Do I need an FSSAI licence?
Who needs one, who is exempt, and what counts as a food business.
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Send on WhatsApp tooIs an FSSAI licence mandatory?
Yes. Section 31 of the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 requires every food business operator to hold a licence or registration. There is no turnover (total yearly sales) floor below which food may be sold unlicensed — a petty operator still needs a Registration, which costs ₹100 a year.
Trading without one is punishable under section 63: up to six months’ imprisonment and a fine of up to ₹5 lakh.
Is an FSSAI licence mandatory for a small business?
Yes, but the smallest tier is cheap. Up to ₹1.5 crore of annual turnover you need a Registration — ₹100 a year, filed on FoSCoS (FSSAI’s licensing website) in about twenty minutes. Street vendors and hawkers pay nil under FSSAI’s order of 28.09.2024.
The tier turns on annual turnover, not on how small the premises is.
Does homemade food need an FSSAI licence?
Yes. A home kitchen, tiffin service or home bakery selling food is a food business. Up to ₹1.5 crore turnover that means a Registration at ₹100 a year, listing your home address as the premises.
Caterers are the exception: they cannot use Registration at any turnover and need at least a State Licence.
Do I need my own FSSAI licence to sell on Swiggy or Zomato?
Yes. The platform’s licence covers the platform, not your kitchen. Every seller needs a licence or registration in its own name, and the number has to be displayed on the listing. Most cloud kitchens sit in the Registration or State band.
Marketplaces are required to collect and display it, so an expired or missing number usually means delisting.
Is an FSSAI licence mandatory for a food truck or stall?
Yes. A food truck is a food business with a moving premises; you register it with the route or base location. Street vendors and hawkers pay a nil fee, but the registration itself is still required.
Carry the certificate on the vehicle — an officer can ask to see it during an inspection.
Is an FSSAI licence needed for transport or storage?
Yes. Transporters, warehouses and cold stores are separate kinds of business (the category you register under) on FoSCoS, and each premises needs its own licence. A transporter licence lists the vehicles; a warehouse licence lists the storage address.
Storing someone else’s food does not make it their licence — the storage premises needs its own.
Does a kirana shop or grocery store need one?
Yes. Retail sale of packaged food is a food business. Most single shops are under ₹1.5 crore and take a Registration; a larger chain or a wholesaler crosses into the State band at ₹1.5 crore.
Selling loose food from a shop does not exempt you — it changes the kind of business, not the requirement.
I only sell occasionally. Is there an exemption?
There is no casual-seller exemption in the Act. Food sold for consideration — at a weekend market, an exhibition or online — needs a licence or registration. Some states allow short-term event registrations; ask the Designated Officer (the district licensing officer) for the district before the event.
General information, current as at 12 September 2026. Government fees are paid by you on FoSCoS. Where a figure is a maximum the Act sets, we say so.
The other five sets.
Which FSSAI licence do I need, and what does it cost?
Tiers, government fees, our fees, and what changes the answer.
How do I apply for an FSSAI licence?
The steps, the documents, the timeline and the portal.
How do I check or verify an FSSAI licence?
Verifying a number, finding your own, and what the status means.
How do I change, transfer or close an FSSAI licence?
Address changes, new categories, transfers, surrender and revival.
What happens after an FSSAI notice or penalty?
Show-cause notices, adjudication, and what the Act allows.
Still not sure? Ask a person.
A free 10-minute check answers the question for your business, not in general — which licence, what it costs, and what you’ll owe after it’s granted.
- Government fee paid by you, directly to FSSAI
- Filed under your own FoSCoS login
- Fixed fee, confirmed in writing before we start
Not ready to talk? Get the free 2026 checklist or find your licence yourself.