Selling your business in Edmonton
The Edmonton area has about 56,000 business locations with employees, and 95 in 100 of them have fewer than 50 people. Plenty of those owners are thinking about what comes next: about 22 in 100 Alberta businesses plan to sell or hand over ownership within ten years.
How we sell an Edmonton business
This page covers what selling looks like here. What the City and the province ask of you, what your buyer needs from the City, and how we help owners navigate the sale of their business.
A free sale plan first
See what your business could sell for, and exactly how we would sell it, before you commit to anything.
A confidential package built from your own numbers
Buyers see the business clearly. Your name stays private.
Registered buyers see it seven days before the public
Every new business goes to our Buyers Market Club first.
Nobody learns who you are until they sign our confidentiality agreement
You make every decision
Which offer, what terms, and when.
No upfront fees to sell
Our fee is paid at closing.
What you hand over when you sell in Edmonton
Your City business licence
It does not go to the buyer. When a business is sold, the City requires a new licence, so your buyer applies for their own. Once you no longer run the business, the City asks you to cancel yours promptly.
City of Edmonton, Update or cancel your business licence
WCB Alberta clearance
Before your buyer pays any of the price, you hand over a certificate from WCB saying it has no claim against you. If you don't, your buyer can owe WCB what you owed, up to the value of what they bought. Ask for it early.
Workers' Compensation Act, section 132
Sales tax
Alberta has no provincial sales tax. GST still applies, but when you sell the whole business, a joint election with the buyer on Form GST44 can mean no GST is payable on the sale. Your accountant tells you whether yours qualifies.
Canada Revenue Agency, Form GST44
Your staff
Their years of service carry over to the new owner when the business is sold.
Alberta Employment Standards Code, section 5
Your lease or building
In an asset sale, the lease or land part of the deal is handled by a licensed commercial realtor. If a building changes hands, Alberta Land Titles charges $50 plus $5 for each $5,000 of the land's value to register the transfer.
Real Estate Council of Alberta; Alberta Land Titles fee schedule
A liquor licence or food permit
A liquor licence can't be sold. AGLC has to approve before 5% or more of the business changes hands. A food permit doesn't transfer either: Alberta Health Services says a new owner applies for their own at least 7 days before taking over.
AGLC Liquor Licensee Handbook; Alberta Health Services
What your buyer needs from the City
Your buyer needs their own City licence to run the business. Plan the closing date around these steps, so your customers never find a closed door.
Apply early
Once the location is chosen
The City encourages applying as soon as the location is chosen. The buyer does not have to wait for development or building permits to apply.
Zoning and permits
Before the licence
City staff decide whether the business can operate at that location. Changing from the approved use, or building or renovating, needs development and building permits first.
A new City licence
About 17 days on average
In 2026, $271 for one year for most types, from shops and restaurants to trades and offices ($520 for two years). From July to September 2026, commercial licences took 17 days on average from a complete application, not counting any permits.
A fire inspection
Can come after the licence
Some businesses need one from Edmonton Fire Rescue Services. It does not have to be done before the licence is issued, and it has its own fee.
Around Edmonton
Each city and county nearby has its own rule for a new owner.
St. Albert
A buyer of an existing business does not apply for a new licence. They contact the City's Business Licensing office instead.
Strathcona County
The county, Sherwood Park included, does not require a business licence.
Spruce Grove
A change in ownership needs a new licence application.
Fort Saskatchewan
A licence can be transferred to the new owner at no charge.
What is an Edmonton business worth?
Buyers price a small business as a multiple of its yearly earnings, and the multiple depends on the industry. Our free estimate shows yours as a range, built from published sale data for your industry (North American sales data). See the ranges by industry on our free business valuation page, or read how many times profit a business is worth.
Edmonton owners we help
We sell all types of businesses, in every industry. In Edmonton that often means health care, construction and the trades, professional services, shops, repair and personal services, and restaurants, the area's largest groups of employers. For the province wide picture, read our guide on how to sell a business in Alberta.
- Health care
- Construction and the trades
- Professional services
- Shops
- Repair and personal services
- Restaurants
Questions Edmonton owners ask
Do I need a licence to sell my own business in Alberta?
Does my City of Edmonton business licence go to the buyer?
Who sees my business?
What does it cost to sell with you?
Do you only work in Edmonton?
See what your business could sell for, and exactly how we would sell it, with a free sale plan.
Or call us at 778-760-8081. A Senior Deal Advisor calls you next.
Sources
- Business locations with employees, Edmonton census metropolitan area, June 2026: Statistics Canada, table 33-10-1176-01 (55,747 locations; 52,881 with 1 to 49 employees).
- Plans to sell or transfer within ten years, Alberta, third quarter 2026: Statistics Canada, Canadian Survey on Business Conditions, table 33-10-1196-01 (21.7%).
- Licence rules: City of Edmonton, "Update or Cancel Your Existing Business Licence", "Apply for a Business Licence", the 2026 fee schedule for Bylaw 20002 and its processing times for July to September 2026; City of St. Albert, "Apply for a Business Licence"; Strathcona County, "Permits, licenses and registration"; City of Spruce Grove, Business Licence Bylaw, section 6.3; City of Fort Saskatchewan, "Business Licence FAQs".
- WCB clearance: Workers' Compensation Act, RSA 2000 c W-15, section 132 (current to 18 December 2025).
- Staff: Employment Standards Code, RSA 2000 c E-9, section 5.
- Leases and land: Real Estate Council of Alberta, Business Brokerage bulletin; Alberta Land Titles fee schedule effective 1 October 2026.
- Liquor and food: AGLC Liquor Licensee Handbook, section 2.5 (issued 9 June 2026); Alberta Health Services, "Starting a Food Business" (January 2026).
- GST: Canada Revenue Agency, Form GST44.
Succession Market publishes this page from Kelowna, British Columbia. It is general information, not tax or legal advice for a particular sale. Updated .