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

Mobile Food Safety Permit — State Preemption under Fla. Stat. §509.102 (Hillsborough County)

Under the preemption in Fla. Stat. §509.102, no fee applies and Hillsborough County issues no food-safety permit of its own for a mobile food unit. Fla. Stat. §509.102 states directly that regulation of mobile food dispensing vehicles and temporary commercial kitchens 'involving licenses, registrations, permits, and fees is preempted to the state,' and that a county 'may not require a separate license, registration, or permit other than the license required under s. 509.241, or require the payment of any license, registration, or permit fee other than the fee required under s. 509.251,' nor prohibit a mobile unit from operating anywhere in the jurisdiction. A food truck's food-safety credential is therefore the state DBPR mobile-food-unit license, recorded at the Florida state layer, not a Hillsborough County permit. The county's retained authority over a food truck is limited to non-food-safety regulation: zoning siting rules (recorded above), Fire Marshal review, the Local Business Tax Receipt, and right-of-way/encroachment rules.

EPC Industrial Pretreatment & Fats, Oils and Grease (FOG) Management Program

A restaurant or coffee shop's grease-trap kitchen, a food truck discharging to the county sewer at a commissary, and an auto-repair shop's oil/water separator discharge are all in scope, countywide. A restaurant kitchen is subject to the FOG Management Program's scheduled and unannounced inspections; a facility that discharges industrial wastewater to the sanitary sewer, rather than ordinary sanitary use, needs an Industrial User Permit supported by an IPP Questionnaire; and any business that hires a grease hauler must confirm that hauler is registered with the program. No specific dollar figure for the Industrial User Permit or grease-hauler registration is published in Hillsborough's available materials, so none is asserted here. Direct program contacts: (813) 272-5977, extension 43382 for industrial/dental inquiries, extension 43515 for Grease Management, and extension 43269 for hauler registration.

Mobile Food Vendor / Temporary Vendor Zoning Rules

This zoning rule applies only in unincorporated Hillsborough County; Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace each set their own mobile-vendor zoning rules. A food truck is allowed in Commercial or Office zoning (excluding O-R) and, if sponsored by a nonprofit, in residential or agricultural zones, plus certain designated 'Flexible Market Space' areas within some Planned Village/Neighborhood districts. The vendor needs a valid lease or written property-owner consent and must stay on-site during business hours, observe a 10-foot setback from all property lines, avoid obstructing driveways, remove trash nightly, and keep employee and patron parking on the host parcel rather than in the public right-of-way (which instead requires a separate county encroachment permit); a tent or canopy needs its own Fire Marshal tent permit. No commissary requirement appears in this zoning section — that comes from the state DBPR mobile-food-unit license instead. This zoning review itself carries no fee; the Tax Collector's schedule separately references a 'retail sales peddler' classification as a possible prerequisite, but whether that is a distinct license or a sub-category of the standard Local Business Tax rate schedule is not detailed in the published rate table.

Shared with other businesses in Hillsborough County

• Regulated-Industry Pre-Clearance for the Local Business Tax Receipt — Hillsborough County Tax Collector, Business Tax Services, No fee, not applicable — a pass-through documentation check tied to the LBT's own annual cycle. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops, auto repair shops, fitness studios and childcare centres; what it involves is set out on the restaurants page.
• Food Service Employee Training and Manager Certification — Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Hotels and Restaurants, No fee, employee training 3 years; manager certification 5 years. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the restaurants page.
• Public Food Service Establishment License — Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Hotels and Restaurants, $242–$357 per year, banded by seating, plus a $50 application fee, annual, on a staggered renewal schedule. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.