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Can I run a business from home in Camden, Maine?

Camden, Knox County · Ordinances checked 2026-10-01 · Reviewed · 16 cited sections

Allowed with a permit

Yes. Home occupations are a permitted accessory use in Camden's residential districts if they meet the town's standards, and starting one likely needs a use permit from the Code Enforcement Officer. The main limits: no more than one full-time or two part-time non-resident employees, use of no more than 50% of the home's floor area, no outside storage or display, and in residential and rural zones no more than 10 vehicle trips a day. Our copy of the zoning ordinance runs only through June 2022.

Non-resident employees on site1 full-time or 2 part-time (30+ hrs/week = full-time) [3]
Max floor area50% of the dwelling unit plus accessory structures [8]
Traffic limit (RU-1, RU-2, CR, VE, V)10 vehicle trip ends per day average; truck shipments no more than 3 per 7 days [6]
Extra parkingNo more than 2 spaces beyond the home's normal requirement [7]
Sign (V and VE)One on-building sign, max 6 sq ft [11]
Signs (RU-1, RU-2, CR)One on-building plus one freestanding, max 16 sq ft combined [12]
Retail salesOnly items produced on the premises and incidental items [9]
Town approvalBuilding and/or use permit from the Code Enforcement Officer for a new use (likely applies) [15]

Allowed as of right

A home occupation is a business or profession run by a family member who lives in the home, clearly secondary to the home's residential use [1]. Home occupations are listed as a permitted accessory activity in the Traditional Village district [2], and likewise in Coastal Residential, Village Extension and the Rural districts. The work must happen entirely inside the house or an accessory building [14].

Standards

  • Employees: no more than one full-time or two part-time employees who don't live there and work on site [3]. Anyone working 30+ hours a week counts as full-time [4].
  • Appearance: no exterior storage or display, and no outside sign of the business except an allowed sign [5].
  • Nuisances: no noise, vibration, smoke, dust, odors, glare or similar disturbances, and no commercial-scale machinery or ovens [10].
  • Traffic: in the RU-1, RU-2, CR, VE and V districts, no more than an average of 10 vehicle trip ends a day, and truck shipments no more than three times a week [6].
  • Parking: no more than two off-street spaces beyond what the home already needs [7].
  • Floor area: no more than 50% of the dwelling plus accessory buildings [8].
  • Sales: only items made on the premises and things clearly incidental to them [9].

If you run more than one home occupation, the limits apply to all of them combined.

Signs

In the V and VE districts you may have one on-building sign of up to 6 sq ft (plus one freestanding sign where the speed limit is 35 mph or more) [11]. In RU-1, RU-2 and CR you may have one on-building and one freestanding sign totaling 16 sq ft [12].

Exceeding the limits

To go beyond the employee, traffic or floor-area limits you need Zoning Board of Appeals approval. That's available only if the business is wholly inside structures that existed on March 12, 1985, and it meets the special exception standards [13].

Permit and caveats

The home occupation rules don't mention a permit, but Camden requires a building and/or use permit from the Code Enforcement Officer before any "new use, including a new commercial use" [15], which likely covers starting a home occupation. Home child care for more than three preschool children falls under Camden's "day-care center" definition [16]; starting July 1, 2027, state law (30-A M.R.S. §4364-D) makes family child care a permitted residential use, which may override how Camden treats it. Our copy of the zoning ordinance includes amendments only through June 14, 2022.

See how Camden compares with 8+ other Maine towns on home-based businesses →

Next steps

  1. Check your zoning district and confirm home occupations are listed as a permitted accessory activity there.
  2. Make sure your plan fits the limits: 1 full-time or 2 part-time outside employees, at most 50% of floor area, no outdoor storage, and traffic within the 10-trip average.
  3. Apply to Camden Code Enforcement (207-236-3353 ext. 7112) for a use permit for the new home occupation, and get a sign permit if you'll put up a sign.
  4. If you need more employees, traffic or space, apply to the Zoning Board of Appeals (only for businesses in buildings that existed by March 12, 1985).

Common questions

Can I run a business from my home in Camden, Maine?
Yes. Home occupations are a permitted accessory use in Camden's residential districts if they meet the town's standards, and a new use likely needs a use permit from the Code Enforcement Officer. Our copy of the ordinance runs only through June 2022.
How many employees can a home business have in Camden, Maine?
No more than one full-time or two part-time employees who don't live there and work on site. Anyone working 30+ hours a week counts as full-time.
How much of my home can I use for a business in Camden, Maine?
No more than 50% of the dwelling plus accessory buildings. There can be no exterior storage or display, and the work must happen inside the house or an accessory building.
How much traffic is allowed for a home business in Camden, Maine?
In the RU-1, RU-2, CR, VE and V districts, no more than an average of 10 vehicle trip ends a day, and truck shipments no more than three times a week.

