Home based business

In Cairns, a home based business is defined as a business activity conducted in a residential house (dwelling house), where the business is ancillary and subordinate to the primary residential use of the property. It does not apply to an employee of an off-site business who telecommutes or works remotely from their home.

A home based business is small-scale and should not have an adverse impact on adjoining or surrounding residences. It is operated by the residents of the house and does not require more than one non-resident employee.

Examples include:

home office eg, for a consultant or contractor
small-scale beauty, hairdresser or massage service
home-based childcare or family day care

Businesses that have potential to cause nuisance, noise or environmental impacts would not be able to operate from a residentail home dwelling, for example:

shop
vehicle repair workshop
laundromat
swim school
gym or personal training centre
commercial scale food preparation
food and drink outlet / cafe

Planning approval

Not all home based businesses need Council approval. Some are self-assessable and can meet all relevant Acceptable outcomes of the applicable codes.

Refer to Part 5 of the CairnsPlan (Cairns planning scheme) to check the level of assessment and Acceptable outcomes.
If your proposed home based business activity does not comply with all Acceptable outcomes or is listed as Code or Impact assessable, you will need to lodge a Development Application to seek Council approval.

Council may set conditions depending on the scale, nature and location of the home based business. For example, we may limit your hours of operation or restrict number of clients that can visit your dwelling each day.

If the nature of your business changes over time (eg increased scale of activity), you may need to reconfirm whether you require planning approval as a result of these changes.

Other approvals

If you intend to do any building work for the home based business (eg an extension to your dwelling house), you will need to obtain building certification (building permit).

Read more about Building certification.

Advertising signage devices are regulated by Council and may require a permit.

Read more about advertising devices.

If you are preparing food for sale or providing meals as part of a bed and breakfast operation, you will need to comply with food business licensing requirements.