FSSAI licence for food transporters and vehicles.
Yes, a business that carries food for a living needs FSSAI: transporting food, packed or in bulk, is its own kind of business on FoSCoS, tiered by turnover. The vehicle count that once pushed large fleets to Central no longer appears in the table.
A food transporter registers under the Transportation kind of business, sized by annual turnover: Registration up to ₹1.5 crore at ₹100 a year, State Licence from ₹1.5 crore to ₹50 crore at ₹5,000, and Central above ₹50 crore at ₹7,500. The 01.04.2026 table no longer uses the number of vehicles.
Which FSSAI licence a food transporter needs.
| Annual turnover | You need | Government fee (to FSSAI) | Our filing fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to ₹1.5 crore | Registration | ₹100 a year | ₹4,500 |
| ₹1.5 crore – ₹50 crore | State Licence | ₹5,000 a year | ₹12,500 |
| Above ₹50 crore | Central Licence | ₹7,500 a year | ₹19,500 |
Per FSSAI’s kind-of-business table updated 01.04.2026. Our fee is one-time plus GST. Operating in two or more States/UTs adds a head-office Central Licence (₹7,500 a year).
What to choose on FoSCoS
- Transportation — as listed on FoSCoS: transporting food products (both packed and bulk) from one location to another in vehicles or containers
- Storage as well, if you run a transit godown or cold room where goods wait between trips
- Head Office (Central), if you run food business premises in two or more States/UTs
2026 tablePer FSSAI’s table updated 01.04.2026. We confirm your kind of business before filing.
What a food transporter has to get right.
Each point comes with the regulation, order or FSSAI document behind it. Where FSSAI hasn’t spelt something out, we say it’s our reading.
Turnover, not vehicle count
The Transportation row reads by turnover: up to ₹1.5 crore Registration (₹100), ₹1.5–50 crore State Licence (₹5,000), above ₹50 crore Central (₹7,500). The old tests based on the number of vehicles have gone from the table.
KOB table 01.04.2026, Transportation rowClean between loads
Vehicles and containers must be kept clean, in good repair and in good condition. Where one vehicle carries different products, it is cleaned, and disinfected where necessary, between loads.
FSSAI storage & transport handbook (GHP/GMP), based on Schedule 4Food kept apart from everything else
If a vehicle carries anything other than food, or different kinds of food at once, the loads must be effectively separated so one cannot contaminate the other.
FSSAI storage & transport handbook (GHP/GMP)Temperature for chilled and frozen loads
Frozen food moves at −18°C or colder, in vehicles fitted with refrigeration and a recording device. Chilled food moves at 0°C to +5°C. Keep the temperature logs complete and available on request.
FSSAI storage & transport handbook (GHP/GMP)Bulk tankers: food only
Tankers carrying liquid food in bulk are reserved for food, marked 'for foodstuffs only', and carry documentation such as a wash certificate showing they were properly cleaned.
FSSAI storage & transport handbook (GHP/GMP)Inspection cadence for refrigerated transport
FSSAI's risk-based inspection order expects refrigerated transport to be inspected every two years. That is an expectation for officers, not a filing deadline for you, and the 2026 amendment moves inspection to a risk-based mechanism.
FSSAI order RCD-02001/9/2021, 02.05.2022; reg. 2.1.17 (inserted 10.03.2026)Board, training, records
Display the Food Safety Display Board with your number; FSSAI publishes a transport version. FoSTaC runs a basic Storage & Transport course for supervisors. Records are kept for one year or the product's shelf life, whichever is longer.
FSSAI order 19.09.2018; FoSTaC; Schedule 4, Part II 8.2What you’ll be asked for.
On top of the owner’s photo ID and address proof. FoSCoS asks per kind of business, so we send you the exact list for yours before you gather anything.
Full documents checklist- Form A (Registration) or Form B (licence) on FoSCoS, choosing the Transportation kind of business
- Photo ID and proof of possession of the office or yard the application is made from
- Temperature logs or recorder print-outs for refrigerated vehicles
- Wash certificates for bulk tankers carrying liquid food
- Cleaning records showing vehicles were cleaned between different loads
- FoSTaC certificate of the trained supervisor (Storage & Transport course)
The authorities around this business.
