VendFynd

Vending Machine Licence Fees in Burnaby, Richmond and Surrey

What Burnaby, Richmond and Surrey charge per vending machine in 2026, from each city's bylaw: who's responsible, and the one duty that falls on the host.

By Mahdi DialdenUpdated 6 min readFiled under Hosts, Rules, Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey

Short answer: in 2026, Surrey charges $41 a year per vending machine, Richmond $37.50 per machine, and Burnaby $39 per coin-operated machine or $112 if it takes credit cards (rising to $41 and $117 on January 1, 2027). These fees come from each city's own bylaw. The operator normally licenses its own machines, but the bylaws don't say so outright, so put it in your agreement. In Surrey, the host also has one duty of its own.

This is for owners and managers of businesses, strata buildings and facilities in Burnaby, Richmond and Surrey, British Columbia, who have been offered a machine and want to know what's licensed, by whom, and what it costs.

The fees, city by city

CityWhat the bylaw chargesBylaw
Surrey$41.00 a year for each vending machine (the same line covers pinball machines)Business License By-law 13680, Schedule A
RichmondGroup 1 vending machines: $37.50 per machine. Group 2 (newspapers): $51.50. Group 3 (drawers, lockers): $12.00Business Licence Bylaw 7360, s.3.10; Fees Bylaw 8636
BurnabyCoin and/or note operated machines: $39.00 per machine. Vending machine of any type using a credit card: $112.00. Business licence application fee: $55.00. From January 1, 2027 (Bylaw 14850): $41.00 coin, $117.00 cardFees and Charges Bylaw 14485, Schedule A2 (in effect since January 1, 2026)

Fees as published in each city's consolidated bylaw, retrieved September 26, 2026. They change, usually each January.

A few details worth knowing:

  • Burnaby's card-reader fee is almost three times the coin fee. Nearly every new machine takes cards and tap, so $112 ($117 from 2027) is the realistic Burnaby figure for a modern placement.
  • Surrey's fee is per machine, per year. A drink machine and a snack machine side by side are two licences.
  • Richmond has a "vending machine services" category as well as the per-machine use category, so an operator based in Richmond may hold both.

Who pays for the licence?

None of the three bylaws says whether the host or the operator pays for a machine's licence. In practice, full-service operators licence the machines they own, the same way they pay for the machine, the stocking and the repairs. Two things to do:

  1. Ask the operator which city licences it holds for its machines before install.
  2. Write it into the agreement: "operator holds and pays for all licences and permits for the machines."

Your own business licence doesn't change because someone else's machine is on your premises. VendFynd's host terms keep it simple: $0 to you, with the operator covering the machine, install, stocking, service and removal, and you providing the spot and an outlet.

The Surrey rule that applies to the host

Surrey's bylaw has a line addressed to the premises, not the operator. Section 65(3): "No proprietor of a premise will permit the number of vending machines owned or kept upon the premise to be increased without first notifying the Inspector in writing."

In plain terms: if you're in Surrey and a second machine is coming, send the City's licence office a short note first. It's easy to miss because it's the host's job, not the operator's. Surrey's bylaw also sets out that machines in a premises whose principal business is dispensing through vending machines are treated separately, which doesn't affect a normal office, warehouse or gym.

Burnaby can ask for insurance

Burnaby's Business Licence Bylaw 2017 (No. 13809) has no vending-specific section, but s.3.2 lets the Chief Licence Inspector require a licence holder "to obtain and maintain insurance in an amount and on conditions as required". If your landlord or strata also wants a certificate of insurance naming you, ask the operator for one before install.

Machines that need extra paperwork

  • Tobacco and vapour products. BC's Tobacco and Vapour Products Control Regulation requires a dealer operating a vending machine that sells these products to put a government decal on the front (s.5(4)). Federal law separately bars tobacco vending machines anywhere the public can reasonably get to, except in bars with a security mechanism. A normal workplace, gym or lobby machine carries neither.
  • Fresh food. Machines selling sandwiches and other perishables fall under BC's Food Premises Regulation. That's a health-authority question, separate from the city licence.

What about Vancouver and other cities?

We couldn't retrieve the City of Vancouver's licence bylaw fee schedule for this post, so we haven't quoted a Vancouver figure. The same goes for Coquitlam, New Westminster and the North Shore. If your site is there, ask the operator for its licence number in your city, or call the city's licence office.

Checklist before a machine goes in

  • The operator holds the city licence for each machine (ask for the number).
  • The agreement says who pays licence fees (the operator).
  • In Surrey: you've written to the licence inspector if machine numbers are going up.
  • In Burnaby: a certificate of insurance, if the City, your landlord or strata asks.
  • The rest of the terms check out: see our questions to ask a vending company and the commission reality check.

About this data

Fees and rules are quoted from each city's consolidated bylaw as published on its website and retrieved on 2026-09-26: Surrey By-law 13680 (consolidated to By-law 21963, April 13, 2026), Richmond Bylaw 7360 and Fees Bylaw 8636 (amendments into November 2025), and Burnaby Bylaws 13809 and 14485 (Schedule A in effect January 1, 2026). This is general information, not legal advice; a city's licence office has the final word.

Sources

All accessed 2026-09-26.

Frequently asked questions

How much is a vending machine business licence in Surrey?

Surrey's Business License By-law 13680 lists vending machines at $41.00 a year for each machine (Schedule A, consolidated to April 2026). Machines in a premises whose main business is vending services are treated differently under the bylaw's definition.

Why does Burnaby charge more for card-reader vending machines?

Burnaby's fees bylaw has two lines: $39.00 per coin- or note-operated machine and $112.00 for a vending machine of any type using a credit card, both initial and renewal. Amendment Bylaw 14850 (adopted September 22, 2026) raises them to $41.00 and $117.00 from January 1, 2027. The bylaw doesn't explain the difference; it's simply how the schedule is set.

Does the business hosting the machine need its own vending licence?

The bylaws we read set per-machine fees but don't say whether host or operator pays. Operators usually licence their own machines. The host's own business licence doesn't change, but in Surrey the premises owner must tell the City in writing before the number of machines increases.

Does Richmond licence vending machines that cost less than a quarter?

Richmond's bylaw sorts machines into groups. Group 1 covers vending machines except those in its other groups, and the fees bylaw sets Group 1 at $37.50 per machine, Group 2 (newspaper boxes) at $51.50 and Group 3 (drawers and lockers) at $12.00. Check the bylaw text for which group your machine falls in.