16 permits · verified 2026-09-03
What permits do you need to open a restaurant in Los Angeles?
In short
A restaurant in Los Angeles, CA has 5 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 11 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety charges No fee — the certificate itself is issued without charge for the certificate of occupancy. 7 of the 16 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-03 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.
Permits particular to a restaurant in Los Angeles
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Fire Permitonly if it applies to you | Los Angeles Fire Department, Fire Prevention Bureau | $573–$1,528 a year, by occupancy classification | annual | 2026-09-03 |
| Food Facility Plan Checkonly if it applies to you | Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Division | $1,044–$2,723 one-time, banded by floor area; expedited review costs half as much again | one-time, per project | 2026-09-03 |
| Public Health Permit — Restaurant | Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Division | $319–$1,438 a year, banded by seating capacity and risk category | annual, on the County fiscal year — 1 July to 30 June | 2026-09-03 |
| Food Facility Permit | California Department of Public Health, Food and Drug Branch | No fee | set by the local enforcement agency | 2026-09-03 |
| Food Handler Card | California Department of Public Health, Food and Drug Branch | $15 statutory maximum for at least one accredited course | 3 years | 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.
Local permits that apply to every type of business in Los Angeles
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sign Permitonly if it applies to you | Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety | Varies — formula on the Los Angeles page | one-time — the sign must be installed within six months | 2026-09-03 |
| Certificate of Occupancyonly if it applies to you | Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety | No fee — the certificate itself is issued without charge | permanent — it supersedes every certificate previously issued for that space | 2026-09-03 |
| Business Tax Registration Certificate | City of Los Angeles Office of Finance | Varies — formula on the Los Angeles page | annual — due 1 January, delinquent from 1 March | 2026-09-03 |
| Building Permit and Plan Checkonly if it applies to you | Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety | Varies — formula on the Los Angeles page | one-time, per project | 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.
CA registrations that apply to every type of business
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Statement of Information (LLC)only if it applies to you | California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division | $20 per filing, biennial | biennial | 2026-09-03 |
| Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to you | California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division | $70 one-time filing | no expiry, but a Statement of Information is due biennially | 2026-09-03 |
| Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to you | California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division | $100 one-time filing | no expiry, but a Statement of Information is due annually | 2026-09-03 |
| Statement of Information (Corporation)only if it applies to you | California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division | $25 per filing, annual | annual | 2026-09-03 |
| Seller's Permitonly if it applies to you | California Department of Tax and Fee Administration | No fee — no fee to apply | no expiry while actively engaged in business as a seller | 2026-09-03 |
| Annual LLC Tax and Minimum Franchise Taxonly if it applies to you | California Franchise Tax Board | Varies — formula on the CA page | annual, until the entity is cancelled | 2026-09-03 |
| General Business License — California position (city or county, not state) | California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division | No fee | set by the issuing city or county | 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.
How much does it actually cost to permit a restaurant in Los Angeles?
There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 16 records listed for a restaurant in Los Angeles, CA, 5 apply to every business of this type and 11 are conditional. Adding every fee on the page together would overstate what most operators pay, because it would include permits they never need.
Of the 5 that always apply, 1 carry a flat fee, coming to $15.00. That is a floor, not a total. 7 of the 16 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 2 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:
Annual Fire Permit: $573–$1,528 a year, by occupancy classification
Food Facility Plan Check: $1,044–$2,723 one-time, banded by floor area; expedited review costs half as much again
Public Health Permit — Restaurant: $319–$1,438 a year, banded by seating capacity and risk category
The other 4 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Los Angeles permits page and the CA state page.
Which offices issue these permits in Los Angeles?
Permits for a restaurant in Los Angeles, CA come from 8 separate offices: Los Angeles Fire Department, Fire Prevention Bureau, Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Division, City of Los Angeles Office of Finance, California Department of Public Health, Food and Drug Branch, California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division, California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, California Franchise Tax Board. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.
