Surry County, NC Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

Surry County's Planning and Development Department administers home occupations under Surry County Code § 154.003-02. The base HOME OCCUPATION definition lets a resident run a profession or occupation from home only if no merchandise or commodity is sold or offered for sale on the premises, only domestic- or professional-scale mechanical equipment is used, no more than 25% of the structure's total actual floor area is devoted to the work, and any parking generated stays off the street and out of the required front yard. One identification sign of up to four square feet is allowed.

A larger, more intensive operation, HOME OCCUPATION OF A COMMERCIAL NATURE, is a separate use listed in the Table of Uses and reviewed under § 154.008(C)(39). It is permitted only with a special use permit from the Board of Adjustment, must occupy accessory buildings set back at twice the chapter's normal minimum, must sit in the side or rear yard rather than the front, must keep all associated storage indoors, and requires the business owner to actually reside on the property. The Planning Board decides case by case whether a proposed use qualifies as commercial-nature rather than the lighter residential-nature category shown in the Table of Uses.

Structures for a commercial-nature home occupation must also be screened from adjacent residentially zoned property under § 154.015. Operations that outgrow either definition, adding non-resident employees at scale or running a storefront-style operation, fall outside both categories and require a different zoning approval from the county.