Madera County, CA Home Business: Home Occupation Permits (2026)

A home occupation in unincorporated Madera County is processed as a Cottage Industry Home Occupation under Zoning Ordinance Chapter 18.89. Section 18.89.040 states that no cottage industry shall be established until an application for a cottage industry permit has been submitted to and approved by the Planning Department. The permit is what authorizes the specific business activity and fixes the conditions the operator must follow. Those conditions, drawn from Chapter 18.89, include the cap of one non-resident employee on site (Section 18.89.040.B), the one-customer-at-a-time, by-appointment limit during weekday business hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Section 18.89.040.F), the requirement to provide adequate on-site access and parking for the residence, employee, and one customer (Section 18.89.040.D), and the two-square-foot nameplate limit on advertising (Section 18.89.040.C). The use must stay secondary to the residence and occupy no more than 25 percent of one floor (Section 18.89.020.B), on a lot of at least one-half acre (Section 18.89.080.A). Because the cottage industry permit is issued by the Planning Division, applicants should contact that division for the current application form, fee, and any supplemental review that applies to their zone district. Note that certain state-protected home uses - family day care and registered cottage food - are handled under separate state-law tracks described in their own entries.