How to Start a Restaurant in Halifax

The short answer

Zoning first, then the food permit, then occupancy and liquor — in that order, because each step depends on the one before it. To open a restaurant in Halifax you need approvals from three separate bodies: Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) for zoning and the business occupancy permit, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change for the Food Establishment Permit, and the Alcohol, Gaming, Fuel and Tobacco Division of Service Nova Scotia for a Permanent Liquor Licence if you serve alcohol. Note the correction that matters most: the food permit comes from Nova Scotia Environment, not from Nova Scotia Health. This guide walks the Halifax mechanics only. The national restaurant guide covers the parts that are the same everywhere in Canada; nothing in this guide repeats it.

Step 1: Confirm zoning with HRM before you sign a lease

Check that your location is zoned for a restaurant before you commit to it. The province's food establishment starter guide directs Halifax applicants to contact the municipality to confirm the preferred location is zoned for the restaurant type, and to contact Halifax at 311 for zoning, building, developing, or renovating questions, including patios. You may also need a municipal "as of right" development permit. Begin the permit process three to six months before opening — that timing comes from the province's starter guide, and it reflects how many separate approvals have to land in sequence.

Step 2: Apply for the HRM business occupancy permit

An occupancy permit is issued under the Nova Scotia Building Code Act and specifies the authorized use and classification of a building. HRM requires an occupancy permit after a change of use or tenant, including any change in the number of commercial units. A stand-alone occupancy permit is needed when there is a change in operator or ownership, or a change in the activity practised on the premises. It does not transfer from business to business or between locations: even if the same type of business operated in the space before, the new operator still needs a permit, so that staff can confirm the use is still permitted and the space still meets code.

The fees, as published on the HRM page, are:

• Home or Business Occupancy, occupancy only: $50.00.
• Expired Occupancy Renewal: $100.00.

The permit does not expire as long as there is no change of operator or activities. A new permit is required if the operator changes, the floor area is altered, the uses change, or new uses are added. There is a mandatory final inspection for Application to Occupy permits. A commercial application needs a floor plan showing the dimensions of the leasehold space with all rooms and adjacent uses identified, the location of exits and signage, emergency lighting and fire extinguishers, washroom locations and sizes including barrier-free design, and a key plan showing the suite within the building. Full payment is due when the application is submitted, online by credit card or in person at the Planning and Development Counter, 5251 Duke Street, 3rd Floor, Suite 300, Duke Tower, Halifax, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Two things that catch people out: no occupancy permit is issued unless a valid building permit is in effect, and if you are renovating the space you do not apply for a separate occupancy permit — you need a building permit for the renovations, and the occupancy permissions are part of that permit.

Step 3: Get the Food Establishment Permit from Nova Scotia Environment

Anyone in Nova Scotia who wants to operate a foodservice facility such as a restaurant needs a Food Establishment Permit from Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change. The province's permits directory lists the fee for an eating establishment at $220.66, HST included, for the initial application or a renewal. A seasonal eating establishment operating six months or less costs $88.24. The permit is valid for one year from the issue date and may be renewed. Payment is by cheque or money order made out to the Minister of Finance — debit cards, credit cards, and cash are not accepted.

The sequence matters. Plans and specifications to establish, build, or change a foodservice facility, or to undergo a major renovation, require approval by a Public Health Officer before construction starts. The department's planning guide states that approval of plans by the Public Health Officer does not mean zoning, building, or other authorities' requirements have been met — each approval stands on its own. Submit the Food Establishment Permit application with your site plan, menu, and layout drawing; once submitted, your assigned Public Health Officer will contact you. The site plan must show the water source, sewage disposal, waste storage including grease storage, and parking. The kitchen drain must be fitted with a grease trap, and in Halifax the Halifax Regional Water Commission is the contact for grease interceptor requirements.

The initial application takes 15 to 20 business days, and an inspector from the Inspection, Compliance and Enforcement Section carries out an on-site inspection before the permit can be issued. If all requirements are met and the application is approved, the permit and decal are sent by mail. The standard procedure is an on-site inspection of every permitted facility every year, with more frequent inspections for high-risk facilities.

Food hygiene training is a condition of operating, not an optional extra. The Food Safety Regulations require the operator of every food establishment to have successfully completed an approved food hygiene training course and to be present in the establishment while it is operating, or to have an employee present who has the required training. Proof of training must be ready for the pre-opening inspection, along with a water test report if applicable. A copy of the Food Safety Regulations should be present at the site during the pre-opening inspection.

Step 4: Apply for the Permanent Liquor Licence, if you serve alcohol

To sell alcohol by the glass you need a Permanent Liquor Licence from the Alcohol, Gaming, Fuel and Tobacco Division of Service Nova Scotia. The province's licence page lists the licence types and fees: eating establishment, eating establishment and lounge, lounge (only if you already hold an eating establishment licence), beverage room, and cabaret. The fees are:

• Eating Establishment Liquor Licence: $311.45 application fee plus $560.70 for the three-year licence, $872.15 in total.
• Eating Establishment and Lounge Liquor Licences: $622.90 plus $1,121.40, $1,744.30 in total.
• Lounge Liquor Licence (you must already have an Eating Establishment Licence): $872.15 in total.
• Beverage Room Liquor Licence: $872.15 in total.
• Cabaret Liquor Licence: $311.45 plus $1,869.00, $2,180.45 in total.

