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14 permits · verified 2026-09-14

What permits do you need to open a restaurant in Aberdeen?

In short

A restaurant in Aberdeen, SD has 6 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 8 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. City of Aberdeen Building Inspection Department charges $NaN per sign permit for the sign permit. 5 of the 14 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-14 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a restaurant in Aberdeen

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Food Service Establishment License (State-issued; no municipal food license)City of Aberdeen Finance OfficeSet by statute at SDCL 34-18-11 rather than by the City, and banded by the number of employees: $30.00 for an establishment with three or fewer employees, $50.00 for four to ten, $75.00 for eleven to twenty-five and $100.00 for more than twenty-five. A temporary food service establishment license is $30.00. Aberdeen charges nothing for a food license because it issues none.annual, on the South Dakota Department of Health's license year2026-09-14
Sign Permitonly if it applies to youCity of Aberdeen Building Inspection Department$NaN per sign permitone-time, per sign2026-09-14
Food Service Manager CertificationSouth Dakota Department of Health, Office of Health ProtectionNo feeset by the accredited training provider rather than state regulation2026-09-04
Food Establishment LicenseSouth Dakota Department of Health, Office of Health Protection$140–$275 a year, banded by seating capacity; a new establishment adds a $100 initial fee on topannual — every license expires December 31 regardless of issue date, with a discounted half-year fee for openings after July 12026-09-04

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 Aberdeen

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Zoning Variance, Special Exception, Appeal and Rezoningonly if it applies to youCity of Aberdeen Planning and Zoning DepartmentVaries — formula on the Aberdeen pagethe approval runs with the use or property unless conditioned otherwise2026-09-14
Fire Permits and Commercial Fire Inspectiononly if it applies to youAberdeen Fire and Rescue, Fire Prevention DivisionVaries — formula on the Aberdeen pageper permit or event; routine inspections recur on the department's own cycle2026-09-14
Certificate of OccupancyCity of Aberdeen Building Inspection DepartmentNo feeone-time, issued after final inspection2026-09-14
Commercial Building PermitCity of Aberdeen Building Inspection DepartmentVaries — formula on the Aberdeen pageas set in the adopted building code2026-09-14
General Business License — City of Aberdeen Positiononly if it applies to youCity of Aberdeen Finance OfficeNo feenot applicable to a general license2026-09-14

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

SD 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
Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to youSouth Dakota Secretary of State, Business Services$150 filed online; paper filing costs $165perpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-04
Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to youSouth Dakota Secretary of State, Business Services$150 filed online; paper filing costs $165perpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-04
Annual Reportonly if it applies to youSouth Dakota Secretary of State, Business Services$55 a year filed online; paper filing costs $70annual — due the first day of the entity's anniversary month of formation2026-09-04
General Business License — State of South Dakota positiononly if it applies to youSouth Dakota Secretary of State, Business ServicesNo feenot applicable2026-09-04
Sales Tax LicenseSouth Dakota Department of RevenueNo feeno stated expiration2026-09-04

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 restaurant in Aberdeen?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 14 records listed for a restaurant in Aberdeen, SD, 6 apply to every business of this type and 8 are conditional. Adding every fee on the page together would overstate what most operators pay, because it would include permits they never need.

5 of the 14 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 5 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:

Food Service Establishment License (State-issued; no municipal food license): Set by statute at SDCL 34-18-11 rather than by the City, and banded by the number of employees: $30.00 for an establishment with three or fewer employees, $50.00 for four to ten, $75.00 for eleven to twenty-five and $100.00 for more than twenty-five. A temporary food service establishment license is $30.00. Aberdeen charges nothing for a food license because it issues none.

Food Establishment License: $140–$275 a year, banded by seating capacity; a new establishment adds a $100 initial fee on top

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

Which offices issue these permits in Aberdeen?

Permits for a restaurant in Aberdeen, SD come from 7 separate offices: City of Aberdeen Planning and Zoning Department, Aberdeen Fire and Rescue, Fire Prevention Division, City of Aberdeen Finance Office, City of Aberdeen Building Inspection Department, South Dakota Secretary of State, Business Services, South Dakota Department of Health, Office of Health Protection, South Dakota Department of Revenue. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.

What does a restaurant need in Aberdeen that other businesses do not?

Food Service Establishment License (State-issued; no municipal food license)

Aberdeen sits at the far end of the South Dakota spectrum on food: Sioux Falls runs its own health department and licenses, Rapid City delegates to the State by express ordinance, and Aberdeen's published Revised Ordinances have no food chapter, so the state license applies by default rather than by delegation. The practical effect is the same as Rapid City's — the license is the statutory one banded by employee count, inspections come from Pierre, and plan review for a new kitchen is a state process. What the City still controls is the building permit, the certificate of occupancy, the sign permit and the fire inspection, and for a restaurant serving alcohol, the municipal on-sale license, which is the largest single figure a new Aberdeen restaurant is likely to encounter.

Shared with other businesses in Aberdeen

  • Sign Permit — City of Aberdeen Building Inspection Department, $NaN per sign permit, one-time, per sign. Also required for coffee shops, retail stores, fitness studios, auto repair shops, veterinary clinics and salons and barbers; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.
  • Food Service Manager Certification — South Dakota Department of Health, Office of Health Protection, No fee, set by the accredited training provider rather than state regulation. Also required for coffee shops and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the food trucks page.
  • Food Establishment License — South Dakota Department of Health, Office of Health Protection, $140–$275 a year, banded by seating capacity; a new establishment adds a $100 initial fee on top, annual — every license expires December 31 regardless of issue date, with a discounted half-year fee for openings after July 1. Also required for coffee shops and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the food trucks page.

The other 5 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Aberdeen, SD; what each one involves is set out on the Aberdeen permits page. The 5 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across SD and are covered on the SD state page.

How does a restaurant compare with other businesses in Aberdeen?

A restaurant and a coffee shop in Aberdeen, SD need exactly the same 4 permits beyond the ones every business needs.

Permits particular to each business type in Aberdeen, SD, compared with a restaurant
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a restaurantOnly a restaurant needsOnly it needs
Coffee shops4400
Food trucks3221
Retail stores3221
Fitness studios2131
Auto repair shops3132
Veterinary clinics3132
Salons and barbers4133
Childcare centres2042
Contractors and trades4044

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 shared with other businesses are listed with their explanations on the retail stores page and food trucks page. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Aberdeen permits page and the SD state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. SDCL 34-18-11 — the statutory food service establishment licence fee schedule set by the South Dakota Legislature, which governs in Rapid City because the municipal code defers to the state licenceSouth Dakota Legislature · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-14
  2. Food and Lodging Safety licensure — the South Dakota Department of Health's own current page for the statewide food service establishment license under SDCL ch. 34-18, which applies alongside or in place of a municipal license depending on jurisdictionSouth Dakota Department of Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-14
  3. Revised Ordinances of the City of Aberdeen — Chapter 14 (Businesses and Business Regulations, including Article II licence procedure, §14-128 home day care licences and §14-135 special exception), Chapter 12 (Buildings and Building Regulations, including contractor licensing and building permit fees), Chapter 42 (Signs), Chapter 60 (Zoning), Chapter 24 (Fire Prevention and Protection), Chapter 38 (Peddlers, Solicitors and Itinerant Merchants — §38-1 definitions, §38-29 transient and itinerant merchant applications and §38-34 fees) and §50-77 (municipal gross receipts tax)City of Aberdeen, codified by Municode · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-14

Related

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