Indiana — statewide
Indiana Department of Health, Food Protection Division
In short
Indiana Department of Health, Food Protection Division issues 2 permits we publish for Indiana — statewide, last verified 2026-09-03. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.
What this agency issues
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Certified Food Protection Manager | Indiana Department of Health, Food Protection Division | No fee | 5 years | 2026-09-03 |
| Retail Food Establishment Permit | Indiana Department of Health, Food Protection Division | $300–$1,690 a year, set by the local health department — there is no state fee | annual | 2026-09-03 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
About each permit
Certified Food Protection Manager
No state fee — Indiana recognises accredited exam providers rather than certifying anyone itself, and the price is theirs. Every food establishment must have at least one certified manager responsible for all its operating hours, though that person need not be present throughout. Certificates last five years and working on an expired one is prohibited outright, at up to fifty dollars a day. Indiana Code chapter 16-42-5.2 sets no general food handler card — the one statutory food handler certificate is the one section 16-42-5.3-7 requires of home based vendors — and section 16-42-5.2-1 bars a local health department from imposing any registration, certification or licensing requirement on food handlers or certified managers, so a city cannot invent its own. The exemptions are wide — no raw animal cooking, heat-and-serve only, continental breakfast, drinks and ice, low-hazard items, hospitals and certain food pantries.
Retail Food Establishment Permit
The state health department permits retail food only on state property; everywhere else it is one of Indiana's ninety-five local health departments, each setting its own fees capped at the cost of the service. The two largest show the spread and the different methods: Marion County bands restaurants by full-time-equivalent staff at $432, $632 or $725 and prices groceries by floor area instead, adding a further new-establishment fee of $250 to $712; Allen County bands by employee count at $300 to $500 and charges $280 up front for plan review. Marion halves the fee for applications after 1 July and adds a quarter for renewals after 1 March; Allen charges 125 per cent of the fee for a late renewal. One code note: Indiana's retail food rule is now 410 IAC 7-26, based on the 2022 model food code, and the older 7-24 is superseded even though some state pages still cross-reference it.
Contact
- Jurisdiction
- Indiana — statewide
- Phone
- (317) 333-7183
Contact details are taken from the agency’s own site or its published fee schedule. Where we have not verified a phone number we leave it blank rather than guess.
Sources
Every fee and term above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.
- Allen County Department of Health — fee schedule ordinance, effective 1 April 2023Allen County Department of Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
- Indiana Code chapter 16-42-5.2 — certified food protection manager requirement, five-year term and the bar on local food handler credentialsIndiana General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
- Indiana Department of Health — food protection manager certification and the accredited providers it recognisesIndiana Department of Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
- Indiana Department of Health — how to start a retail food business, directing all non-state-property permitting to the local health departmentIndiana Department of Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
- Marion County Public Health Department — chapter 8 food establishment license fee ordinance, effective 1 November 2024Marion County Public Health Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
Other Indiana statewide offices
- Indiana Secretary of State, Business Services Division
- Indiana Professional Licensing Agency, State Board of Cosmetology and Barber Examiners
- Indiana Board of Veterinary Medicine
- Indiana Department of Revenue
- Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning
- Indiana Plumbing Commission, Professional Licensing Agency
Indiana jurisdictions
Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.