What permits do I need for a food truck in New Jersey? If you're looking to create a food truck business in New Jersey, we're going to go through a handful of the business licenses and permits that you will probably need. We're going to dive into that right now on Fruit Truck Freaks.
All right. So we are back to saying welcome back to food truck freaks. We are YouTube's premier food truck and entrepreneur channel. We are a brand new channel, but we are definitely not new to YouTube. We have several other great food entrepreneur channels. If you were interested in what's down below this video, we'll have some links to those channels, marketing food, online and cottage food businesses, and a handful of other channels to help the food entrepreneur get up and running with their business. So my name is Damian Roberto. I am a food entrepreneur. I have been for over 12 years. My wife and I run a lot of different food businesses, including our YouTube channels. So we're going to dive into the handful of business licenses and permits that you may need. And here's why I say you may need The uniqueness of food truck businesses is that cities and counties frequently dictate what type of specific permits and licenses are required.
And a lot of times, if you cross over into different counties within the state, you're in different counties that you go into or cities, each city may require you to have a different license within that city in order to operate. So this one in particular, this video, is going to be all about New Jersey. So let's dive right into it. So the first one you are definitely well aware of, but the difference is that the first one you'll need is a business license. A business license, also known as a vendor license or, quote unquote, a basic business operation license, allows you to conduct business in the city and/or state of your choice.Okay? So, obtaining a license signifies that the government recognizes your activity as a genuine business and that the government can follow your operation for tax collection purposes. Of course, a food truck business license can now cost anywhere from $50 to $500.
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Now, keep in mind too, as I mentioned, the city and counties will dictate how you need to renew this. It could be done either semi-annually or annually. Normally, these are done every single year. Okay? So, depending on the location, the application fee and restrictions will vary based on where you live in the country. So make certain that you are aware of when your license expires and how to renew it, because you definitely don't want to operate a food truck with an expired license. You can get into some serious trouble. So make sure to apply as soon as possible after finishing your food truck business plans. Since some communities will limit the number of mobile food vending licenses they will issue, That's something. A lot of people don't know that they limit the number of mobile food licenses in certain cities or counties as well.
For often requiring new vendors to complete actually end up competing in a lottery to give me information on how to apply for a business license, check out a website specifically for your city and county clerk's office. Okay, Number two, the next type of business license you will need, If you're looking to create a food truck in New Jersey, check out Neiman Marcus. This is an employer identification number. This is something that has to do specifically with the IRS in regards to taxation and employees. So you'll need an employer identification number, also known as a social security number or EIN, for your company.It's a federal tax identification number, okay. That is used to register your business with the internal revenue service. It gives you the ability to register a company bank account, establish a credit profile, and hire personnel and additional employees to help you with your food truck.
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Okay, Some states provide this number with your company license, while others may or may not. So you have to definitely look into your state. Specifically, your employer identification number is provided free of charge by the internal revenue service and can be obtained through their website, fax, or mail as well. Now, the next one up is kind of a no-brainer, but believe it or not, a lot of people don't realize that a lot of states require a driver's license, a valid driver's license. So to operate your food truck, you will need to have a valid state driver's license from New Jersey, as well as truck registration for the specific food truck you're using, just as you would if you were driving a basic vehicle. Okay? In most states, a basic driver's license will satisfy this requirement. You're not going to have to have any additional types of license either.
Okay, Other states, on the other hand, will utilize the weight and length of your vehicle to decide whether or not you are required to have a commercial truck driver's license. And I keep that in mind too. Based on the size of your food truck, a lot of things will vary as far as licenses and permits. All right, next one up is a food handlers' permit. It is possible to obtain a food handler's permit, sometimes known as a food handler's license or food management certificate, after successfully completing food handler training as well as a food safety course in most states. It's actually just the manager on duty or the one operating the food truck that will have to have this type of certification. So keep that in mind as well. So therefore, there's no problem with you having to get one.
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It's super simple to Kobe, of course, and it's easy to do. If food is handled, prepared, cooked, or kept on the premises, other states require that one or more employees have a valid permit, the food handler permit, in order for you to be there at all times. Okay? So with the permit, you can provide your consumers with the assurance that the food truck team, everyone that's an operation, There is awareness and competence in hygienic and safe food handling procedures. That is a food handler's permit. The next one up is a health department permit. This health department permit, often known as a food service license, is actually granted by the health department within that city or county. Okay, So when you are in the state of New Jersey, you want to check with that local health department to get that and confirm that your vehicle has passed its health inspection process.
