Suffolk County

Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection

In short

Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection issues 7 permits we publish for Suffolk County, last verified 2026-09-28. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.

What this agency issues

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Permit	Issuing agency	Fee	Renews	Last checked
Temporary Food Service Event Vendor Permitonly if it applies to you	Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection	$50–$95 $95 for the first permit on an application, $50 for each additional permit on the same application; a late fee applies if filed fewer than 14 days before the event; non-profit/charitable organizations are exempt	per event	2026-09-28
Food Establishment Permit (annual)	Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection	$130–$1,190 annual, by establishment category and seating tier: In-Home Caterer $130; small establishments (Tavern, Bakery, Delicatessen, Frozen Dessert, Off-Premises Caterer, Food Service 0-16 seats, Depot) $425; Party Room/Staffed Vending $210; School with Outside Caterer $510; Food Service 17-49 seats $450; 50-100 seats $630; Food Commissary $670; 101-200 seats $865; 201+ seats $1,190; Non-Profit Vending Machine has no fee with tax-exempt documentation	annual (renewal notices sent yearly to the billing address on file)	2026-09-28
Temporary Food Service Event Organizer Permitonly if it applies to you	Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection	$210 flat fee per event; a $70 late fee applies if the application is filed fewer than 21 days before the event; non-profit/charitable organizations are exempt from this fee	per event	2026-09-28
Mobile Food Vending Vehicle Permit (food truck, standalone operation)	Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection	SCDHS issues a standalone operating permit for Mobile Fast Food Vending Vehicles, Special Event Vehicles, Frozen Dessert Vehicles, and Hot Dog Trucks as a distinct permit category from the per-event Temporary Food Service Organizer/Vendor permits listed separately. The standard SCDHS food-permit fee schedule itemizes fees only for fixed establishments (by category and seat count) and for temporary/event permits; it does not list a dollar figure for this standalone mobile-vehicle category.	annual	2026-09-28
Body Art Establishment Permit and Body-Artist Certificationonly if it applies to you	Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection	SCDHS's Bureau of Public Health Protection operates a Body Art Establishment permit program, covering tattooing, piercing, and related body-art services, requiring both an establishment permit and body-artist certification. The program's fee and permit term are not stated on the Bureau's program page cited here.	not stated on the Bureau program page; contact SCDHS Bureau of Public Health Protection	2026-09-28
Children's Camp Permit (conditional, camp operations only)only if it applies to you	Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection	SCDHS's Bureau of Public Health Protection separately operates a Children's Camp inspection and permit program, distinct from NYS OCFS day-care licensing, for state-defined 'camp' operations such as a summer day-camp program. The program's fee and permit term are not stated on the Bureau's program page cited here.	not stated on the Bureau program page; contact SCDHS Bureau of Public Health Protection	2026-09-28
Tobacco Retail Vendor Certificationonly if it applies to you	Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services (SCDHS), Bureau of Public Health Protection	$50 flat fee, every 3 years	3 years	2026-09-28

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

Temporary Food Service Event Vendor Permit

A food truck or vendor booth operating at a single fair, festival, or pop-up event in Suffolk County — rather than a fixed, ongoing location — needs an Event Vendor Permit: $95 for the first permit filed on an application and $50 for each additional permit on the same application, with a late fee for filing fewer than 14 days before the event. Non-profit and charitable organizations are exempt from the fee. This is priced and issued separately from the Event Organizer Permit that the event's organizer (not each individual vendor) must hold, and from the standalone Mobile Food Vending Vehicle permit that covers a truck's regular, non-event operation, listed separately.

Food Establishment Permit (annual)

Any 'food establishment' in Suffolk County needs an annual SCDHS permit under Article 13 of the county's own Sanitary Code — a county-level requirement separate from and in addition to the NY State Sanitary Code. The program applies countywide with no town/village carve-out, covering roughly 7,000 permits and 6,000-plus inspections a year. A restaurant or coffee shop is priced under the 'Food Service' seating-tier categories (0-16 seats through 201+ seats); a coffee shop with limited or no seating may instead fall under a lower fixed-fee category depending on its menu. A person holding a valid Food Safety/Food Protection Certificate must be on-site during all hours of operation, for both permanent establishments and temporary events. This permit is separate from the Mobile Food Vending Vehicle permit (for food trucks) and the Temporary Event Organizer/Vendor permits (for fairs, festivals, and pop-ups), each listed separately.

