Guide · Sign permits
Do I need a sign permit in Toronto, and how do I get one?
If the sign is outside and names your business, you almost always need a City of Toronto sign permit before it goes up. This guide covers what to submit, what it costs and how long the City takes, based on the City's own pages as of October 2026.
Toronto groups signs into two types. A first party sign identifies a business or service on the same property, like the channel letters over your shop door. A third party sign advertises something not on the property, like a billboard. This guide is about first party signs, which is what most businesses are putting up.
When you need a permit
You need a first party sign permit before you install a sign that identifies a business or service on the property. That covers wall signs, ground and pylon signs, projecting signs and signs on an overhanging structure. The rules are set by the City's Sign By-law (Municipal Code Chapter 694), and they depend on the zoning and sign district your property falls in. If your sign does not meet them, you need a sign variance first.
What the City asks you to submit
According to the City of Toronto's first party sign permit page, an application includes:
- Application forms. The current Application for a Permit to Construct or Demolish and the First Party Sign Permit Application, with the sign dimensions entered.
- Owner's authorization. A letter from the property owner if you are a tenant.
- Drawings. A cross-section, elevation and site plan, drawn to scale, dimensioned, signed and dated, showing property lines, setbacks, and any other signs on the building.
- Engineering details for most signs: wind and snow loads, materials, how the sign attaches to the wall, and for ground signs the foundation.
- Electrical details for lit signs, including lighting information and a declaration about overhead electrical conductors.
Some signs need extra paperwork, such as a commitment to general review by an engineer for large or heavy signs, and a tree declaration for ground signs.
Before you apply
- Check the by-law rules for your property, using the City's SignView map.
- Check other approvals. Depending on where you are, you may also need approval from agencies such as the TRCA, the Ministry of Transportation, Heritage Planning or Metrolinx.
- Check for open violations on the property, since they can add fees and slow the permit.
What it costs
The City's 2026 fees for first party signs are:
| Sign type | City fee |
|---|---|
| Wall, ground, projecting or overhanging structure sign | $37.71 per square metre (minimum $263.87) |
| Roof sign | $45.22 per square metre |
| Building permit fee, added to the sign permit | $70.67 |
| Renewal of a sign permit | $22.65 per square metre |
The City's own summary puts the minimum for a sign permit at $334.53, including the building permit fee. Source: City of Toronto, First Party Sign Permit (page last modified Feb 18, 2026) and Sign-related Fees. Fees change each year, so check the City's pages before you budget.
How long it takes
Applications are made electronically, with payment at the time of application. For three or fewer signs with no heritage approval needed, the City reviews the application within 3 business days of entering it in its system. Four or more signs are not eligible for the express service, and the City recommends a Preliminary Project Review first because these often need a sign variance. Properties with open violations, or heritage requirements, can also take longer.
Having the correct drawings, the owner's letter and any landlord or plaza approval ready before you apply helps keep the application moving.
What a sign company does for you
When you order a sign from us, we measure the wall, check your property against the by-law and your landlord's sign rules, prepare the scaled drawings and electrical details, and submit the application. Your quote shows the City's permit fee as its own line. You give us a letter of authorization from the property owner and approve the drawing, and we handle the rest.
A note on other cities
This guide covers Toronto. Mississauga, Markham, Vaughan, Brampton and the other GTA cities each have their own sign by-laws, forms and fees. Tell us the address and we will check the local rules before quoting.
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