Highlands County, FL Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

109 sets the zoning standard for running a business from home anywhere in unincorporated Highlands County. Subsection A makes home occupations allowed in all zoning districts, so a resident does not need a rezoning or variance simply because the district is agricultural, estate or a standard residential category. Subsection B frames the use as secondary to the residential use of the dwelling, meaning the home occupation cannot become the primary use of the property, and requires the operator to maintain a business tax receipt if one is otherwise required for that type of business.

The section then folds in a broad compliance requirement: the home occupation must operate in accordance with federal law, Florida law and 'any county code requirements' touching parking, signage, or equipment or processes that create noise, vibration, heat, smoke, dust, glare, fumes or noxious odors, as well as any requirements on the use, storage or disposal of corrosive, combustible or other hazardous or flammable materials or liquids. That cross-reference pulls in the county's separate parking, sign and nuisance standards rather than setting home-occupation-specific numeric limits in this section itself, so a home business that would otherwise need extra parking, an outdoor sign, or that stores flammable materials must still satisfy those other Land Development Regulations sections.

The section does not cap the number of employees, customer visits or vehicle trips for a home occupation, leaving those questions to the general nuisance, parking and traffic provisions elsewhere in the code.