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How Do I Get a Food Truck License in Florida?

Use the free tool — Cottage Food & Food Truck Check FL

Two different questions, two different answers

Selling jam or bread from your home kitchen and driving a food truck are covered by different Florida rules. A home kitchen selling non-potentially-hazardous foods directly to the consumer, under $250,000 a year in gross sales, can qualify as a cottage food operation under Fla. Stat. 500.80 — no license needed. A food truck that prepares or serves food is a different thing entirely, and it does need a license.

Who licenses a food truck

A mobile food dispensing vehicle — a food truck or cart that prepares or serves food — is licensed and inspected by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Hotels and Restaurants (DBPR), not FDACS. You'll need a plan review and a commissary or approved base for the truck before it passes inspection.

• Agency: DBPR — Mobile Food Dispensing Vehicles
• Steps mentioned in the law: plan review, commissary or approved base, inspection

This page does not quote license fees. Ask DBPR directly for current fees and forms.

What your city or county can and can't require

Since Fla. Stat. 509.102, a city or county may not require a separate local license, permit or fee just to operate a food truck. But local government can still say where and when a truck may operate on public property, and it can apply its own zoning rules.

• Statute: Fla. Stat. 509.102
• For zoning and where-you-can-park questions, ask your county property appraiser / zoning office.

If you're only selling prepackaged food from a cart or tent

A cart or tent that sells only prepackaged, non-hazardous food — nothing prepared or served on the spot — may fall under FDACS's cottage food rules instead of DBPR licensing. The two agencies license different things, so ask both which one applies to your exact setup before you buy equipment.

• FDACS — Cottage Foods

Sales tax still applies

Food truck sales are generally subject to Florida sales tax, and you register with the Florida Department of Revenue before you start selling. This page does not describe rates or exemptions — ask the Department of Revenue about your specific situation.

• floridarevenue.com — registration

What's still unclear

License fees, exact commissary requirements, and specific city or county zoning rules are not listed here — this page is not legal advice and it can be wrong. Confirm your exact setup with DBPR before you sell, and check zoning with your county before you park anywhere.

What to do next

Say what you plan to sell, how you'll sell it, and where — a free tool reads your own plan and tells you whether it looks like cottage food, a food truck needing DBPR, or something to ask both agencies about. Nothing you enter is stored.

Cottage Food & Food Truck Check FL explains Florida's cottage food law and food-truck licensing in plain language; it can be wrong, and it is not legal advice. The $250,000 cap, the allowed-foods list and the label statement are from Fla. Stat. 500.80 and FDACS guidance as published; confirm a specific product with FDACS. Nothing you enter is stored.