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12 permits · verified 2026-09-06

What permits do you need to open a auto repair shop in Green Bay?

In short

A auto repair shop in Green Bay, WI has 5 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 7 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. City of Green Bay Community & Economic Development, Building/Zoning Permits charges $75 for commercial, educational, institutional, or industrial uses for the certificate of occupancy. 3 of the 12 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-06 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a auto repair shop in Green Bay

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Fire InspectionGreen Bay Metro Fire Department, Fire Marshal's Office$50–$250 by building size — $50 (up to 3,000 sq ft), $100 (3,001–10,000), $150 (10,001–50,000), $250 (over 50,000)recurring2026-09-06
Sign PermitCity of Green Bay Community & Economic Development, Building/Zoning PermitsPermanent sign: $40 base plus $0.50 per sq ft. Temporary sign: $40 flat. A sign structural plan review (part of the building-permit plan-approval process) is $75; an electrical permit for an illuminated sign is $100.one-time, per sign2026-09-06
Auto Repair Licensing — City of Green Bay Positiononly if it applies to youCity of Green Bay Clerk's OfficeNo feenot applicable2026-09-06
Automotive Repair Shops — Wisconsin Conduct Rules (ATCP 132)only if it applies to youWisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Bureau of Consumer ProtectionNo feenot applicable2026-09-03

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 Green Bay

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
General Business License — City of Green Bay Fee Schedule Positiononly if it applies to youCity of Green Bay Clerk's OfficeNo feenot applicable2026-09-06
Certificate of OccupancyCity of Green Bay Community & Economic Development, Building/Zoning Permits$75 for commercial, educational, institutional, or industrial usesissued once per qualifying occupancy2026-09-06
Commercial Building PermitCity of Green Bay Community & Economic Development, Building/Zoning PermitsVaries — formula on the Green Bay pageone-time, per project2026-09-06

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

WI 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 Incorporationonly if it applies to youWisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Corporate and Consumer Services$100 one-time filing, on paper or onlineperpetual, but an annual report is due each year2026-09-03
General Business License — Wisconsin positiononly if it applies to youWisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Corporate and Consumer ServicesNo feenot applicable2026-09-03
Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to youWisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Corporate and Consumer Services$130 one-time online filing plus a $1 portal fee; $170 on paperperpetual, but an annual report is due each year2026-09-03
Annual Reportonly if it applies to youWisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Corporate and Consumer Services$25 a year online; $40 on paper, which is the $25 plus a $15 paper surchargeannual — due at the end of the calendar quarter containing the anniversary of formation2026-09-03
Seller's Permit and Business Tax RegistrationWisconsin Department of Revenue$20 initial registration covering two years; $10 to renew each two-year period2 years2026-09-03

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 auto repair shop in Green Bay?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 12 records listed for a auto repair shop in Green Bay, WI, 5 apply to every business of this type and 7 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 5 that always apply, 2 carry a flat fee, coming to $95.00. That is a floor, not a total. 3 of the 12 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:

Fire Inspection: $50–$250 by building size — $50 (up to 3,000 sq ft), $100 (3,001–10,000), $150 (10,001–50,000), $250 (over 50,000)

Sign Permit: Permanent sign: $40 base plus $0.50 per sq ft. Temporary sign: $40 flat. A sign structural plan review (part of the building-permit plan-approval process) is $75; an electrical permit for an illuminated sign is $100.

The other 1 variable fee belongs to permits that apply to every type of business here; its formula is set out on the Green Bay permits page and the WI state page.

Which offices issue these permits in Green Bay?

Permits for a auto repair shop in Green Bay, WI come from 6 separate offices: City of Green Bay Clerk's Office, Green Bay Metro Fire Department, Fire Marshal's Office, City of Green Bay Community & Economic Development, Building/Zoning Permits, Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Corporate and Consumer Services, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Wisconsin 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 auto repair shop need in Green Bay that other businesses do not?

2 of the 4 permits particular to a auto repair shop here apply to no other business type we cover in Green Bay: Auto Repair Licensing — City of Green Bay Position and Automotive Repair Shops — Wisconsin Conduct Rules (ATCP 132).

Fire Inspection

A reinspection for compliance is $75. A regional food-truck fire-inspection collaborative involves Green Bay Metro Fire Department alongside Appleton FD, but no distinct Green Bay fee specific to mobile food units is published.

Auto Repair Licensing — City of Green Bay Position

The City's 2026 Fee Schedule lists its Chapter 10 (Businesses) licenses — ambulances, auto salvage, billiard tables, cigarettes, junk and secondhand dealers, pawnbrokers, residential building contractors, taxicabs and others — and lists no general auto repair or body shop license, so there is no City license fee for that trade. The schedule's distinct 'Auto salvage' license ($100.00) and 'Auto salvage storage permit fee' ($100.00) apply only to salvage and junkyard operations.

Automotive Repair Shops — Wisconsin Conduct Rules (ATCP 132)

No fee is recorded. The agriculture department's A to Z list of the licenses it issues contains no motor vehicle repair shop entry; the only repair-related registrations it lists are for mobile air conditioner repair or service businesses and their technicians. The department's consumer guidance on choosing a repair shop advised asking for recommendations, checking the complaint record and reading reviews, and did not point consumers to a shop license. What does apply is conduct under Wisconsin Administrative Code chapter ATCP 132: no repair without the customer's authorisation, a written repair order and price information before any repair that may exceed fifty dollars, no unauthorised increases, replaced parts returned or made available for inspection, and an itemised invoice — enforced by a private right of action for twice the loss plus costs and fees.

Shared with other businesses in Green Bay

  • Sign Permit — City of Green Bay Community & Economic Development, Building/Zoning Permits, Permanent sign: $40 base plus $0.50 per sq ft. Temporary sign: $40 flat. A sign structural plan review (part of the building-permit plan-approval process) is $75; an electrical permit for an illuminated sign is $100., one-time, per sign. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops, retail stores, salons and barbers, fitness studios and veterinary clinics; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.

The other 3 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Green Bay, WI; what each one involves is set out on the Green Bay permits page. The 5 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across WI and are covered on the WI state page.

How does a auto repair shop compare with other businesses in Green Bay?

The closest match is a fitness studio, which shares 2 of these permits. A auto repair shop also needs Auto Repair Licensing — City of Green Bay Position and Automotive Repair Shops — Wisconsin Conduct Rules (ATCP 132). A fitness studio needs nothing here that a auto repair shop does not.

Permits particular to each business type in Green Bay, WI, compared with a auto repair shop
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a auto repair shopOnly a auto repair shop needsOnly it needs
Fitness studios2220
Retail stores2220
Salons and barbers4222
Veterinary clinics4222
Coffee shops5223
Restaurants5223
Childcare centres1041
Contractors and trades3043
Food trucks3043

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. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Green Bay permits page and the WI state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. City of Green Bay Fee Schedule (effective January 1, 2026)City of Green Bay · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-06
  2. Wisconsin DATCP — motor vehicle repair, describing the conduct rules and telling consumers to check complaints rather than a licenseWisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
  3. Wisconsin DATCP — the A to Z list of every license, permit and registration the department issuesWisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03

Related

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