Maine state rules for home businesses

Maine has no statewide home-occupation law. Whether you can run a business from home, and with what limits, is mostly up to your town's zoning. A few state rules may apply:

  • Sales tax registration: If you regularly sell taxable goods or services from home, you must register with Maine Revenue Services and collect sales tax.
  • Home food businesses: Making shelf-stable foods (baked goods, jams and similar) to sell requires a Home Food License from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. It costs $20 a year and needs an initial kitchen inspection. Foods that must be refrigerated need a commercial license instead.
  • Family child care: A state law (30-A M.R.S. §4364-D) makes family child care providers a permitted use in residential zones, under the same zoning rules as a single-family home. As amended in 2026, towns must follow it starting July 1, 2027. State child care licensing applies separately.
  • Shoreland zone: The DEP's model shoreland ordinance defines a home occupation as one clearly incidental to the home, with no more than 2 employees besides family members living there. It requires a planning board permit in Limited Residential, Resource Protection and Stream Protection districts, and a code officer permit in Limited Commercial districts.

State sources: Maine Revenue Services: Sales and Use Tax FAQ (registration) · Maine DACF: Home Food License 101 · 30-A M.R.S. §4364-D (Child care services in residential areas) · LD 2173 (P.L. 2025, c. 733): application dates · DEP Chapter 1000 (home occupation definition and land use table)

What the ordinance says

Exact text from Camden's published ordinances. Section numbers are as printed in the source.

  1. §290-3.2, Definitions: Home occupation, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 13
    HOME OCCUPATION — An occupation or profession which is accessory to a residential use and is customarily carried on in a dwelling unit or other structure accessory to a dwelling unit; carried on by a member of the family residing in the dwelling unit; clearly incidental and secondary to the use of the dwelling unit for residential purposes; and conforms with the standards of Article XA, § 290-10A.7, of this chapter.
  2. §290-8.7B(8), Traditional Village District permitted accessory activities, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 66
    (8) The following accessory activities: (a) Accessory uses. (b) Home occupations. (c) Homestay.
  3. §290-10A.8B, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    B. There shall be not more than one full-time or two part-time employees not resident in the place of business.
  4. §290-10A.8B, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    Any employee working 30 hours or more in a week shall be considered full-time.
  5. §290-10A.8C, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    C. There shall be no exterior storage of materials, no exterior display or other exterior indications of the home occupation other than signs as allowed in Article XI, § 290-11.11B, that shall contain no more than the name and business of the proprietor.
  6. §290-10A.8E, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    E. A home occupation located in a Rural-1, Rural-2, Coastal Residential, Village Extension, or Traditional Village District shall not be permitted if it would generate more than a daily average of 10 vehicular trip ends on weekdays, based on data contained in the latest edition of "Trip Generation," published by the Institute of Transportation Engineers, or if it in fact generates more than an average of 10 trip ends per day in any seven-day period; nor shall the home occupation make or receive shipments in trucks more than three times in a seven-day period.
  7. §290-10A.8F, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    F. The home occupation shall not require, nor shall it provide, more than two off-street parking spaces in addition to the off-street parking spaces provided to meet the normal requirements of the dwelling.
  8. §290-10A.8G, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    G. The home occupation shall not utilize more than 50% of the total floor area of the dwelling unit, plus accessory structure(s).
  9. §290-10A.8H, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    H. The home occupation shall include the retailing only of items actually produced on the premises and of other items clearly incidental thereto.
  10. §290-10A.8D, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    D. No nuisance, offensive noise, vibration, smoke, dust, odors, heat, glare, or electrical disturbance shall be generated.
  11. §290-11.11E(1), Signs: home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 154
    (1) Home occupations. One on-building sign is allowed for a home occupation in the Traditional Village (V) and Village Extension (VE) Zoning Districts, with a maximum sign area of six square feet. One freestanding sign is allowed for a home occupation in the Traditional Village (V) and Village Extension (VE) Zoning Districts, where the speed limit is 35 mph or greater, with a maximum sign area of six square feet.
  12. §290-11.11E(1), Signs: home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 154
    One on-building and one freestanding sign are allowed for a home occupation in the Rural 1 (RU-1), Rural 2 (RU-2), and Coastal Residential (CR) Zoning Districts, with a maximum combined sign area of 16 square feet.
  13. §290-7.6, Requirements for request to exceed home occupation standards, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 47
    A request to exceed the standards of a home occupation that concerns the number of employees, traffic generated, and percentage of floor area shall be granted only in the event that the applicant has established to the satisfaction of the Zoning Board of Appeals that:
  14. §290-10A.8A, Home occupations, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 138
    A. The occupation or profession shall be carried on wholly within the principal building(s) and/or within building(s) or other structure(s) accessory thereto.
  15. §290-5.2B, Permits required, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 28
    B. New use, including a new commercial use, including indoor and outdoor marijuana cultivation facilities or a change of majority ownership or a modification that is subject to an ordinance requirement or review criteria for that commercial use.
  16. §290-3.2, Definitions: Day-care center or nursery school, Zoning Ordinance (Chapter 290) - town PDF, p. 9
    DAY-CARE CENTER or NURSERY SCHOOL — A facility licensed by the State of Maine for the care or instruction of more than three preschool-aged children, exclusive of children who may be living in the home which is serving as the day-care or nursery school facility.
This page summarizes Camden's posted ordinances as of 2026-10-01. Ordinances are amended, and individual lots can have overlays, subdivision covenants, or HOA rules that are stricter. Confirm with Planning, Development and Code Enforcement Department (207-236-3353 ext. 7112 (dept); CEO ext. 7114) before you build. Spot an error?