Home Business in Augusta-Richmond County, GA (2026)
4 rules for unincorporated Augusta-Richmond County, Georgia.
Verified from official government sources
Zoning & Home Occupation Permits
Augusta-Richmond County requires a Special Use Permit before running any home-based business, restricting home occupations to personal-service work such as tutoring, sewing, or in-home offices confined to 25 percent of the dwelling's floor area with no signage or customer traffic.
Home Occupation Permits in Augusta-Richmond County
Significant RestrictionsAugusta-Richmond County Code, Tit. 8, App. B (Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance), § 8-3(b), (c)
A home occupation is an activity carried out for gain by a resident conducted as an accessory use in the resident's dwelling unit subject to the following conditions: ... All home occupations shall have Special Use Permits. Special Use Permits shall be granted upon payment of a fee and a finding that a proposed home occupation would conform to the conditions at 8-3(b) and that no detrimental im...
Signage Rules
Augusta-Richmond County prohibits any sign for a licensed home occupation in Agricultural or Residential zones, and separately bars all exterior signs and on-site advertising for R-1 home businesses.
Augusta-Richmond County Home Business Sign Ban
Heavy RestrictionsAugusta-Richmond County Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance Sec. 28-B-7(C) (incorporated by Code Tit. 8, Sec. 8-5-1)
Signs for uses permitted by special exception in sections 15-18 and 26. When located in Agricultural or Residential zones, signs shall be prohibited in association with the following uses: family day care homes, family personal care homes, group personal care homes, transitional housing and home occupations.
Customer Traffic Restrictions
Augusta-Richmond County requires a Special Use Permit for any home occupation, and caps customer traffic: home businesses can't generate more vehicular or pedestrian traffic than a typical single-family residence, with staff-level approval reserved only for businesses expected to draw no customers at all.
Augusta-Richmond County Home Business Customer Traffic Rules
Significant RestrictionsAugusta-Richmond County Code, Tit. 8, App. B (Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance) § 8-3(b)(5)
There shall be no exterior indication of the home occupation; no exterior signs nor other on-site advertising visible from the exterior; no audible noise, detectable vibration, inordinate illumination, no odor; no entrance or exit way specifically provided for the conduct of business; and vehicular or pedestrian traffic shall not be generated in volumes greater than would normally be expected b...
Home Daycare
Augusta-Richmond County lets a private home care for 3 to 6 unrelated children if the operator gets a Special Use Permit: issued administratively by Planning staff when strict siting and safety criteria are met.
Augusta-Richmond County Family Day Care Home Permit
Significant RestrictionsAugusta-Richmond County Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance § 8-3(d) (incorporated by Code Tit. 8, Ch. 5, § 8-5-1)
Family day care homes - may be granted Special Use Permit administratively by staff...if they conform to the criteria set at 8-3(b), 26-1(f), and the following special criteria...Applicant must live in the home...Home has public sewerage or applicant has a letter of approval from the Richmond County Board of Health...Home is not in the floodplain...The lot...is 10,000 square feet in area or gre...
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