What is the difference between Permits and Licenses?

Permits are official documents that grant an individual permission to work or perform certain activities. Permits are usually given to render something allowed or legal. For instance, you can be given a driving permit even if you haven't reached a certain age. Permits can also be given to people so they can work for a company for a particular period of time.

On the other hand, licenses are legal documents that give official permission to people to do something, as long as they are ready to comply and fulfill all the requirements that come with it. The common ones are driving licenses, business licenses, product licenses, etc. In most cases, permits are just for a limited period of time, whereas licenses are not temporary, although they can be renewed, and they can be annulled too. While permits are often inspected by the relevant agencies, licenses are seldom inspected. Also, permits usually come with so many restrictions, whereas licenses only have little restrictions.

A license is a legally binding contract that allows someone to be able to perform an action, provided they adhere to the terms of conditions presented to them. Some examples of licenses are driver’s license, software license, cosmetology license, and other business licenses. All of these licenses have rules and regulations that need to be followed to enact and maintain your license. Licenses are granted to the public by the appropriate authorities.

A permit, on the other hand, is an official document that permits a person to engage in an activity. For example, a person may have a driving permit before attaining a certain age, and once they reach this age, a license is given. This situation is the same case for a person who has a license to run a pest control business. However, they must obtain a permit to store the necessary chemicals.