What permits do you need to open a restaurant in Maricopa County?

Food Establishment Operating Permit — Eating & Drinking (restaurants, cafés, coffee shops, bars)

Required for any restaurant, café, coffee shop or bar operating where this Code applies: the unincorporated area, the incorporated areas of the county generally, and any incorporated city or town that has specifically requested MCESD's services — no county page names which cities those are, so confirm with a specific city whether it runs its own health department instead. The Code states: 'No person shall operate a food establishment without a valid permit to operate from the Department unless... the food establishment is exempt from permitting based on the provisions in A.R.S. § 36-136(I)(4).' The Department assigns the risk Class at application; the Code defines Class 2 only as 'quick service operations with only limited preparation of menu items or as approved by the Department,' so no fixed rule (such as treating a beverage-only coffee shop as automatically Class 2) is asserted here — ask MCESD which class a specific menu falls into. A buyer of an existing establishment pays a one-time New Owner/Additional Permit fee because permits are non-transferable under Reg. 4.j — $373.00 for a Food Establishment, $385.00 for a Mobile permit and $540.00 for a Non Food permit — and a late renewal costs the greater of $50.00 or 5% of the amount due starting the day after expiration. Every dollar figure is from the Chapter I Fee Schedule as adopted August 19, 2026; no page states a separate effective date for these figures. Plan review for a new or remodeled establishment is a separate fee, recorded in the Environmental Health Plan Review record.

Seasonal Food Establishment Permit

Covers a food operation running for a defined season rather than year-round or as a single event. The fee is $193.00 (Class 1, seasonally themed operations in a major shopping mall) or $312.00 (Class 2, seasonal operations such as spring training or a state fair), with a $117.00 late fee, all from the Chapter I Fee Schedule adopted August 19, 2026. The Code contains an internal inconsistency about how long this permit runs: the fee table's own row heading calls it 'good for up to 180 days,' while the Code's actual defined term, at Chapter VIII Section 1 Regulation 1 and Section 3 Regulation 1.a(5), is 'fifteen (15) to one hundred twenty (120) consecutive days within any permit year.' Both figures are stated here rather than picking one silently; a reader planning a seasonal operation should use the 15-120 day definition as the legally operative term and ask MCESD to confirm how the 180-day fee-table label is applied in practice. Applies in unincorporated Maricopa County and in any incorporated city or town that has requested MCESD's services.

Shared with other businesses in Maricopa County

• Annual Event Food Establishment Permit — Maricopa County Environmental Services Department, $228 per permit term, per the permit term for the specific annual event. Also required for food trucks and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Liquor License — State-Issued, County Review of Unincorporated-Land Applications (Maricopa County) — Maricopa County Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, No fee, not applicable at the county layer — the Arizona Department of Liquor Licenses and Control sets the license term. Also required for coffee shops and retail stores; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Temporary Food Establishment Permit — Maricopa County Environmental Services Department, Temporary Food Establishment (permit good for 14 days): $249.00. A Temporary Food Establishment Late Fee of $112.00 applies where the application is received fewer than 7 days before the event., up to 14 days. Also required for food trucks and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the food trucks page.
• Environmental Health Plan Review Fee — Maricopa County Environmental Services Department, $141–$919 one-time, per plan review, by establishment type, plan approval lapses one year after approval unless substantial work has begun (Reg. 4.e); a one-year extension costs $169.00 (Reg. 4.f). Also required for coffee shops, retail stores, food trucks and childcare centres; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.
• Food Establishment Permit — Arizona Department of Health Services, $144–$1,015 a year, set by the county board of health — there is no state fee, 1 year from issue. Also required for coffee shops and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the food trucks page.
• Food Handler Card — Arizona Department of Health Services, No fee, 3 years in the counties that require one. Also required for coffee shops and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the food trucks page.