Home Employment Certificate

To apply for zoning approval, you may apply online via ePortal or in person.

To apply online, please visit ePortal. When you are logged into your ePortal account, go to "Apply", select "Plans", and select “Zoning Approval – Home Employment Certificate.” Please follow the instructions on the screen.

To apply in-person please bring all necessary documents and check in at the Early Assistance Desk, Development Services Building, 5 County Complex Court, Prince William, VA 22192, to obtain a service ticket for Zoning Counter services. The Zoning Counter is open from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday. Tickets for zoning counter services stop at 2:00 pm to ensure all customers are served by the close of business.

Please note:

• Home employment businesses must be operated from within a single-family detached dwelling on a lot of more than 5,000 square feet.
  • If you do not meet this qualification, the Home Occupation Certificate program may be available to you.
• To qualify for a Home Employment Certificate, the business must fit one of the 21 uses below.
  • Administrative offices of business and/or trade
  • Arts and crafts activities
  • Baking/catering (off-premises service)*
  • Beauty salon (no tanning or toning equipment)
  • Clerical/secretarial activities
  • Day-time adult care (no more than five (5) adults not residing in the home)**
  • Diaper/laundry service
  • Floral design
  • Interior design/decorating
  • Jewelry, watch, clock repair; engraving; locksmith; eyeglass; framing; dentures
  • Maid service (off-premises)
  • Mail order
  • Nail sculpture, manicurist
  • Offices of a physician, therapist (including psychological, physical, and/or massage), dentist, lawyer, accountant, engineer, architect, desktop publishing, or similar professional***
  • Pet grooming
  • Photography
  • Picture framing
  • Scissors, saw, blade sharpening
  • Seamstress, tailoring, upholstery activities
  • Small electronics repair
  • Tutoring, education, or training (no more than five (5) children or two (2) adults at any one time)

*Before requesting Zoning Approval for a Home Employment Certificate for Baking/Catering, please note that the Prince William County Health Department will not authorize home kitchens to be used for commercial catering purposes. Any baking-related home employment must conform to the standards of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. For more information, call (804) 786-3520 or visit www.vdacs.virginia.gov.

**Before requesting Zoning Approval for a Home Employment Certificate for Adult Day Care, an application must first be filed with the Virginia Department of Social Services. For more information, call (804) 726-7000 or visit www.dss.virginia.gov.

***Before requesting Zoning Approval for a Home Employment Certificate for Massage Therapy, an application must first be filed with the Prince William County Environmental Health Department. For more information, call (703) 792-6310 or visit www.vdh.virginia.gov.

• The home employment business must comply with Section 302.2 of the International Building Code, which limits accessory use to not more than 10% of the floor area on which it is located. If the business being requested exceeds the 10% building code limitation but does not exceed the 25% maximum for home businesses, the applicant will be required to work with the Building Development Division to obtain permits to modify the requested area of the home to meet commercial building code requirements. For more information, call (703) 792-6930 or email [email protected].
• No storage associated with the business outside of the residence is permitted.
• The dwelling requested to run the business must be your primary residence.  Proof of residency is required.
• A home employment use shall be allowed either one (1) unlighted façade sign not to exceed one (1) square foot in area; or one (1) unlighted mailbox mounted sign not to exceed one (1) square foot in area nor three (3) feet in height from ground level, only when the dwelling unit is set back more than thirty-five (35) feet from the front property line. No other signage is permitted.
• For site improvements, including driveway expansion, zoning approval is required.
• Manufacturing, retail, and cooking on-site are not permitted in association with the home employment program. See step 3 for Special Use Permit information.
• Home employment certificates may be requested when you are proposing to have customers or employees come to the property. If no customers or employees will be visiting the property, a Home Occupation Certificate should be requested instead.
• This overview is for general information purposes only and may not reflect all aspects of the review process. Site-specific requirements will be discussed at the time of formal review.

• Provide a completed Home Employment Certificate form.
• Provide the full-size, house location survey plat that clearly shows the surveyor’s seal, signature, and scale used.
• Provide a full floor plan of the level of the home where the business operations will take place.
  • Include the use of the existing rooms, dimensions of that level, and the total square footage of the requested business space. Highlight the requested business space area. On the plans, include a written breakdown of the total square footage of that level, the total square footage of your requested business space, and the percentage of that floor level that the business space is using.
• Deed for the residence.
• Written detailed description of the business operations, including the use of the business, hours of operation, number of employees, estimated number of customers, etc.
• Personal picture identification, showing proof of residence.
  • The address on your license should match the requested address.
• Review the Zoning Fee Schedule for the applicable processing fee and pay by credit card.
• Review Step 3 below to check if other requirements may apply to your property or project.

• Applying on someone else's behalf?  A Special Power of Attorney Affidavit, completed by the person who will have their office within their residence, is required to apply for a Home Employment Certificate in their name. Along with the power of attorney, you will also need to bring a copy of their valid driver’s license for proof of residency.
• What qualifies as proof of residence? This includes valid driver’s licenses or DMV identification cards that display your photo and the address of the home requested as a part of the home occupation application. If you’ve recently moved, the temporary DMV printed out along with the photo ID will be accepted.
  • DMV address change
• A special use permit may be needed if your business includes manufacturing, baking in large quantities, commercial sale of food, on-site cooking, gunsmithing, or on-site transfers, and/or any business that does not meet the requirements of the Home Employment Certificate program. Special Use Permits are handled by the Planning Office. For more information, call (703) 792-7615 or email [email protected].
• Taxpayer Services processes business licenses. Visit their website here.
  • Phone: 703-792-6710 / Email: [email protected]
  • Getting your PWC business license brochure

• To research your property, visit the County Mapper to find the zoning district, environmental impacts, and any overlay districts.
• Learn more about House Location Survey Plats.
• For record requests, contact the Records Center at (703) 792-6863.
• US Small Business Administration

Home Employment Definition:
Home employment shall mean a business activity conducted entirely within a single-family detached dwelling unit by residents of that unit, which is clearly incidental and secondary to its principal use as a dwelling unit. Home employment is more intense than home occupation and allows customers to come to the house. Home employment uses may be permitted in accordance with the provisions of the Prince William County Zoning Ordinance, Section 32-300.16.

Also see Ordinance 32-300.02.1 – Motor Vehicle Parking and Storage limitations.