Business licences & permits across Delaware
Do I need a business licence or permit? What does it cost?
27 of 57 municipalities in Delaware have an adopted ordinance on business licences & permits on file. Each row links the municipality's answer page and, where transcribed, the full text of the document.
| Municipality | Adopted document | Key facts | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blades Town |
Ordinance 420B-B — Business License Regulations (amended 2020)
adopted 2020-06-04 |
who must license: Rental properties: apartments, cottages, homes, offices, office buildings, motels, hotels, inns, rooming houses, private homes offering rooms · fee: $200 per apartment, cottage, home, office, office space, or building; $10 per unit with a $25 minimum for motels, hotels, inns, rooming houses, private homes offering rooms | 2026-06-05 |
| Bridgeville Town |
Ordinance 18-4: Business Licenses (Chapter 110) | licence required: True · who must license: All persons/firms/corporations engaged in business, selling, services, home-based businesses, and peddlers within Bridgeville town limits · fee: $100 annual license fee | 2026-06-05 |
| Camden Town |
Ordinance 22: Business Licenses | licence required: True · who must license: All persons conducting trade, business, or occupation in Town of Camden; nonresident contractors (contract >$500); nonresident dealers in goods. · fee: $50.00 annually (0–5 employees); $100.00 annually (6+ employees); $5.00 per two-day sale (nonresident dealers) | 2026-06-05 |
| Cheswold Town |
Ordinance 07-20-10-006: Business License Ordinance (Total Revision) | licence required: True · who must license: all businesses, contractors, persons and wholesalers operating within the Town limits of Cheswold · renewal: annually at the beginning of the fiscal year, (July 1 of each year) | 2026-06-05 |
| Clayton Town |
Title 4: Licensing — Code of Ordinances, Town of Clayton | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Dagsboro Town |
Chapter 146: Licensing — Town of Dagsboro Code | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Delaware City City |
Chapter 51: Businesses — Delaware City Code | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Dover City |
Ordinance #2024-22 – Amending Chapter 26 – Businesses, Article II – Licenses, and Appendix F – Fees and Fines
adopted 2024-07-08 |
licence required: True · who must license: Persons conducting trades, businesses, or occupations within the city, including specific listed classes and all other businesses not listed. · fee: Varies per Appendix F; e.g., Advertising agency $96.00, Manufacturers $0.00046 of aggregate gross receipts | 2026-06-05 |
| Felton Town |
Article IV, Title 4 – Ordinance Requiring a License for Peddlers, Hawkers, Hucksters, Solicitors, Canvassers and All Other Persons Engaged in the Sale of Goods or Services
adopted 1986-05-13 |
licence required: True · who must license: Peddlers, solicitors, charity solicitors (includes hawkers, hucksters, canvassers) except local non-profit fund raising. · fee: ten dollars ($10.00); non-profit organizations not charged a fee | 2026-06-05 |
| Greenwood Town |
Ordinance No. A-23-A — An Ordinance Amending Regulations for the Operation of Food Trucks and Ice Cream Trucks within the Town of Greenwood
+1 more adopted 2021-12-08 |
licence required: True · who must license: food truck vendors and ice cream truck vendors · fee: $25.00 | 2026-06-05 |
| Harrington City |
City of Harrington Business License | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Henlopen Acres Town |
Town of Henlopen Acres Rules and Regulations for Conducting Business (01/01/2026) | licence required: True · who must license: All persons, corporations, firms engaged for profit selling merchandise/services, and all contractors and subcontractors. · renewal: calendar year | 2026-06-05 |
| Houston Town |
Town of Houston Chapter 150 — Business License
+1 more |
licence required: True · who must license: Persons, firms, corporations within Town limits engaged for profit selling merchandise, providing services, facilities, manufacturing, or doing business. · renewal: valid and effective the date of issuance, to the last day of the business operation | 2026-06-05 |
| Laurel Town |
Town of Laurel Chapter 92 — Licenses (Ord. No. 740)
adopted 1994-10-17 |
licence required: True · who must license: All mercantile establishments, businesses selling merchandise, providing facilities or services, renting rooms, peddling, hawking, or manufacturing within Town limits. · fee: Varies by business type: $2–$125 for machines/devices; $10–$100 for most establishments; $5–$100 for rooms/rentals; $25–$100 for services; $50 for manufacturing; $15/hr for sound trucks | 2026-06-05 |
| Lewes City |
Chapter 128: Mercantile Licensing — City of Lewes, DE | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Middletown Town |
Chapter 45: Business Licenses — Town of Middletown, DE
adopted 2022-12-05 |
— | 2026-06-05 |
| Milford City |
Chapter 90: Business License — City of Milford, DE | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Millsboro Town |
Chapter 140: Mercantile Licensing — Town of Millsboro, DE | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Millville Town |
Article I: Business Licenses — Town of Millville, DE | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Milton Town |
Chapter 93: Business Licenses
adopted 2003-10-06 |
— | 2026-06-05 |
| New Castle City |
Chapter 156: Licenses
adopted 1992-07-07 |
— | 2026-06-05 |
| Newark City |
Chapter 13, Article VII – Business Licensing | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Newport Town |
Business License Ordinance (Sec. 427-34, as amended)
adopted 2004-01-01 |
licence required: True · who must license: Persons or companies doing business in the Town of Newport, within or outside Town limits · fee: flat $75.00 for gross receipts of $50,000 or less; annual fee reduced by 50% for new businesses after August 31 | 2026-06-05 |
| Ocean View Town |
Town of Ocean View Licenses (Chapter 93) | — | 2026-06-05 |
| Rehoboth Beach City |
Chapter 120: Businesses — License Tax Schedule (Article IV)
adopted 1974-11-08 |
— | 2026-06-05 |
| South Bethany Town |
South Bethany Ordinance 204-21 — Amending Mercantile/Rental License
adopted 2021-12-17 |
licence required: True · who must license: Persons engaged in business for profit within corporate limits and property owners leasing residential or commercial property. · renewal: Annual (May 1-April 30 or Jan 1-Dec 31), six month, thirty-day | 2026-06-05 |
| Wyoming Town |
Ordinance #55-20 — Establishing Business License Requirement | licence required: True · who must license: Any person conducting, engaging in, or operating any business in the Town of Wyoming. · fee: Landlord 1 unit $100.00, Each additional $25.00/unit; Non-resident contractors $100.00; Peddlers/ Solicitors $75.00; Others 1-6 employees $75.00, 7-12 $125.00, 13-18 $175.00, 19-24 $225.00, 25 or more employees $275.00 | 2026-06-05 |
Nothing on file for business licences & permits
Absence here is explicit, not a gap: each municipality below was checked, and its status says why there is no document.
Other ordinances on file, none on this topic (24) — Arden, Ardentown, Bellefonte, Bethany Beach, Bowers, Delmar, Dewey Beach, Ellendale, Elsmere, Fenwick Island, Frederica, Georgetown, Hartly, Kenton, Little Creek, Magnolia, Odessa, Seaford, Selbyville, Slaughter Beach, Smyrna, Townsend, Viola, Wilmington.
No ordinances published online (1, verified negatives) — Farmington.
Unconfirmed (5, leads but nothing verified) — Ardencroft, Bethel, Frankford, Leipsic, Woodside.