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9 permits · verified 2026-09-28

What permits do you need to open a food truck in Montgomery County Al?

In short

A food truck in Montgomery County Al, AL has 3 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 6 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. Alabama Secretary of State, Business Services charges $200 one-time filing for the certificate of formation (llc). 4 of the 9 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-28 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a food truck in Montgomery County Al

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
MCHD Mobile Food Unit PermitMontgomery County Health Department / Montgomery County Board of Health, Environmental Health DivisionMCHD's own Mobile Food Guidelines require every mobile food unit and its commissary to be separately permitted and require the unit to be self-contained (potable-water/wastewater tanks) unless it handles only prepackaged food, but the guidelines publish no distinct annual 'Mobile Food Unit' permit fee line of their own; the only dollar figure the guidelines state is a $115 plan-review fee charged when a mobile unit changes commissariesnot stated as a distinct annual cycle in MCHD's own materials; the unit and its commissary are each separately permitted2026-09-28
Food Establishment PermitAlabama Department of Public Health, Division of Food, Milk and Lodging$50–$650 a year, set by the county health department, not by the stateannual — expiring when the privilege licenses expire, or on a date the health officer sets2026-09-03
Certified Food Protection Manageronly if it applies to youAlabama Department of Public Health, Division of Food, Milk and LodgingNo fee5 years for a certification; 12 months for attendance without certification2026-09-03

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

AL registrations that apply to every type of business

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
State and County Business Privilege Licenseonly if it applies to youAlabama Department of Revenue, Business and License Tax DivisionVaries — formula on the AL pageannual — 1 October to 30 September, delinquent 1 November2026-09-03
Certificate of Formation (LLC)only if it applies to youAlabama Secretary of State, Business Services$200 one-time filingperpetual — Alabama abolished the annual report in 20242026-09-03
Certificate of Incorporationonly if it applies to youAlabama Secretary of State, Business Services$200 one-time filingperpetual — Alabama abolished the annual report in 20242026-09-03
Corporation Annual Report (abolished)only if it applies to youAlabama Secretary of State, Business ServicesNo feenot applicable — the filing no longer exists2026-09-03
Business Privilege Taxonly if it applies to youAlabama Department of Revenue, Sales and Use Tax DivisionVaries — formula on the AL pageannual — due when the matching federal return is due2026-09-03
Sales Tax LicenseAlabama Department of Revenue, Sales and Use Tax DivisionNo feeannual — renew online between 1 November and 31 December2026-09-03

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

How much does it actually cost to permit a food truck in Montgomery County Al?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 9 records listed for a food truck in Montgomery County Al, AL, 3 apply to every business of this type and 6 are conditional. Adding every fee on the page together would overstate what most operators pay, because it would include permits they never need.

4 of the 9 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 3 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:

MCHD Mobile Food Unit Permit: MCHD's own Mobile Food Guidelines require every mobile food unit and its commissary to be separately permitted and require the unit to be self-contained (potable-water/wastewater tanks) unless it handles only prepackaged food, but the guidelines publish no distinct annual 'Mobile Food Unit' permit fee line of their own; the only dollar figure the guidelines state is a $115 plan-review fee charged when a mobile unit changes commissaries

Food Establishment Permit: $50–$650 a year, set by the county health department, not by the state

The other 2 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Montgomery County Al permits page and the AL state page.

Which offices issue these permits in Montgomery County Al?

Permits for a food truck in Montgomery County Al, AL come from 5 separate offices: Montgomery County Health Department / Montgomery County Board of Health, Environmental Health Division, Alabama Department of Revenue, Business and License Tax Division, Alabama Secretary of State, Business Services, Alabama Department of Revenue, Sales and Use Tax Division, Alabama Department of Public Health, Division of Food, Milk and Lodging. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.

What does a food truck need in Montgomery County Al that other businesses do not?

1 of the 3 permits particular to a food truck here applies to no other business type we cover in Montgomery County Al: MCHD Mobile Food Unit Permit.

MCHD Mobile Food Unit Permit

A food truck, cart or trailer operating in Montgomery County needs its own MCHD permit, and its commissary (the fixed base facility it services from) needs a separate permit as well, under MCHD's own Mobile Food Guidelines, revised February 23, 2017. The guidelines require the unit to be self-contained with potable-water and wastewater tanks unless it handles only prepackaged food, and set out detailed construction and operational requirements, but they publish no distinct annual dollar fee for the mobile-unit permit itself — the only dollar figure anywhere in the guidelines is a $115 plan-review fee charged when a unit changes commissaries. A one-off event instead uses MCHD's temporary food permitting process rather than this ongoing mobile-unit permit.

Food Establishment Permit

There is no state food permit fee at all — the health department's own rule listing every fee it collects at state level covers lead contractors, milk plants and cluster wastewater, and the word food does not appear in it. The permit comes from the county health officer and the price is the county's. That split is fiscal rather than regulatory: all sixty-seven counties enforce the same state rule, but the state runs sixty-five of the county health departments while Jefferson and Mobile elect their own health officers, hire their own staff and set their own fees, which run several times higher. Russell County charges $75 to $350 by priority category, with a mobile unit at $50 and a temporary at $10 a day; Chilton charges $50 to $100 by seats or floor area; Jefferson charges $250 to $650 by level; Mobile charges $410 or $615 by square footage. Ask your own county rather than working from a statewide figure, because none exists. A restaurant must also produce the health certificate before the county will issue its privilege license.

Shared with other businesses in Montgomery County Al

  • Certified Food Protection Manager — Alabama Department of Public Health, Division of Food, Milk and Lodging, No fee, 5 years for a certification; 12 months for attendance without certification. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the restaurants page.

The 6 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across AL and are covered on the AL state page.

How does a food truck compare with other businesses in Montgomery County Al?

The closest match is a restaurant, which shares 2 of these permits. A food truck also needs MCHD Mobile Food Unit Permit. A restaurant needs MCHD Food Service Establishment Permit, General County Privilege License — Restaurant / Food-Service Classification and Alcoholic Beverage License (state ABC Board; Montgomery County is Wet), which a food truck does not.

Permits particular to each business type in Montgomery County Al, AL, compared with a food truck
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a food truckOnly a food truck needsOnly it needs
Restaurants5213
Coffee shops6214
Auto repair shops4034
Childcare centres2032
Contractors and trades3033
Fitness studios2032
Retail stores4034
Salons and barbers3033
Veterinary clinics3033

Sources

Every figure for the permits explained on this page was read from one of these government pages on the date shown. Sources for the permits shared with other businesses are listed with their explanations on the restaurants page. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Montgomery County Al permits page and the AL state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. Mobile Food Guidelines (revised 2/23/17) — construction/operational requirements and the $115 commissary-change plan-review feeAlabama Department of Public Health, Montgomery County · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-28
  2. Food Establishment Sanitation program pageAlabama Department of Public Health, Montgomery County · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-28
  3. Alabama Administrative Code chapter 420-1-5 — the exhaustive list of fees the health department collects at state level, which contains no food establishment feeAlabama Department of Public Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
  4. Alabama Administrative Code chapter 420-3-22 — food establishment sanitation, permits issued by the county health officerAlabama Department of Public Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
  5. Russell County Health Department — environmental fee schedule, revised 27 March 2025, an example of a state-run county's food permit feesAlabama Department of Public Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
  6. Mobile County Health Department — board of health fee schedule, 5 December 2025, an independent county department's food permit feesMobile County Health Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03

Related

Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.