Warehousing and Distribution - business guide

Businesses that direct, manage or coordinate the distribution and sale of goods, including food products, or who are engaged in warehousing or wholesale.

Examples of businesses that do require municipal licensing:

• Door-to-door sales​
• Canvassers
• In-home product sales
• Warehouses renting space to other businesses
• Self-storage facilities
• Business records storage
• Businesses operating on bare land enclosed by a fence or barrier
• Wholesalers, selling to other businesses
• Distributors
• Bicycle couriers

Examples of businesses that do not require municipal licensing:

• Warehouses for a business storing its own goods
• Couriers (not including bicycle couriers)
• Moving companies (unless offering storage)
• Delivery services

If your business does not require a licence, you still require a Business ID and land use approval. Visit businesses not requiring a municipal licence​ for more information.

As part of The City’s efforts to accelerate the business license approvals process, customers with a myID business account can receive a digital copy of their business licence via email. This is available to customers applying for a new business licence or renewing an existing licence. To learn more about the benefits of a myID business account and to sign-up today, please visit myID business account (calgary.ca). 

Direct selling

An approval is required if your business goes door-to-door or conducts business at any place other than the place of business.

When applying for your provincial licensing through Service Alberta, you will be asked to identify your business as either a prepaid contracting business or a direct seller.

A prepaid contracting business:

• Solicits, negotiates or concludes prepaid contracts in person at any place other than the sellers’ place of business, and
  
• Accepts money before all the work is done and/or the services are provided

A direct seller:

• Solicits, negotiates, or concludes sales contracts in person, at any place other than the seller’s place of business
  

You can present your provincial licence in person at the Planning Services Centre, fax it to the Business Licence Division at 403-537-3034 or email it to licencedivisionteam@calgary.ca​.

Door-to-door energy and appliance sales are not permitted by the province. See the door-to-door energy sales ban for more information.

Location

To sell from private or public property, written approval is required. A distribution manager cannot sell or display goods on City streets, sidewalks or boulevards, City-owned lands, parks, LRT stations or Plus 15 walkways.

Warehousing businesses cannot be located in a residential district. These businesses may operate from a fully enclosed building or from bare land that is enclosed with a fence or barrier.

Advertising canvasser or distributor

A person who goes door-to-door to sell advertising space in any type of printed publication published in the city or who distributes advertising material, samples or merchandise from building to building requires a business licence. Radio and TV stations are exempt from this licence type as are persons distributing advertising material solely regarding their own business.

Once you apply for your business licence, outstanding approvals must be completed before the business licence is issued.

A business licence will often have multiple licence types associated with it. Below is a chart of all the related licence types that fall under this business activity. If your business requires multiple licence types, approval processes are only generated once per licence. For example, only one fire inspection is required even if multiple licence types require that inspection.

Required approvals