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Business licences and sector permits

Disponible solo en inglés

De la Wiki de GuyanaHub. Última actualización 24 de octubre de 2026. Revisado el 24 de octubre de 2026.

Trade licences from GRA, sanitary and food handler requirements, environmental permits, petroleum, mining and gold dealing, liquor licences, food imports and customs. What each office asks for, with published fees where we could verify them.

General information only. Which licences you need depends on your trade and location. Ask the office for your sector before you open, and before you sign a lease or buy equipment. Where a fee is not published, we say check with the office.

Trade licences (GRA)

Trade and miscellaneous licences are issued by GRA's Licence Revenue Office. GRA says fees vary by category and by the area where the business is located [1]. We did not find a full fee table on GRA's pages, so check with the office for your fee.

Example: general shop, lumber yard or internet cafe licence [2] New licence:

  1. Completed application form
  2. TIN
  3. Valid ID (passport or National ID)
  4. An approved plan and letter for the premises, stamped and signed by the Central Housing and Planning Authority and the Guyana Fire Service
  5. Business registration from the Deeds Registry
  6. Safety certificate from the Guyana Fire Service
  7. Sanitary certificate from the M&CC or NDC
  8. Drug certificate from the Poison Board, Ministry of Health (only if you will sell over-the-counter medicines)

Renewal needs the previous year's licence plus valid ID, business registration and sanitary certificate (and drug certificate if it applies). The licence lasts one year [2]. GRA has separate pages for other licence types, such as gas stations and pharmacies [1].

GRA asks businesses to display their licences at the premises, or carry them if they are hucksters [3].

Food businesses and food handlers

  • Georgetown. The M&CC Food Hygiene section registers and licenses restaurants, grocery and provision shops, supermarkets, beer gardens and cold storage, inspects them, and issues medical certificates to food handlers with the help of Georgetown Hospital. Food handlers are examined and tested every six months. The M&CC lists a food handler's licence at G$5,000, and food establishment fees by floor area [4]. The per-square-foot table on that page appears to contain a typo for the smallest band, so check with the M&CC for the fee for your premises.
  • Outside Georgetown. Sanitary certificates come from your Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) or town council [2]. Check with your NDC for the process and fee.
  • Guyana Food Safety Authority (GFSA). GFSA, under the Ministry of Agriculture, lists licensing of food business operators, food handlers' permits and ID cards, street food vending permits, approval of food premises and food handler training among its services. It notes that the Food Safety Act 2019 is being amended. Contact: (592) 220-2683, gfsa@agriculture.gov.gy [5].
  • Importing food. The Government Analyst Food and Drug Department (GA-FDD) publishes an Application for a Food Import Permit [6]. We could not confirm the current fee on an official page, so check with GA-FDD.

Environmental permits (EPA)

Projects that may affect the environment need an Environmental Authorisation from the EPA. The EPA publishes application forms, an online permits portal and a published fee schedule [7][8][9].

EPA fee schedule (US$) [9]

Fee Small Medium Large Extra large
Application, new authorisation 50 50 50 50
Application, renewal 50 75 100 125
Permit, per year (low to high impact, C1 to C3) 100 / 175 / 300 500 / 800 / 1,100 1,500 / 2,000 / 2,500 3,100
Transfer of an authorisation 50 50 50 50
Sound-making device 20

The EPA says the permit fee is per year and a permit can be issued for up to five years [9]. Your project's size and impact category are decided by the EPA's screening, so check with the EPA before budgeting.

Petroleum products (Guyana Energy Agency)

The GEA Licensing Division licenses anyone who imports, exports, sells wholesale or retail, stores, or transports petroleum products in bulk. Licences are issued after a site visit [10]. GEA has an online licensing portal with a document list for retail licences [11]. Licensing Division phones: (592) 226-4424, 226-0394, 225-9050 or 225-8569 [10]. A gas station also needs a GRA gas station licence [1].

Mining (GGMC)

  • Small scale claims are 1,500 ft by 800 ft; a river claim is one mile of navigable river [12].
  • Medium scale permits cover 150 to 1,200 acres and are only for Guyanese citizens and bodies whose beneficial owners are all Guyanese [12].
  • A medium scale Mining Permit application needs a valid medium scale prospecting permit, Form 5F, a map, a deposit equal to the first year's rental (US$1.00 per acre), an application fee, proof of address and company documents if applicable. An environmental bond of G$100,000 and an Environmental Management Agreement are required before the permit is issued [12].
  • The GGMC FAQ shows the prospecting permit application fee as both G$2,000 and G$4,000 in different answers, so check with GGMC [12].
  • Mining on titled Amerindian land at small and medium scale needs the written consent of the Village first [12].
  • GGMC has an eServices portal for new licence and permit applications [13]. Contact: 592-225-2862, info@ggmc.gov.gy [12].

