How to Get a Vendor's License in Texas to Sell Food on the Streets
A quick hot dog or sandwich from a street vendor is lunch for busy workers in many cities across the United States. Texas licenses its street food vendors through a series of requirements designed to protect consumers. In Texas, a street food vendor's permit combines the concerns of the health department and the business regulations and licensing for the city and county in which the vending takes place.
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Instructions
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Contact the county health department and the licensing department of the town in which the vending will take place to learn the local licensing requirements. Food vending is governed by the county, and most towns abide by the county permitting and regulation process. However, any city or town can add to the requirements as necessary.
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Read all documents and understand the parameters of the requirements for your type of business. Typically, Texas differentiates between licensing to street vendors who sell pre-packaged food and those that actually prepare the food on the street. Each county and city will refer to vendors differently and have varying requirements for each.
For example, Dallas offers vendors a concession license to vend in the business district and requires a certain type and size of cart. Houston defines separate permitting for mobile food vendors (vendors that park) and street food vendors with carts (vendors that keep moving and stop only to sell a product). Austin refers to street vendors as mobile vendors, pushcart vendors and foot peddlers.
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Obtain a Texas sales and use tax permit. All businesses must have this permit before they're allowed to sell food or other products in Texas. Visit the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts office website to apply for one electronically. You will need a Social Security number or a Federal Employer Identification Number and a NAICS code to complete the application. Corporations must use their file number given to them at the time they filed with the Texas Secretary of State (see Resources).
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Apply for a Texas driver's license or photo identification card. If you do not already have one, you will need to obtain one before receiving a permit or license to sell food on the streets in Texas.
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Prepare and submit to an inspection. The city or county will want to know how the food is being prepared or ask for a copy of the Texas Food Manufacturer's permit if you purchase and resell pre-packaged food.
Each city or county has different requirements, and some may perform an inspection of the mobile cart before awarding a license. Most will require hand-washing facilities and have other health and safety-related requirements for vendors preparing food on the street. Pushcarts and foot peddlers must have adequate cold storage to keep food fresh.
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Complete all applications and pay for all permits. There may be more than one application and fee depending on the type of street food vending you are doing.
As of 2011, Dallas requires its concession vendors to pay for an annual concession license of $150 and a $100 monthly location license. Austin charges a $125 application fee plus a second fee of $210 for unrestricted permits (food prepared on the street) or $90 for restricted permits (pre-packaged food sales). In addition, Travis County (the county where Austin is located) charges $60 for all mobile food vendor permits. Austin also requires a license plate for carts used with unrestricted permits.
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Follow all regulations about hours, locations and days of operation. A license to sell food on the street in Texas does not mean vendors can sell at any hour or day of the week. Most permits state specific days and hours of operation. Some vendors may need to obtain the written and notarized permission of the property owner before being issued a street vendor license.
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