City guide
Toronto business licensing by-law
Toronto writes this as a by-law. The same rule is also searched as bylaw and as "by law".
Last verified
This is a guide, not legal advice and not the bylaw. Bylaw Insider does not re-host bylaw text. Amounts, deadlines, and wording are on the ticket and on the city site. We last checked the official links on 15 October 2026.
Toronto licenses a long list of businesses in the municipal code (the licensing chapter has long been published as Chapter 545). Towing, some public-hall uses, and a range of other trades are on that list. The list changes. The permits and licences section of toronto.ca is the application door, and it says which proof of insurance, zoning, and provincial licence the clerk will ask for.
A provincial security-guard licence does not, by itself, answer a city licensing question. A city business licence does not answer the provincial one. The directory lists a firm only after a submission is approved. A verified badge means the licence number was checked.
If you are opening a lot, a guard company, or a training school, start with the city's licence directory and the provincial regulator. This page only points you there.
Official sources
Common questions
Does a security company need a city licence and a provincial licence?
Often both, and they are not the same document. The province licenses guards and agencies. The city licenses particular businesses. Check both offices before you treat one card as enough.
In the directory
6 topics on each city guide.
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