- Los Angeles Fire Department, Fire Prevention BureauIssues 1 permit on this page: Annual Fire Permit(213) 978-3583lafd.org
- Los Angeles Department of Building and SafetyIssues 3 permits on this page: Sign Permit, Certificate of Occupancy, Building Permit and Plan Check201 North Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 · (213) 473-3231dbs.lacity.gov
- Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Environmental Health DivisionIssues 2 permits on this page: Food Facility Plan Check, Public Health Permit — Restaurant5050 Commerce Drive, Baldwin Park, CA 91706 · (888) 700-9995publichealth.lacounty.gov/eh
- City of Los Angeles Office of FinanceIssues 1 permit on this page: Business Tax Registration Certificate200 North Spring Street, Room 101, Los Angeles, CA 90012 · (844) 663-4411latax.lacity.org
- California Department of Public Health, Food and Drug BranchIssues 2 permits on this page: Food Facility Permit, Food Handler Cardwww.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CEH/DFDCS/Pages/FDBPrograms/FoodSafetyProgram/RetailFood.aspx
- California Secretary of State, Business Programs DivisionIssues 5 permits on this page, including Statement of Information (LLC), Articles of Organization (LLC), Articles of Incorporation(916) 657-5448bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov
- California Department of Tax and Fee AdministrationIssues 1 permit on this page: Seller's Permitonlineservices.cdtfa.ca.gov
- California Franchise Tax BoardIssues 1 permit on this page: Annual LLC Tax and Minimum Franchise Taxwww.ftb.ca.gov
What does a restaurant need in Los Angeles that other businesses do not?
Annual Fire Permit
The Fire Department regulates but the Office of Finance bills, which is why the schedule lives on a tax website. A restaurant is charged as an A-2 food and drink assemblage: $764 at fifty to ninety-nine occupants, $1,146 at a hundred to four hundred and ninety-nine, $1,528 at five hundred or more. Note where that table starts — there is no A-2 row below fifty occupants, so a small restaurant appears not to need this permit at all, and the trigger is occupant load rather than seat count, which is a different measure from the County's seating bands. Childcare is charged by headcount instead: $573 for seven to fourteen children, $764 to a hundred, $1,146 above that — but the separate large family daycare row for nine to fourteen children carries no fee, so a home-based provider is not billed where a commercial centre is. A recreational assemblage under forty thousand square feet is $764. An auto shop storing flammable liquids can pick up a further $764 line. Sequence matters: get a business referral slip from the Office of Finance, take it to LADBS for zoning approval, then pay — zoning sign-off comes before the fire permit, not after.
Food Facility Plan Check
Only new construction or major remodelling triggers this — the County defines that as renovation or addition to a food preparation area involving replacement or addition of equipment or fixtures, so taking over a working kitchen unchanged does not. Five bands by floor area, $1,044 under five hundred square feet up to $2,723 at ten thousand or more, and every expedited fee is exactly one and a half times the standard one. The sequence trips people up: Environmental Health approves the plans first, then LADBS, then you build, then LADBS signs off, and only then does Environmental Health do its final. Getting the last two the wrong way round means going back.
Shared with other businesses in Los Angeles
- Public Health Permit — Restaurant — Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Division, $319–$1,438 a year, banded by seating capacity and risk category, annual, on the County fiscal year — 1 July to 30 June. Also required for coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
- Food Facility Permit — California Department of Public Health, Food and Drug Branch, No fee, set by the local enforcement agency. Also required for coffee shops, retail stores and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.
- Food Handler Card — California Department of Public Health, Food and Drug Branch, $15 statutory maximum for at least one accredited course, 3 years. Also required for coffee shops, retail stores and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the food trucks page.
The other 4 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Los Angeles, CA; what each one involves is set out on the Los Angeles permits page. The 7 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across CA and are covered on the CA state page.
How does a restaurant compare with other businesses in Los Angeles?
A restaurant and a coffee shop in Los Angeles, CA need exactly the same 5 permits beyond the ones every business needs.
| Business | Its own permits | Shared with a restaurant | Only a restaurant needs | Only it needs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coffee shops | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Retail stores | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| Food trucks | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Fitness studios | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Auto repair shops | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| Childcare centres | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| Contractors and trades | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Salons and barbers | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Veterinary clinics | 3 | 0 | 5 | 3 |
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 coffee shops page, retail stores page and food trucks page. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Los Angeles permits page and the CA state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.
- City of Los Angeles Office of Finance — fire permit feesCity of Los Angeles Office of Finance · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
- Los Angeles County Department of Public Health — FY 2026-2027 public health and financial management fee scheduleLos Angeles County Department of Public Health · 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.