Queen Anne's County, MD Home Business: Customer Traffic Restrictions (2026)

Home occupations in unincorporated Queen Anne's County are governed by § 18:1-56 of the County Code, enforced by the Department of Planning and Zoning under the Planning Director. No home occupation can be established until a home occupation zoning certificate is issued under § 18:1-138. The certificate lapses automatically if the property is used for nonresidential purposes, if the dwelling is sold or rented, if the operator dies, if the certificate is not renewed, or if the business is discontinued for 180 days or more and is not renewed within 30 days of written notice from the Planning Director.

The County Commissioners did not write a visitor count into this section. There is no printed limit on client visits per day or per hour. Traffic is controlled through performance standards that measure its effects. Parking of vehicles associated with the business is limited to existing residential driveways, and that parking cannot create hazards or street congestion. The home occupation cannot include the parking of any vehicle with a payload rating of more than 1.5 tons. Deliveries and pickups are limited to those normally associated with residential uses, and they can only occur between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Staffing is capped as well. The business needs a full-time resident operator and can have no more than two employees whose employment requires them to be in the home. The same list of standards bars dust, odor, noise, vibration, or electrical interference that is perceptible beyond the property line, and it bars mechanized equipment outside an enclosed building. Outside storage of equipment and materials is limited to what can be screened from view from adjacent streets and properties. Anyone planning regular customer appointments, courier schedules or a work vehicle should read subsection C of § 18:1-56 line by line before applying for the certificate, because every item in it is a condition of operating.