Jefferson County, WI Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

Jefferson County Code § 22-7 defines a home occupation as any occupation for gain or support conducted by resident occupants of a premises, and in districts where they are allowed, sets standards every home occupation must meet. It must be clearly incidental and secondary to the principal residential use, and only two home occupations are permitted on any lot. The operation cannot change the property's residential or agricultural appearance through colors, materials, construction, lighting, excessive signage, or detectable noise, vibration, light, odor, dust, smoke or other air pollution.

Outdoor display, storage or parking of materials, goods, supplies or equipment is prohibited except for vehicles incidental to the property's principal use, and only one on-premises sign of up to six square feet is permitted to advertise it. In the A-1 agricultural district, a home occupation must additionally be run by the farm's owner or operator, require no buildings beyond a farm residence or agricultural accessory structures, not impair current or future agricultural use of the farm or nearby protected farmland, and sell only stock produced on the premises.

Where allowed as a permitted accessory use, the operation must be conducted entirely within the dwelling, occupy no more than 25 percent of the dwelling's floor area, and employ no nonresident workers in the R-1, R-2, C and W districts, or at most one elsewhere. Conditional home occupations, approved by conditional use permit, may instead use accessory buildings up to a combined 2,500 square feet and employ up to four nonresident workers.