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

Mobile Food Service Operation / Mobile Retail Food Establishment License

A food truck, trailer or cart licensed by the Delaware Public Health District pays one of two amounts. DPHD's requirements sheet (Rev. 12/2025) prints 'HIGH RISK = $308.00 LOW RISK* = $168.00' and defines low risk as mobile units that 'sell pre-packaged food only'. The same totals, with the $28 state fee shown separately, appear in DPHD's 2026 Environmental Health fee schedule (Board of Health Resolution 2025-09, adopted December 9, 2025, effective January 1, 2026, in effect through December 31, 2026). The sheet states that 'a pre-licensing inspection' is required for all new mobile operations, that from September 1, 2024 every new mobile operation must have at least one person holding an Ohio Person in Charge (PIC) certificate, and that a unit without a three-compartment sink or dish machine must use a licensed kitchen as a commissary each day. The application requires a sketch of the unit, an equipment list, surface finishes and the foods to be served. Under ORC 3717.43(D) a mobile operation files its renewal before it starts operating in a new licensing period, and a late filing carries the 25% penalty. A truck making taxable sales also needs the vendor's license, because ORC 5739.17 treats each vehicle as a place of business for a vendor with no fixed place.

Tent Permit

A restaurant, shop or event vendor putting up a large tent at a commercial establishment needs approval from the Delaware County Department of Building Safety. The department's Tent Permit Approval Policy states that 'tents and membrane structures, for temporary or permanent use, having an area larger than 400 square feet and canopies (open on all sides (no sidewalls)), larger than 700 square feet require approvals from the building official,' citing Ohio Building Code Section 3102 and Ohio Fire Code 1301:7-7-24. The policy exempts tents used exclusively for recreational purposes and open-sided tents within the 700 sq ft and 12-foot clearance limits it sets out. The application needs a copy of zoning approval and PDF drawings showing tent sizes and distances to property lines, buildings and other tents, plus electrical, cooking equipment and fire suppression details where the tent will have lighting, cooking or dining. The amounts are from the Commercial Fee Schedule, effective January 1, 2017.

Transient Vendor's License

This is the license for selling away from a fixed address — fairs, festivals, markets, travelling to the customer — and unlike the county vendor's license it is valid in all eighty-eight counties on one registration. It is issued by the Department of Taxation only, never by a county auditor. Same $50 as the fixed-location license since House Bill 366 took effect on 9 April 2025.

Shared with other businesses in Delaware County Oh

• Food Plan Review — Delaware Public Health District, New facility: $500 under 25,000 sq ft, $900 over 25,000 sq ft. Remodel: $300 under 25,000 sq ft, $600 over 25,000 sq ft. Expedited review (acted on within 5 business days): $1,000 plus the plan review fee. Paid in full at submission., per project; DPHD's Food Safety page states that plans 'will be acted upon within 30 days of receipt' and expedited plans 'within 5 business days'. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops and retail stores; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.
• Temporary Food Service License — Delaware Public Health District, $125 per day of the event; the 2026 schedule shows a $0.00 state fee for this line, the event period only; ORC 3717.43(C)(1)(b) provides that the license expires at the end of the period for which it is issued, and ORC 3717.43(D) makes it not renewable. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the restaurants page.
• Manager Certification in Food Protection — Ohio Department of Health, Food Safety Program, No fee, not stated by the Ohio Department of Health. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Food Service Operation License — Ohio Department of Health, Food Safety Program, $28 state fee for a commercial operation ($14 non-commercial, $6 per vending machine location), plus a license fee set independently by the local board of health, 1 March to the last day of February. Also required for restaurants and coffee shops; what it involves is set out on the restaurants page.