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So basically, during the inspection, a health department agent from the health department will look for any health code violations in your vehicle and present you with suggestions to correct the situation. If you have to have anything that needs to be addressed, they look for things like operating appropriate food storage, general hygiene, and H C C P protocol, which is actually a process for keeping your place running and easily sanitized as well. Those are things that we actually had to do as well. When we had our bakery, which was very similar to a food truck, our Italian bakery, we had that same type of process that we had to create as well. So the next one up is a seller's permit. When food service business owners purchase materials and supplies at wholesale pricing, they are obliged to get a seller's permit in their specific city or county.
This allows them to avoid paying sales tax twice. The tax would be collected when the goods are sold to the customer or consumer. What's your food truck event? Okay? So a seller's permit basically allows you to not pay taxes. When you buy the ingredients, you're going to collect taxes at the end. When you put everything together, this prevents the item from being taxed more than once. So check the state department of commerce website within your state. That would be obvious in New Jersey, whether the seller's permit is required in this state and how to obtain one. Okay, the next one up is a fire certificate. If you want to operate a food truck in some counties, you will actually need to have it examined and checked out by not just the health department but a fire inspector as well. If you have culinary equipment and gas lines on the vehicle, this will most likely be essential.
In most circumstances and situations, a fire inspection will most likely be required if you solely sell chilled foods. But it's also important to double check with your local authorities. Just in case you have to have one, some food trucks actually, believe it or not, don't have all that equipment, so they don't need to go through that. In addition, the fire department will inspect your cooking equipment to ensure that it is properly installed and functioning, as well as your electrical wiring, to determine whether or not your vehicle is outfitted for fire suppression systems. Okay? Now the next one we have is parking permits. In certain cities and counties, you will have to apply for a parking permit. There are certain areas of your city and county where you can't actually park a food truck. And if you do, and you don't understand where that is, you can get into some fines and some serious trouble.
As a result, parking permits can be purchased in some cities and counties.And you will have to abide by those rules based on what those are within the state of New Jersey. Okay, Number nine, commissary letter of agreement. It is possible that some cities may require you to also keep supplies and prepare your meals. And what's known as a commissary kitchen, before driving around in your food truck during the day, you will basically have a specific designated commissary kitchen. Then you will probably also have to require a commissary letter of agreement. Then what that is actually is a written document between you and the commissary proprietor, verifying that you have access to the facility and identifying the services that you are entitled to use there as well. So, just to be clear, a commissary agreement does not imply that you can prepare everything in anything.
They're going to tell you, "Hey, you know what, Damien, you're going to have to be able to make this, this, and this, but you can't do this, this, and this." So not everything is actually doable when it comes to commissary kitchens. A lot of people didn't know that. Number 10, the next one, ups standard operating procedures. So food truck operators are required to present them with a standard operating procedure paper before they can begin serving the general public in a few places. So, understand that certain cities and counties may require you to create a standard operating procedure. This is an unusual requirement in some cases, but when doing operations on your vehicles, such as your food truck, this document should detail the step-by-steps you and your personnel and your employees must take in order to operate your food truck. You will need comprehensive step-by-step lists and outline how each dish should be prepared and made, as well as how everything should be cleaned and put away and stored for the next day.
I believe these are very unique to actual documents, I believe. Some states require these and they're pretty strict about it. Actually, the cities and counties require it. The next one up is a special event permit. So if you're doing an event, it happens to be some type of wedding or an outside event on a certain property or private property. You'll need What's known as a "vendor permit," which permits you to sell food at a specific venue location, Now you'll get these based upon the type of permit and area. Then location. You're going to get this. It isn't something like you get one for that one particular event, and that covers you for everything. That's not exactly how it works. Mostly athletic events, festivals, or concerts. We'll have an event planner who can provide you with information on the sorts of permits required for you to sell food on their property and on the site.
So be aware as well, you'll have a log of additional permits that must be in effect from the entire date of the event. Okay? So for this reason, if you're going to cater, let's say, a wedding with your food truck, you'll want to inquire with the venue planner about the permits that would be required for you as a food truck operator. Okay, So that's a handful of different permits and licenses in the state of New Jersey. When you're looking to figure out what permits I need for a food drug in New Jersey and how to start a food truck business, Those are some of the generalized ones that you definitely want to look more specifically into in your city and county. And if this was helpful, please give it a big thumbs up. And if you have questions about your food truck business, let us know down below, and we'll see you guys in our next video.
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