15 permits · verified 2026-09-14
What permits do you need to open a salon or barber in Burlington?
In short
A salon or barber in Burlington, VT has 6 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 9 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations Division charges $155 one-time filing for the articles of organization (llc). 7 of the 15 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 salon or barber in Burlington
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salon and Barber Shop — State-Licensed; City Zoning Only (Burlington)only if it applies to you | City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections | No fee | not applicable | 2026-09-14 |
| Sign Permitonly if it applies to you | City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections | A $15.00 filing fee plus $118.00 for one sign, plus $80.00 for each additional sign. Signs forming part of an approved Master Sign Plan are charged at half price per sign. An application to establish or amend a Master Sign Plan is treated as another Development Review Board matter at $155.00, and a sign-related variance is charged as a variance at $195.00. | not stated in the published fee schedule | 2026-09-14 |
| Barbering or Cosmetology Shop License | Vermont Office of Professional Regulation | $285–$355 $355 for the initial license; renewal is $285 every two years | 2 years, on a fixed expiration date printed on the license | 2026-09-04 |
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 Burlington
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Business License — Burlington Position (24 V.S.A. § 2291)only if it applies to you | City of Burlington Clerk/Treasurer's Office | No fee | not applicable | 2026-09-14 |
| Conditional Use Permit / Variance / Development Review Board Applicationonly if it applies to you | City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections | Varies — formula on the Burlington page | one-time per application | 2026-09-14 |
| Zoning Permit (required for change of use, not only construction) | City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections | Varies — formula on the Burlington page | not stated in the published fee schedule | 2026-09-14 |
| Zoning Certificate of Occupancy | City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections | Varies — formula on the Burlington page | one-time; a temporary certificate is time-limited by its own terms | 2026-09-14 |
| Building Permit | City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections | Varies — formula on the Burlington page | a building permit becomes invalid after three years under Code §8-27 | 2026-09-14 |
| Fire and Life Safety Inspection | City of Burlington Office of the City Fire Marshal | Varies — formula on the Burlington page | per inspection cycle | 2026-09-14 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
VT registrations that apply to every type of business
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to you | Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations Division | $155 one-time filing | perpetual, but an annual report is due every year | 2026-09-04 |
| Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to you | Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations Division | $155 one-time filing | perpetual, but an annual report is due every year | 2026-09-04 |
| LLC Annual Reportonly if it applies to you | Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations Division | $45 a year | annual — due within 3 months after the entity's own fiscal year end, roughly March 31 for a calendar-year filer | 2026-09-04 |
| Sales Tax Permit | Vermont Department of Taxes | No fee | no expiration — no renewal required | 2026-09-04 |
| Corporation Annual Reportonly if it applies to you | Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations Division | $60 a year | annual — due within two and a half months after the entity's own fiscal year end, roughly March 15 for a calendar-year filer | 2026-09-04 |
| General Business License — Vermont Secretary of State Fee Scheduleonly if it applies to you | Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations Division | No fee | not applicable | 2026-09-04 |
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 salon or barber in Burlington?
There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 15 records listed for a salon or barber in Burlington, VT, 6 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.
7 of the 15 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 4 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:
Sign Permit: A $15.00 filing fee plus $118.00 for one sign, plus $80.00 for each additional sign. Signs forming part of an approved Master Sign Plan are charged at half price per sign. An application to establish or amend a Master Sign Plan is treated as another Development Review Board matter at $155.00, and a sign-related variance is charged as a variance at $195.00.
Barbering or Cosmetology Shop License: $285–$355 $355 for the initial license; renewal is $285 every two years
The other 5 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Burlington permits page and the VT state page.
Which offices issue these permits in Burlington?
Permits for a salon or barber in Burlington, VT come from 6 separate offices: City of Burlington Clerk/Treasurer's Office, City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections, City of Burlington Office of the City Fire Marshal, Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations Division, Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Department of Taxes. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.
