Vendor Licenses

Steps to Acquiring A Sidewalk Vendors License

1. Determine the proposed physical location(s) of the vending stand or cart. Submit the information to the Department of Finance, Division of Tax Enforcement (804) 646-5928. A Tax Enforcement Officer will inspect the site(s) for approval.
2. Obtain commercial "liability insurance" for vendor operations, with minimum coverage of $300,000 (three hundred thousand). The City of Richmond must be named as co-insured. If food sales are a part of your service, you must obtain a Health Permit from the City of Richmond Health Department.
3. Once you have completed steps 1 and 2, submit the information to an Enforcement Officer, located in Room 100 City Hall, who will review your "vendor package". If approved, a tentative location (if applicable) will be assigned and, you may then complete and submit a business license application (Room 103).
4. Once you have completed the application, payment can be made in Room 102, City Hall. The cost for obtaining a vendor's license is $225.00, plus $50.00 for each additional stand/cart operating under the same license. After payment has been made you will receive your license from the License and Assessment Division, Room 103.
5. Return to Room 100 and present your license to an Enforcement Officer. The officer will issue you a plate (to be displayed on your cart), a copy of vendor rules, and arrange for you to obtain a vendor identification badge. Vendor identification badges, include a photo, and are issued in the Social Services Building - Marshall Plaza, 900 East Marshall Street, between the hours of 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
6. For renewals, all applicable permits, insurance, and other documentation must be verified.