New Hampshire — statewide
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Food Protection Section
In short
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Food Protection Section issues 2 permits we publish for New Hampshire — statewide, last verified 2026-09-04. 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 | New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Food Protection Section | No fee | set by the accrediting organisation, not stated by the state | 2026-09-04 |
| Food Service Establishment License | New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Food Protection Section | $100–$875 a year, banded by seating and category | annual — a new business first holds a 90-day provisional license before the final one-year license issues | 2026-09-04 |
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 — certification comes from a private provider accredited by the Conference for Food Protection, and there is no separate statewide food handler card requirement alongside it, only this manager-level credential. A new establishment has forty-five days from its initial licensing inspection to have a certified manager in place, with a further forty-five days of grace if needed, for ninety days total. Eighteen categories of establishment are exempt, including bed and breakfasts and bars with no food preparation. The penalty for non-compliance is a real fine, up to $250. A plain food handler course does not satisfy this requirement — the certification must specifically be manager-level, from one of the accredited programmes, with a proctored exam.
Food Service Establishment License
The fee runs from $225 for the smallest restaurant, up to twenty-four seats, through $350 for twenty-five to ninety-nine and $450 for a hundred to a hundred and ninety-nine, up to $875 for two hundred seats or more; a bar with no food preparation is far cheaper at $100. Fifteen New Hampshire cities and towns — including Manchester, Nashua, Concord, Portsmouth and Dover — are self-inspecting, meaning the local health authority licenses and inspects food establishments directly rather than the state doing so; confirm which regime applies before assuming the state fee schedule governs. A brand-new establishment first receives a 90-day provisional license, followed by an unannounced inspection, before the full one-year license is issued.
Contact
- Jurisdiction
- New Hampshire — statewide
- Phone
- (603) 271-4589
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.
- New Hampshire DHHS — applying for a food license, self-inspecting communities and the provisional-to-final license processNew Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
- New Hampshire DHHS — certified food protection manager FAQNew Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
- New Hampshire DHHS — food service establishment fee scheduleNew Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
Other New Hampshire statewide offices
- New Hampshire Office of Professional Licensure and Certification
- New Hampshire Secretary of State, Corporation Division
- New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration
- New Hampshire Department of Safety, Division of Motor Vehicles
- New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care Licensing Unit
New Hampshire jurisdictions
Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.