- City of Burlington Clerk/Treasurer's OfficeIssues 1 permit on this page: General Business License — Burlington Position (24 V.S.A. § 2291)149 Church Street, Burlington, VT 05401 · (802) 865-7000www.burlingtonvt.gov/1064/Business-Licenses
- City of Burlington Department of Permitting and InspectionsIssues 6 permits on this page, including Conditional Use Permit / Variance / Development Review Board Application, Salon and Barber Shop — State-Licensed; City Zoning Only (Burlington), Zoning Permit (required for change of use, not only construction)645 Pine Street, Burlington, VT 05401 · (802) 863-0442www.burlingtonvt.gov/558/Permit-Fees
- City of Burlington Office of the City Fire MarshalIssues 1 permit on this page: Fire and Life Safety Inspection132 North Avenue, Burlington, VT 05401 · (802) 864-5577www.burlingtonvt.gov/181
- Vermont Secretary of State, Corporations DivisionIssues 5 permits on this page, including Articles of Organization (LLC), Articles of Incorporation, LLC Annual Report128 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05633 · (802) 828-2386sos.vermont.gov/business-services
- Vermont Office of Professional RegulationIssues 1 permit on this page: Barbering or Cosmetology Shop License89 Main Street, 3rd Floor, Montpelier, VT 05620 · (802) 828-1505sos.vermont.gov/opr
- Vermont Department of TaxesIssues 1 permit on this page: Sales Tax Permit133 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05633tax.vermont.gov/business/sales-and-use-tax
What does a salon or barber need in Burlington that other businesses do not?
2 of the 3 permits particular to a salon or barber here apply to no other business type we cover in Burlington: Salon and Barber Shop — State-Licensed; City Zoning Only (Burlington) and Barbering or Cosmetology Shop License.
Salon and Barber Shop — State-Licensed; City Zoning Only (Burlington)
No fee applies: 24 V.S.A. § 2291 grants Burlington no power to license salons, and the Clerk/Treasurer's Business Licenses page lists no salon license. The trade appears in the CDO use table as 'Salon/Spa' and nowhere else in the City's ordinances. Practitioners and shops are regulated by the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation's Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists. A salon's city obligations are the zoning permit, the zoning certificate of occupancy, building and trade permits, the sign permit and the fire and life safety inspection.
Barbering or Cosmetology Shop License
Every shop needs its own distinct license — a mobile facility included — regardless of common ownership with any other location. The $355/$285 figures come from multiple independent secondary sources rather than a directly confirmed primary fee schedule, since the licensing board's own PDF could not be reached during this research; the requirement itself and its two-year term are confirmed directly from the state's administrative rule text.
Shared with other businesses in Burlington
- Sign Permit — City of Burlington Department of Permitting and Inspections, A $15.00 filing fee plus $118.00 for one sign, plus $80.00 for each additional sign. Signs forming part of an approved Master Sign Plan are charged at half price per sign. An application to establish or amend a Master Sign Plan is treated as another Development Review Board matter at $155.00, and a sign-related variance is charged as a variance at $195.00., not stated in the published fee schedule. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops, retail stores, fitness studios, auto repair shops and veterinary clinics; what it involves is set out on the restaurants page.
The other 6 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Burlington, VT; what each one involves is set out on the Burlington permits page. The 6 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across VT and are covered on the VT state page.
How does a salon or barber compare with other businesses in Burlington?
The closest match is a fitness studio, which shares 1 of these permits. A salon or barber also needs Salon and Barber Shop — State-Licensed; City Zoning Only (Burlington) and Barbering or Cosmetology Shop License. A fitness studio needs Fitness Studio — City Zoning and Permits Only (Burlington), which a salon or barber does not.
| Business | Its own permits | Shared with a salon or barber | Only a salon or barber needs | Only it needs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fitness studios | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Retail stores | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Auto repair shops | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Veterinary clinics | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Coffee shops | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Restaurants | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Childcare centres | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| Contractors and trades | 4 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| Food trucks | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
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 restaurants page. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Burlington permits page and the VT state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.
- Business Licenses — the Clerk/Treasurer's own current index, listing the only four licenses the City issues (cannabis, liquor, peddler, taxi) and establishing that Burlington has no general business licenseCity of Burlington · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-14
- Code of Vermont Rules 04-030-030 — barbering and cosmetology shop licensing and two-year termVermont Office of Professional Regulation, mirrored by Cornell Law School's Legal Information Institute · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
Related
Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.