How to Get a Building Permit in Montreal
Montreal building permits: the borough permit counter, the documents, the $9.80 per $1,000 fee, and the permit validity periods.
Starting out in Montreal
How to Start Things in Montreal
Everything below is about Montreal itself: the occupancy permit, the borough permit counters, and the City's own processes. Quebec-wide guides live on the Quebec hub instead. Start with the three Montreal rules that trip up new businesses, then browse the guides.
Starting out in Montreal: three rules worth knowing
Montreal's key approval is an occupancy permit, not a business licence
Montreal doesn't issue a general business licence. What you need is an occupancy permit — also called a certificate of occupancy — to carry on a commercial or industrial activity in a building, and you need one even to use part of your home for professional purposes, like a home office. The permit is attached to both the establishment and its operator.
Source: Ville de Montréal: Get an occupancy permit (montreal.ca)
Your borough sets the process and the fee
Occupancy permits are handled by the borough (arrondissement) where the premises sit, and Montreal's boroughs don't run them identically: processing fees shown on the City's own borough pages run from $100 to more than $300 depending on the borough and the activity. Read your borough's version of the permit page before you budget or book anything.
Source: Ville de Montréal: Get an occupancy permit (montreal.ca)
The permit lasts until something changes
An occupancy permit stays valid as long as the operator, the activities, and the premises remain the same — there is no annual renewal. Change any of the three and you're back at the borough permit counter. Bars and restaurants must hold the occupancy permit before they can apply for a liquor permit, and a short-term rental establishment needs one for a commercial activity.
Source: Ville de Montréal: Get an occupancy permit (montreal.ca)
Free tools
No tools built for this city yet. The guides below cover the ground.
Guides that apply in Montreal
The guides and tools below are about Montreal itself: its own licences, permits, and programs. Province-wide and Canada-wide guides live on their own hubs.
How to Start a Bakery in Montreal
Open a bakery in Montreal: the borough occupancy permit, the MAPAQ food permit, and the food establishment manager training Quebec requires.
How to Start a Coffee Shop in Montreal
A Montreal coffee shop needs a borough occupancy permit (certificat d'occupation) and a MAPAQ food permit — $367 a year for general preparation, plus a $144 first file-opening fee.
How to Start a Restaurant in Montreal
Open a restaurant in Montreal: the borough occupancy permit, the MAPAQ food permit, and the RACJ restaurant liquor permit, in the order they depend on each other.
Trade Schools in Montreal
Trade schools in Montreal in Quebec's vocational system: the École des métiers de la construction de Montréal, the CIMME centre in LaSalle, and the Rosemount Technology Centre, with the DEP diploma explained in English.