FSSAI isn’t the only door you’ll knock on. These are the bodies that usually matter for this kind of business — each links to what it does and when you’ll meet it.
See the full regulatory map
Common mistakes with food transporter licences.
A manufacturer's licence covers its own premises. A business that transports food for others holds its own registration or licence under the Transportation kind of business.
Carrying chemicals, cement or scrap on the return trip, then loading food without cleaning and separation, is exactly what the guidance on cleaning between loads and separating goods is written against.
A cold vehicle is only as good as its log. Without a recording device and complete logs, you cannot show that frozen goods stayed at −18°C or chilled goods at 0–5°C.
Pages that still tell fleet owners to go Central by vehicle numbers are quoting the pre-April 2026 table. Turnover decides now.
Your food transporter licence in three steps.
Most of the work is ours. Where something needs you, it says so — and nothing is filed without your approval.
- 1
Book a free 10-minute check
Tell us what you do. We confirm the exact kind of business, the licence and the full cost — including the exceptions most people miss.
Free · no obligation - 2
We file it on your login
You get a checklist for your business, we check every document, and we file on your own FoSCoS account. The government fee goes from you to FSSAI.
Fixed fee, in writing - 3
We keep you licensed
Fees, returns, tests, medicals, labels and inspections — dated, tracked and handled, with a short status note each month.
Ready any day
Our promises, in writing
You get the fee before we start. If the scope changes, you hear it from us before it costs you.
We file on your own FoSCoS account with your approval. Nothing to hand back if you ever leave.
Straight to FSSAI on FoSCoS. It never passes through us.
Each requirement comes with the regulation behind it — and our readings are marked as ours.
FSSAI licence for food transporter: questions
Is FSSAI license mandatory for a transporter?
Yes, for a business that transports food. FoSCoS has a Transportation kind of business covering food, packed or in bulk, moved from one place to another in vehicles or containers. Up to ₹1.5 crore turnover you need a ₹100 Registration, and above that a State or Central Licence. Operating without one falls under FSS Act section 63.
What is the FSSAI license fee for a food transport business?
The government fee follows turnover: ₹100 a year for Registration (up to ₹1.5 crore), ₹5,000 for a State Licence (₹1.5–50 crore) and ₹7,500 for Central (above ₹50 crore). There is no separate per-vehicle fee in the 01.04.2026 table, and licences no longer need renewal. The annual fee is still paid every year.
What is on an FSSAI vehicle inspection checklist?
FSSAI publishes an inspection checklist for transport, and its storage and transport handbook carries one too. Expect questions on the vehicle's cleanliness and repair, cleaning between loads, separation of food from non-food, temperature control and logs for chilled or frozen loads, pest control, handlers' hygiene, cleaning records and traceability of what was carried.
Does each transport vehicle need a separate FSSAI licence?
The current table licenses the transport business by turnover and says nothing about per-vehicle licences. A licence covers one premises, though, so a depot in another city is a separate application. How FoSCoS records a fleet spread across locations isn't stated in what we hold, so confirm it with your licensing authority.
What temperature must refrigerated food transport maintain?
FSSAI's storage and transport guidance sets −18°C or colder for frozen products, with refrigeration and recording devices fitted, and 0°C to +5°C for chilled foods, with complete temperature logs kept and available on request. These come from guidance built on Schedule 4. Your customer's specification may be stricter.
Does a manufacturer delivering in its own vehicles need a transport licence?
FSSAI's table doesn't answer this directly. The Transportation row describes the activity, not who owns the goods. Our reading is that a business carrying other people's food for hire needs the Transportation kind of business. For a manufacturer moving only its own goods, confirm with the licensing authority whether to add it to your licence.
Get your food transporter licensed — and keep it that way.
Book a free 10-minute check. A person — not a bot — calls you back within working hours, tells you exactly which licence you need and what it costs, before you commit to anything.
- 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.