You must be 19 or older and authorized by the organization to apply, and the organization must own or lease the proposed premises. Complete the application form, have it notarized by a justice of the peace, commissioner of oaths, or at the division, include payment, and send the completed application with supporting documents by mail, email, or fax, or visit the division in person. The application requires zoning confirmation, a floor plan, a menu, the Food Establishment Permit, and fire official approval with occupancy. Within HRM, a $200 zoning confirmation fee must be included with the application or arranged with HRM directly.

It should take about six weeks to get the licence, longer if more information is needed or the application is filled in incorrectly. The division lets you know if a public consultation is required, and a compliance officer inspects the premises before issuing the licence. When the licence is issued, the division notifies you and the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC), which provides a six-digit account number to use when placing orders. You must renew the licence every three years. Liquor must be sold and served with a meal in an eating establishment, and the liquor licence is provided only after your Food Establishment Permit has been approved — so the food permit is on the critical path for alcohol service, not a parallel track.

If you want a sidewalk patio

A patio on the sidewalk is a separate licence, not part of the restaurant permits above. Under HRM By-law S-1000, no one may construct, operate, or vend at a sidewalk café without a café licence from the Licence Administrator, and the café must be inspected and approved after construction. Apply with the completed form, the owner's written consent, construction drawings, a site plan and café plan, proof of insurance, and the fee; with a complete application the City aims to issue the licence in 5 days. The licence types and fees are:

• Seasonal Unenclosed Café, tables and chairs removed from the sidewalk each day by closing time: no fee.
• Seasonal Unenclosed Café: $250.
• Seasonal Enclosed Café, 100 square feet maximum: $400.
• Seasonal Enclosed Café: $800.
• Annual Café: $1,000.

A seasonal licence runs April 15 to November 15 of the same year; an annual licence covers an encroachment term of up to one calendar year. A new application is required every year for a seasonal licence, and an annual licence must be confirmed every year. Removal and reinstatement of parking meters, street posts, and street signs costs $150 per item.

The order that avoids rework

Confirm zoning with HRM, then submit the Food Establishment Permit application with plans and menu so the Public Health Officer can approve them before construction. Apply for the occupancy permit once the building work is done, pass the pre-opening food inspection, and run the liquor licence application in parallel — it needs the food permit, the occupancy approval, and the fire approval, so it finishes last. The expensive mistake is signing a lease on a space that cannot be zoned for a restaurant, or building a kitchen to plans a Public Health Officer has not approved and then rebuilding it after inspection.

What the opened pages do not state

Two figures a reader would reasonably want are not stated on the official pages opened for this guide, so they are not carried here. The HRM occupancy page does not publish a processing time for an Application to Occupy, and the Nova Scotia permits directory does not publish a processing time for a Food Establishment Permit renewal beyond "up to 15 business days" for the renewal itself. The province's liquor licence page also does not publish the fee for a caterer extension to an eating establishment licence, which an off-site catering restaurant would need. Ask HRM for its current occupancy processing time when you apply, and ask the Alcohol, Gaming, Fuel and Tobacco Division about the caterer extension fee if you plan to cater off site.

Related guides:

• How to Start a Restaurant Business in Canada — the national restaurant guide: format, kitchen, suppliers, hiring, and opening routines that are the same everywhere in Canada.
• How to Register a Business in Nova Scotia — registering the business itself with the province, before the municipal and food permits.
• How to Get a Food Handler Certificate in Canada — food handler certification, which sits alongside the food hygiene training requirement in this guide.
• How to Start a Bakery Business in Canada — the national bakery guide, for readers weighing a bakery against a restaurant.
• How to Start a Restaurant in Toronto — Toronto's restaurant path, for comparison with Halifax's occupancy permit and provincial food permit.
• How to Start a Restaurant in Montreal — Montreal's restaurant path, another city comparison.

Sources

• Halifax Regional Municipality, Application to occupy — the occupancy permit requirement after a change of use or tenant, the $50.00 occupancy-only fee and $100.00 expired renewal fee, the non-expiry rule, the mandatory final inspection, the floor plan requirements, and the in-person counter address and hours.
• Halifax Regional Municipality, Sidewalk Cafés — Frequently Asked Questions — the café licence requirement, the seasonal and annual licence fees, the April 15 to November 15 seasonal term, the yearly application, and the 5-day issue aim with a complete application.
• Halifax Regional Municipality, By-law S-1000, Respecting the Regulation of Sidewalk Cafés — no sidewalk café without a licence, and inspection and approval after construction.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Permits Directory — Food Establishment Permit — the issuing department is Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change, the $220.66 eating establishment fee and $88.24 seasonal fee, the 15 to 20 business day initial wait, the one-year validity, the pre-issue on-site inspection, the annual inspection routine, and payment by cheque or money order only.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Planning for Food Service — A Guide to Opening a Foodservice Establishment — plan approval by a Public Health Officer before construction, the site plan and building plan contents, the grease trap requirement, and the food hygiene training rule that the operator or a trained employee must be present while operating.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Food Establishment Starter Guide — A guide to opening your Restaurant in Nova Scotia — begin the permit process three to six months before opening, contact Halifax at 311 for zoning, and the occupancy permit coming before the fire prevention inspection.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Apply for a Permanent Liquor Licence — the licence types, the $872.15 eating establishment total, the $1,744.30 eating establishment and lounge total, the $2,180.45 cabaret total, the six-week timeline, the three-year renewal, the 19-or-older rule, and the NSLC six-digit account number.
• Government of Nova Scotia, Permanent Liquor License Application (form v.6, 01/2026) — the $200 zoning confirmation fee within HRM, the supporting documents including zoning, floor plan, menu, Food Establishment Permit, and fire official approval with occupancy, and the lounge conversion privileges.