Licenses comes in all shapes and sizes and permits do too, but they are not the same. Although we use the words interchangeably the differences are a bit cloudy but incredible important for business owners, managers, or operators to understand.
Licenses vs. Permits
More Distinction of Licenses & Permits
Licenses
Grants permission to do a specific activity (profession) or use a unique item and is narrow in focus and geared more toward performance that could have the potential to harm the public.
Permits
Authorizes you to do something within public health and safety guidelines, requires regular inspections and covers a broad range as it is related to that specific activity.
This seems pretty straight forward until you find yourself in the world of Texas’ convoluted laws and bureaucracy for getting a liquor licenses… or is that a “permit” to sell or serve alcohol? Maybe it is both.
Registrations
Often overlooked, registrations have become more prevalent with local and state governments because registrations allow them to implement requirements and codify restrictions without having to address statutory change or amend ordinances related to permits or licenses.
Registrations are granted by a governing body or licensing board or commission, that requires “registration” in the common definition, but may also involve hazardous or specialized skill, testing, and training. They are treated as a conditional matter similar to licenses or permits.
Unusual Permit / License Requirements
When you are starting out or growing a business, how could you possibly know all these? And when the business thrives, how are you keeping up with changing license or permit requirements?
We can be on our way with simple contact info, but the more information you provide, the faster we can build solutions and deliver the top-notch service.