per square foot for commercial alterations, repairs, or fire damage; new one- and two-family residential construction is $0.18 per square foot (alterations $0.13). Additional plan review for tenant fit-up or minor modifications is $0.15 per square foot commercial ($0.10 residential). Demolition is $40.00 up to 1,000 square feet plus $3.15 per each additional 100 square feet. Per Nashua Revised Ordinances Chapter 105, Article VIII, as set by Ordinance O-21-045. | one-time, per project — not stated in the published fee schedule | 2026-09-12 |
| Certificate of Occupancy | City of Nashua, Department of Building Safety | $50 one-time, existing space/owner change | one-time — issued for a new occupancy or a change of business use | 2026-09-12 |
| Fire Alarm / Sprinkler System Plan Review and Inspection | Nashua Fire Rescue, Fire Marshal's Office | Life Safety/Plan Review Fee (per building, banded by area): $75.00 for a site plan review with no new structures, $100.00 up to 5,000 sq ft, $250.00 for 5,001-15,000 sq ft, $375.00 for 15,001-25,000 sq ft, $650.00 for 25,001-50,000 sq ft, $850.00 over 50,000 sq ft. New Automatic Fire Sprinkler Systems: NFPA 13D $75.00 per riser; NFPA 13/13R systems banded $275.00-$850.00 per riser by protected area. New Fire Alarm Systems: $130.00 up to 25 devices, up to $250.00 for 50-99 devices, plus $1.00 per device beyond 99. Per Nashua Fire Rescue's own current Fee Schedule (Ordinance O-22-023). | one-time, per project or system | 2026-09-12 |
| Zoning Board of Adjustment Application (Variance, Special Exception, Appeal)only if it applies to you | City of Nashua, Planning Department (Planning Board and Zoning Board of Adjustment) | $330.00 basic fee for most petitions (variances, administrative appeals, rehearings); $440.00 for a special exception involving floodplain filling, wetland filling, a planned business or industrial development, or raw-material processing/removal; $900.00 for a use variance; a further $200.00 surcharge for an application with more than one request. Every application also carries a $3.00-per-abutter notification fee plus postage, $15.00 for each required on-site notification sign (with a $100.00 recovery fee if a sign is not removed within seven days of the hearing), and a $100.00 processing fee for any applicant-caused postponement. Per Nashua Revised Ordinances Article XLIII, § C(1)-(2). | one-time, per application | 2026-09-12 |
| Planning and Zoning Review Fee (Site Plan / Change of Use) | City of Nashua, Planning Department (Planning Board and Zoning Board of Adjustment) | A $25.00 minimum for sheds, decks, or a commercial tenant fit-up that is not a change of use; $55.00 for residential additions and alterations; $240.00 per unit for new residential construction of up to three dwelling units; the greater of $300.00 or 25% of the building permit fee for new residential construction of more than three units and for all new commercial construction; and a flat $300.00 for a commercial change of use. Per the Department of Building Safety's own current simplified Permit Fee Schedule, which accompanies nearly every building permit application. | one-time, per application | 2026-09-12 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
What do these permits involve in Nashua?
Building Permit
Required for new construction, additions, and most alterations to a commercial building; separate trade permits (electrical, mechanical, plumbing) are required in addition. A Planning-and-Zoning review fee and, for multifamily/commercial projects, a Fire Marshal life-safety plan review fee ride alongside this permit, each recorded in its own line item below.
Certificate of Occupancy
A confirmed, flat $50.00 figure, itemized as its own distinct line in Ordinance O-21-045 rather than folded into the percentage-of-cost building permit formula above — a genuinely different structure from Manchester, which prices its Certificate of Occupancy using the same percentage formula as its general building permit.
Fire Alarm / Sprinkler System Plan Review and Inspection
Multifamily (three or more units), townhouse, and commercial projects include a Fire Marshal fee alongside the building permit, per the Department of Building Safety's own simplified fee spreadsheet. Modifications to existing systems, standpipe systems, and other suppression systems (carbon dioxide, clean agent, dry/wet chemical, commercial kitchen suppression) are separately priced on the same schedule.
Zoning Board of Adjustment Application (Variance, Special Exception, Appeal)
Triggered when a proposed use or structure fails to conform to the Nashua Zoning Ordinance's use, dimensional, or other requirements. Attendance at the public hearing is mandatory for the applicant or a representative.
Planning and Zoning Review Fee (Site Plan / Change of Use)
This fee rides alongside the building permit recorded above for nearly every commercial project, and functions as Nashua's zoning/land-use verification charge; a $300.00 flat fee applies specifically when an existing space changes to a new business use, which is the most common trigger for a business opening in existing commercial space.
Sources
Every figure in the table above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.
- Ordinance O-21-045 — amending Nashua Revised Ordinances Chapter 105 (Building Construction), Article VIII (Fees), and increasing Building Department fees, including the $50.00 flat Certificate of Occupancy feeCity of Nashua, Department of Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-12
- Simplified Permit Fee Schedule — Building Safety, Planning and Zoning, and Fire Marshal's Office fee tables with worked examplesCity of Nashua, Department of Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-12
- Nashua Fire Rescue, Fire Marshal's Office Fee Schedule (Ordinance O-22-023) — life safety/plan review, sprinkler and alarm systems, Place of Assembly Permits, hazardous materials, and Food Truck/Trailer and child-care inspection feesNashua Fire Rescue, Fire Marshal's Office · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-12
- Procedures for Filing a Variance — the Zoning Board of Adjustment's own current fee schedule ($330.00-$900.00 by petition type, plus abutter and sign fees)City of Nashua, Planning Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-12
Who issues business permits in Nashua?
Permitting in Nashua is split across 5 agencies we hold records for, with tax registration handled at state level. No single office issues everything, which is why an opening usually means filing in several places rather than one.
Nashua issuing agencies
- City of Nashua, Division of Public Health & Community Services, Environmental Health DepartmentFood Service Establishment licensing (self-inspecting city, not the state) · Mobile Food Service Vendor and Temporary Food Service Establishment licensing · Child-care facility food-service licensing4 permits
- Nashua Fire Rescue, Fire Marshal's OfficeFire alarm, sprinkler, and suppression system plan review and inspection · Place of Assembly Permit · Food truck/trailer and child-care facility fire inspections4 permits
- City of Nashua, Department of Building SafetyBuilding, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and demolition permits · Certificate of Occupancy issuance3 permits
- City of Nashua, Planning Department (Planning Board and Zoning Board of Adjustment)Sign permits · Zoning Board of Adjustment variances, special exceptions, and appeals · Site plan review and change-of-use / land-use fees3 permits
- City of Nashua, Office of the City ClerkVendor's (Hawker/Peddler, itinerant, flea market, street fair) licenses · Amusement Device, Chauffeur, Pawnbroker & Secondhand Dealer, Show, and Taxicab licenses2 permits
Other New Hampshire jurisdictions we cover
Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.