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

Durham County Beer & Wine Privilege License

This is the mandatory Durham County business license for alcohol retailers, issued by the Tax Collector's Beer/Wine Division at 201 E. Main Street, 3rd Floor, Administration Bldg. II, 919-560-0300. G.S. 105-113.78 fixes the amount rather than capping it — the statute states the annual tax for each license flatly, with no 'not to exceed' language and no local discretion — and prints on-premises malt beverage $25.00, off-premises malt beverage $5.00, on-premises unfortified or fortified wine or both $25.00 and off-premises unfortified or fortified wine or both $25.00. County Code § 8-39 reproduces those four lines verbatim, and the county's own Beverage License Application prints 'Beer On Premises: $25.00 Wine On: $25.00 / Beer Off Premises: $5.00 Wine Off Premises: $25.00', so the statute, the ordinance and the county form agree exactly. The county's Privilege License page lists six rows by splitting unfortified from fortified wine, which read alone would suggest four separate $25 wine charges; both the statute and § 8-39 group unfortified and fortified wine into one $25.00 license per premises type, and the county's application and its License & Fees page print only four lines. G.S. 105-113.70(a) makes issuance mandatory once the applicant holds the corresponding ABC permit and provides a copy of the most recently completed State application form, the permit for visual inspection and payment of the prescribed tax, and the county page states 'You must be approved by the North Carolina ABC Commission before we issue a Durham County beer/wine license', with a notarised application and the ABC permit as the documents required. The county's application adds: 'If applicant possesses a State Permit, although he does not sell alcoholic beverages, he must purchase a County License.' Where the premises sits inside a city, G.S. 105-113.70(a) requires the city license for that activity first unless that city has declined under G.S. 105-113.71(c), which names only the Town of Cary — live here, because Cary holds territory inside Durham County; the City of Durham charges $30 on-premises and $15 off-premises for its own license. County Code § 8-27(f) is the source of non-refundability: 'A licensee who discontinues his business during the license year for any reason is not entitled to a refund.' Session Laws 2014-3, s. 12.3(b) repealed G.S. 153A-152, the county privilege license tax statute, effective July 1, 2015, and s. 12.3(a) repealed the city equivalent at G.S. 160A-211, but Article 2C of Chapter 105 was untouched, which is why this license survives as Durham County's one mandatory business license.

ABC Local Government Opinion and Inspection/Zoning Compliance

Before the NC ABC Commission will issue a retail permit for a Durham County establishment, the local governing body's designated official signs off, and for an establishment outside a city that governing body is Durham County. The Commission's own page states that 'In accordance with NC General Statute 18B-904(f) before issuing a retail permit, the NC ABC Commission shall determine that the applicant is a suitable person and that the location is a suitable place. The governing body of a city/county designates an official to make recommendations concerning the suitability of a person and location for an ABC retail permit', and requires an applicant to submit 'A signed and notarized Local Government Opinion Form' and 'Proof of mandatory compliance with all applicable building and fire codes using the Inspection/Zoning Compliance Form', adding that 'Designated officials are expected to process these forms within 15 days of receipt.' The statute puts the county in the loop expressly: G.S. 18B-901(b) provides that the Commission gives notice of the application to the city where the establishment is located and that 'If the establishment is not inside a city, the Commission shall give notice to the governing body of the county', allowing 15 days to file a written objection stating the facts on which it is based, and subsection (c) has the local governing body return a Zoning and Compliance Form showing the establishment complies with all applicable building and fire codes. Which body that is turns on location under Durham Unified Development Ordinance Sec. 2.1.1, which gives the Board of Commissioners property outside any city limits and the Durham City Council property inside the City of Durham. No fee for the signature itself is published in the county's FY 2026-27 adopted fee schedule or on a county page; what the applicant does pay the county is the mandatory Beer & Wine Privilege License under G.S. 105-113.78 and County Code § 8-39, listed separately, and G.S. 105-113.70(a) will not let that license issue until the ABC permit is in hand.

Temporary Food Event Permit

A vendor selling food or drink to the public at a fair, festival or other special event in Durham County needs a temporary food event permit from county Environmental Health, at $75.00 per permit. Environmental Health's General Inspections page lists 'Special events selling food to the public' among the facilities the section permits and inspects. The amount is fixed by statute and not by local choice: G.S. 130A-248(d2) requires a local health department to charge each temporary food establishment and each limited food services establishment a fee of seventy-five dollars ($75.00) for each permit issued, and the Environmental Health division of the county's FY 2026-27 Approved Fees and Other Charges Schedule prints $75.00 in both the FY 2025-26 and FY 2026-27 columns. The $120.00 annual NC DHHS permit fee listed separately is excluded for temporary food establishments by G.S. 130A-248(d), so it is not owed on top. For a food truck the two routes are different charges and should not be confused: trading at an event on a temporary permit costs $75.00 each time, while setting the unit up as a permitted mobile food unit means the $250.00 county plan review recorded separately here plus the state permit. The county's fire schedule separately prices Exhibits and Trade Shows at $150.00 and Carnivals and Fairs at $250.00 as operational permits for the event itself, which fall on the event rather than on an individual food vendor.

Shared with other businesses in Durham County

• Re-review of Food Service Plans — Durham County Department of Public Health — Environmental Health Division, $200 per re-review of resubmitted food service plans, county-only, per the Durham County FY 2026-27 Approved Fees and Other Charges Schedule, levied by Section 7 of the Annual Budget Ordinance adopted June 8, 2026 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, per re-review, charged each time plans are resubmitted after the original review; it is not an annual or renewable charge. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Mobile Food Unit, Push Cart or Caterer Plan Review — Durham County Department of Public Health — Environmental Health Division, $250 per plan review, county-only, per the Durham County FY 2026-27 Approved Fees and Other Charges Schedule, levied by Section 7 of the Annual Budget Ordinance adopted June 8, 2026 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, one-off, per unit reviewed; the food establishment permit that follows does not expire while the unit operates, and the $120.00 NC DHHS permit fee is reassessed annually against it. Also required for coffee shops and restaurants; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Environmental Health Multiple Trip Fee — Durham County Department of Public Health — Environmental Health Division, $50 per occurrence, county-only, per the Durham County FY 2026-27 Approved Fees and Other Charges Schedule, levied by Section 7 of the Annual Budget Ordinance adopted June 8, 2026 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, per occurrence, charged each time an extra trip to the site is needed rather than on any renewal cycle. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops and childcare centres; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Food Establishment Permit (NC DHHS permit, Durham County inspection) — North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health — Environmental Health Section, $120 a year per permit, paid to NC DHHS rather than to Durham County, and reassessed annually for permits that do not expire, the permit does not expire while the establishment operates, and G.S. 130A-248(b1) expires it one year after the establishment closes; the $120.00 fee is reassessed annually, with a $25.00 late payment fee 45 days after billing, suspension permitted after 60 days and a $150.00 reinstatement fee under G.S. 130A-248(d1). Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Certified Food Protection Manager — North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, Environmental Health Section, No fee, not stated in North Carolina law — the certifying programme sets its own. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Food Establishment Permit — North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, Environmental Health Section, $120 a year, statewide, the permit does not expire; the fee is reassessed annually. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.