Street Trading Licence

Anyone wishing to engage in street trading within the Derry City and Strabane District Council area must obtain a street trading licence or a temporary licence granted by the Council under the Street Trading Act (Northern Ireland) 2001.

The legislation governing street trading can be viewed here: The Street Trading Act (NI) 2001

The prime purpose of the street trading licensing regime is to enable district councils to control and regulate street trading in their districts, in such a way as to prevent undue nuisance, interference and inconvenience to persons and vehicles.

LICENCE SUMMARY

There are three types of licence:

Stationary street trading licence:

This licence is suitable for those who wish to trade from a stationary position. (Note: these will only be granted where the trading will take place in a street designated for the sale of the items and/or the provision of the services offered)

Mobile street trading licence:

This licence is suitable for those who wish to trade using a receptacle, which is moved from place to place, stopping only for a limited time for the purpose of trading

Temporary licence:

This licence will permit street trading for a limited period, for example, at special events such as festivals, fairs and outdoor events. A temporary licence may permit trading on up to seven, consecutive days, but an applicant cannot be granted more than five temporary licences per year. 

STREET TRADING POLICY

At its meeting on Wednesday 24 September 2025, Derry City and Strabane District Council ratified approval of a revised Street Trading Policy, which provides a framework for the management of street trading applications, including the procedures that will be followed when determining applications.

The policy is available to view here: Street Trading Policy

Criteria for deciding temporary licence applications

The policy includes Council’s current criteria for making decisions on applications for a temporary licence to trade at an event or special occasion; however, these criteria are also available for download here

Applying for a licence

Eligibility

An applicant must have reached school leaver's age and the application must be made by an individual and not a company.

In addition, there are several circumstances in which an application must be refused:

• if the applicant wishes to trade at a place where trading would contravene any statutory provision or rule of law; or
• if an applicant wishes to trade as a stationary trader in a street which is not a designated street; or
• if an applicant wishes to trade as a stationary trader in any article, thing or service the sale or supply of which would be contrary to the terms of any designating resolution having effect in relation to the designated street in which the applicant wishes to trade.

A list of streets that have been designated for street trading purposes can be obtained by contacting the Licensing team at Derry City and Strabane District Council on 028 71 253 253, or by emailing:  [email protected].

Please note: that the list of designated streets is currently under review.

How to apply

1. Type of application

When applying for an entertainment licence for premises for the first time, you will have to apply for the grant of a licence.

You can apply to renew an existing licence; however, for the application to be regarded as a renewal application, it must be received before the expiry date of the existing licence. Licences are renewed on a “like-for-like” basis.

If you wish to amend the terms, conditions or restrictions under which a licence is held, you will have to make an application to vary the licence. Holders of a licence may apply for a variation of the licence while it remains in force, e.g. to allow trading on additional days to be authorised.

2. Application form

Applications must be made in writing using the appropriate form for the type of licence or application. Application forms are available on the downloads page.

All sections of the application form must be completed and the form returned to Council’s Licensing section.

3. Fee

Applications for the Grant, Renewal or Variation of a licence must be accompanied by the appropriate application fee.

[Note: charges also apply to most licences; however, charges do not have to be paid until a licence is going to be issued.]

The current fees and charges set by the Council for each type of licence are available for download here.

4. Supporting documentation

As part of the application process, you must submit various items with your application, which depend on the type of application being made.

Refer to the application forms for details of the required items.

What happens when we receive your application?

1. Processing time:

We have set the following target timescales for determining applications, following receipt of a valid application.

However, these should not be taken as guaranteed timescales; determination of applications may take longer, depending on various factors, e.g. if objections are received, so it is advisable to apply as far in advance of the required date as possible.

2. Validation:

Once we have received your application, we will check to ensure that we have all the required items, a process known as “validation”. After we have checked, we will advise you whether we require any additional items. We will then permit 28 calendar days for the remaining items to be submitted, otherwise the application may be rejected as being invalid. In such circumstances, you would be required to submit a fresh application.

3. Consultation:

Prior to granting a permit, we will consult with the PSNI and DfI Roads and we will take any observations they make into account when determining the application. In certain circumstances, we may also consult with other persons, e.g. environmental health.

What happens after a licence is granted?

Council will grant an application unless there are grounds for refusal.

Licences are issued with conditions, with which the licence holder must comply.

We will carry out checks to ensure that these conditions are being complied with and failure to comply with the conditions of a licence may result in legal proceedings or the licence being revoked.

A licence holder may apply to vary a condition attached to a licence.

Appeals against Council decisions

The council will serve a notice of its intention to:

• refuse an application for a street trading licence or a temporary licence, other than on the mandatory grounds for which an application for a licence must be refused;
• to grant a licence or a temporary licence, but with conditions other than those specified in the application; or
• to refuse to vary the conditions specified in a licence where the application to do so has been made by the licence holder or to revoke a licence.

Representations can be made in writing to the council within 21 days of the date of the notice.

If the council confirms its decision, an appeal can be made to the local Magistrates court within 21 days of the notice of the decision.

If an application for a temporary licence is refused the applicant can appeal to the local Magistrates court within 21 days of the date of the notice of the decision

CONSUMER COMPLAINT

We would always advise that, in the event of a complaint about goods or services that you have bought, the first contact is made with the trader by you - preferably in the form a letter (with proof of delivery). If that has not worked, if you are located in Northern Ireland, Consumerline offers advice. From other parts of the UK, contact Consumer Direct.  From outside the UK contact the UK International Consumer Centre.

OTHER REDRESS

Any complaints concerning how a trader operates, including complaints about litter, breach of licensing conditions of licence, noise, etc. should be made directly by contacting the licensing officers on 028 71 253 253, or by emailing: [email protected] 

TRADE ASSOCIATIONS

Many traders are members of the National Market Traders Federation  which provides membership benefits including public liability insurance cover.

CONTACT DETAILS

Licensing and Safety Advisory Group Derry City and Strabane District Council, 98 Strand Road, Derry, BT48 7NN

Telephone: (028) 71253253

E-mail: [email protected]​