Buying, selling or exporting gold (Guyana Gold Board)

A gold dealer needs an Authorisation to Possess, Sell or Export Gold (a Dealer's Licence) from the Guyana Gold Board. Applicants submit the application and a "fit and proper" form to GGB's Compliance Department [14]. Published fees on approval [14]:

  • Processing fee: G$75,000
  • Licence fee: G$3,000,000
  • Security deposit: the value of 10 ounces of gold at the first gold fix of the year

The licence expires on 31 December each year and must be renewed. Dealers are also supervised under Guyana's anti-money laundering law [14].

Liquor licences

Liquor licences for hotels, restaurants, members' clubs, taverns and spirit shops are granted under the Intoxicating Liquor Licensing Act, Cap. 82:21 by District Licensing Boards, which meet quarterly. GRA publishes the meeting dates and says applications must reach the GRA district office at least 30 days before the meeting [15]. GRA also publishes a spirit shop licence application form [16]. Fees are not shown on these pages, so check with GRA.

Importing goods (GRA Customs)

For commercial imports through ASYCUDA World, the declarant files an import declaration, the system calculates duties and taxes, you pay, then Customs reviews documents and may examine the goods before release [17]. Supporting documents can include the bill of lading or airway bill, the invoice, and permits for controlled goods, such as a certificate from the Pesticide, Toxic and Chemicals Control Department for chemicals, or an Import Licence Certificate from the Ministry of Trade for pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, as GRA words it [17]. You can use a licensed customs broker; GRA explains who a broker is and how to become one [18].

References

  1. GRA, "Trade & Miscellaneous Licences". https://gra.gov.gy/business/trade-miscellaneous-licenses/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  2. GRA, "General Shop, Lumber Yard & Internet Cafe". https://gra.gov.gy/business/general-shop-lumber-yard-internet-cafe/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  3. GRA, "Start Your Business". https://www.gra.gov.gy/quick-links-2/start-your-business/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  4. Georgetown M&CC, "Food Hygiene". https://mccgt.com/food-hygiene/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  5. Ministry of Agriculture, "Guyana Food Safety Authority". https://agriculture.gov.gy/guyana-food-safety-authority/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  6. GA-FDD, "Application for a Food Import Permit (Rev 4)". https://www.gafdd.gy/download/application-for-a-food-import-permit-rev4/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  7. EPA, "Application Forms for Environmental Authorization". https://epaguyana.org/downloads/application-forms-for-environmental-authorization/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  8. EPA eServices, "Permits". https://eservices.epa.gov.gy/permits (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  9. EPA, "Environmental Protection Agency Fee Schedule" (PDF dated May 2025). https://epaguyana.org/download/environmental-protection-agency-fee-schedule/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  10. GEA, "Licensing Division". https://gea.gov.gy/divisions/licensing-division/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  11. GEA, "Retail Licence Documents Requirement". https://getlicensed.gea.gov.gy/retail_licence_documents_required (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  12. GGMC, "FAQ". https://www.ggmc.gov.gy/faq/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  13. GGMC eServices, "New Licence/Permit Applications and Renewals". https://eservices.ggmc.gov.gy/LicenceApplication?type=1 (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  14. Guyana Gold Board, "Become a Dealer". https://ggb.gov.gy/become-a-dealer/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  15. GRA, "Excise Notice: County of Berbice, Third Quarter General Licencing Meeting". https://www.gra.gov.gy/excise-notice-county-of-berbice-third-quarter-general-licencing-meeting/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  16. GRA, Spirit Shop Licence application (PDF). https://www.gra.gov.gy/storage/2019/08/ApplSpiritShopLicensev2.pdf (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  17. GRA, "Commercial" imports. https://gra.gov.gy/business/customs-and-trade/imports/commercial/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.
  18. GRA, "Brokers". https://gra.gov.gy/business/customs-and-trade/brokers/ (checked 24 Oct 2026) Open source Checked 24 Oct 2026.

Categories: Doing business

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