Temporary Food Service Event Organizer Permit

An organizer of a fair, festival, or other multi-vendor temporary food event in Suffolk County needs an Event Organizer Permit from SCDHS, priced at a flat $210 per event with a $70 late fee if filed fewer than 21 days before the event. This is separate from the per-vendor Event Vendor Permit that each individual food truck or booth at the event needs (listed separately), and from the standalone Mobile Food Vending Vehicle permit that covers a truck's regular, non-event operation. Non-profit and charitable organizations are exempt from the organizer fee. This permit is issued by the same SCDHS Food Protection Unit that issues the standing Food Establishment Permit and applies countywide.

Mobile Food Vending Vehicle Permit (food truck, standalone operation)

A food truck, cart, trailer, or similar mobile unit operating on an ongoing basis (rather than at a single temporary event) needs its own SCDHS Mobile Food Vending Vehicle permit, issued as a distinct category from Mobile Fast Food Vending Vehicles, Special Event Vehicles, Frozen Dessert Vehicles, and Hot Dog Trucks. A person holding a valid Food Safety/Food Protection Certificate must be on the vehicle during all hours of operation, the same requirement that applies to fixed establishments. The published SCDHS food-permit fee schedule prices fixed establishments and temporary/event permits by dollar figure but does not itemize this standalone annual category; a food-truck operator should contact SCDHS Food Protection directly for the current fee before budgeting for this permit. This is a mandatory annual permit distinct from the per-event Temporary Food Service Organizer and Vendor permits listed separately.

Body Art Establishment Permit and Body-Artist Certification

A salon or standalone shop offering tattooing, piercing, or other body art services in Suffolk County needs this permit from SCDHS, in addition to any body-artist certification the individual performing the work must hold — a program run separately from both the standard Food Establishment Permit and from state cosmetology licensing. The program operates under the Suffolk County Sanitary Code and is administered by the Bureau of Public Health Protection; its dollar fee amount and permit term are not published on the Bureau's program page. A business planning to offer body-art services should contact SCDHS Bureau of Public Health Protection directly, 631-852-5999, for the current fee and term before applying, rather than assuming it matches the Food Establishment Permit's fee structure.

Children's Camp Permit (conditional, camp operations only)

A childcare business that also operates a state-defined 'camp' — for example, a summer day-camp program — has this separate, conditional SCDHS permit requirement on top of (not instead of) its NYS OCFS day-care licensing. The program is administered by the Bureau of Public Health Protection under the Suffolk County Sanitary Code; its dollar fee amount and permit term are not published on the Bureau's program page. An operator planning a camp program should contact SCDHS Bureau of Public Health Protection directly, 631-852-5999, for the current fee and term. Ordinary day care that does not meet the state's definition of a 'camp' triggers no obligation under this specific program.

Tobacco Retail Vendor Certification

A retail store selling tobacco or vape products in Suffolk County must hold a Tobacco Retail Vendor Certification from SCDHS's Tobacco Control program, required under ATUPA and NYS Clean Indoor Air Act enforcement. The certification costs a flat $50 and must be renewed every 3 years. This is a conditional requirement — it applies only to stores that sell tobacco or vapor products, not to retail generally — and is separate from any state-level tobacco retail registration a store may also need. This program sits within the same Bureau of Public Health Protection that runs the county's food-establishment permitting, though it is administratively distinct from the Food Protection Unit specifically.

Contact

Jurisdiction: Suffolk County
Phone: 631-852-5999
Website: www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/Health-Services/Public-Health-Protection

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.

Bureau of Public Health Protection — parent bureau page for the Food Protection Unit, Tobacco Control, Body Art, and Children's Camp programsSuffolk County Dept. of Health Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
Food Protection program overview (Article 13 of the Suffolk County Sanitary Code; ~7,000 permits, 6,000+ inspections annually)Suffolk County Dept. of Health Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
Food Service Permits & Applications — hosts the annual permit fee schedule, Food Establishment Permit Application, Temporary Food Service FAQs, and Temporary/Multi-Event Vendor and Organizer permit applicationsSuffolk County Dept. of Health Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
Suffolk County Health Department Permits — a Suffolk town's own page corroborating the SCDHS food-permit pointerTown of Smithtown, NY · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29

Other offices serving Suffolk County

The full permit list for this jurisdiction

Business licenses in Suffolk County

Industry permit lists that include this agency

New York jurisdictions

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