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15 permits · verified 2026-09-11

What permits do you need to open a restaurant in Huntington?

In short

A restaurant in Huntington, WV has 10 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 5 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. City of Huntington, Finance Division charges $20 annual, flat for the general business license. 4 of the 15 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-11 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a restaurant in Huntington

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Food Service Establishment Permit (Cabell-Huntington Health Department)Cabell-Huntington Health DepartmentNo feenot stated in the published fee schedule2026-09-11
Business and Occupation (B&O) Privilege Tax — Retailers, Restaurants, and OthersCity of Huntington, Finance Division0% of gross sales for Classification 5, 'Retailers, Restaurants, and Others,' on the City's own current fillable B&O Tax Return form, reflecting a mayoral waiver of this classification effective September 13, 2021. Still filed quarterly (30 days after each quarter ends) even at a 0% rate; a separate older Fee Schedule PDF on the City's own site lists this same classification at 0.25%, a figure now superseded by the current 0% rate confirmed on the actively-used tax return form.ongoing — quarterly filing (30 days after each calendar quarter ends)2026-09-11
Food Manufacturing Facility PermitWest Virginia Bureau for Public Health$35–$1,000 a year, banded by the facility's gross salesannual — expires 30 June2026-09-04
Food Handler PermitWest Virginia Bureau for Public Health$10 capped by statute; the exact fee is set by the local county health department1 to 3 years, set locally within that statutory range2026-09-04

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 Huntington

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
General Business LicenseCity of Huntington, Finance Division$20 annual, flatannual — July 1 through June 30; renewal notices sent around June 12026-09-11
Certificate of Occupancy PermitCity of Huntington, Planning & Zoning Division$75 one-timeone-time — issued for a new occupancy or a change of business owner2026-09-11
Building Permit ApplicationCity of Huntington, Inspections & PermitsVaries — formula on the Huntington pageone-time, per project2026-09-11
Sign Permitonly if it applies to youCity of Huntington, Inspections & PermitsVaries — formula on the Huntington pageone-time, per sign2026-09-11
City Service FeeCity of Huntington, Finance Division$5 per week, per full-time/part-time employee or qualifying self-employed individual working in Huntingtonongoing — withheld each pay period by the employer, remitted per the employer's filing arrangement2026-09-11
Fire Marshal Inspection (Certificate of Occupancy)Huntington Fire DepartmentNo feenot applicable2026-09-11

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

WV registrations that apply to every type of business

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to youWest Virginia Secretary of State, Business and Licensing Division$100 one-time filingperpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-04
Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to youWest Virginia Secretary of State, Business and Licensing Division$100 one-time filingperpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-04
Annual Reportonly if it applies to youWest Virginia Secretary of State, Business and Licensing Division$25 a year; a late-filed report adds $50 for a profit entity or $25 for a nonprofitannual — filed between 1 January and 30 June of the year after registration2026-09-04
Sales and Use Tax Registration — West Virginia position (through the Business Registration Certificate)only if it applies to youWest Virginia State Tax DivisionNo feenot applicable — no separate permit exists2026-09-04
Business Registration CertificateWest Virginia State Tax Division$30 one-time — the certificate never expirespermanent — valid until the business relocates, closes, or the certificate is suspended or revoked2026-09-04

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 Huntington?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 15 records listed for a restaurant in Huntington, WV, 10 apply to every business of this type and 5 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 10 that always apply, 5 carry a flat fee, coming to $140.00. That is a floor, not a total. 4 of the 15 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 3 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:

Business and Occupation (B&O) Privilege Tax — Retailers, Restaurants, and Others: 0% of gross sales for Classification 5, 'Retailers, Restaurants, and Others,' on the City's own current fillable B&O Tax Return form, reflecting a mayoral waiver of this classification effective September 13, 2021. Still filed quarterly (30 days after each quarter ends) even at a 0% rate; a separate older Fee Schedule PDF on the City's own site lists this same classification at 0.25%, a figure now superseded by the current 0% rate confirmed on the actively-used tax return form.

Food Manufacturing Facility Permit: $35–$1,000 a year, banded by the facility's gross sales

The other 2 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Huntington permits page and the WV state page.

Which offices issue these permits in Huntington?

Permits for a restaurant in Huntington, WV come from 8 separate offices: City of Huntington, Finance Division, City of Huntington, Planning & Zoning Division, City of Huntington, Inspections & Permits, Cabell-Huntington Health Department, Huntington Fire Department, West Virginia Secretary of State, Business and Licensing Division, West Virginia State Tax Division, West Virginia Bureau for Public Health. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.

What does a restaurant need in Huntington that other businesses do not?

Food Service Establishment Permit (Cabell-Huntington Health Department)

The Cabell-Huntington Health Department is the food-permitting authority for Huntington restaurants and coffee shops. No fee is published: the Department's own Restaurants and Food program page, its Forms & Regulations index, its SF-5 permit application PDF (whose 'Permit Fee' field is left blank for internal office completion) and its SF-35 plan-review application PDF state no dollar figure; contact the Department for the current amount. This is consistent with the West Virginia state-layer record that the old uniform statewide restaurant permit-fee rule was repealed and county health departments now set their own figures independently — it does not follow that Cabell County's own figure matches the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department's own published figures, and no source states that it does, so no fee is asserted here.

Food Handler Permit

The statute caps this at $10 but leaves each county health department to set its own procedure and its own fee up to that ceiling, and to choose a validity period anywhere from one to three years. A permit or card must be obtained within thirty days of a food employee being hired. One genuinely useful feature: a card issued by any county is valid throughout the state once an additional fee of up to $10 is paid, so a worker moving between counties need not start over. A current certified food protection manager credential is understood to exempt its holder from this separate card, consistent with how most states treat the two credentials.

Shared with other businesses in Huntington

  • Business and Occupation (B&O) Privilege Tax — Retailers, Restaurants, and Others — City of Huntington, Finance Division, 0% of gross sales for Classification 5, 'Retailers, Restaurants, and Others,' on the City's own current fillable B&O Tax Return form, reflecting a mayoral waiver of this classification effective September 13, 2021. Still filed quarterly (30 days after each quarter ends) even at a 0% rate; a separate older Fee Schedule PDF on the City's own site lists this same classification at 0.25%, a figure now superseded by the current 0% rate confirmed on the actively-used tax return form., ongoing — quarterly filing (30 days after each calendar quarter ends). Also required for coffee shops, retail stores and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
  • Food Manufacturing Facility Permit — West Virginia Bureau for Public Health, $35–$1,000 a year, banded by the facility's gross sales, annual — expires 30 June. Also required for coffee shops and food trucks; what it involves is set out on the food trucks page.

The other 6 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Huntington, WV; what each one involves is set out on the Huntington permits page. The 5 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across WV and are covered on the WV state page.

How does a restaurant compare with other businesses in Huntington?

A restaurant and a coffee shop in Huntington, WV need exactly the same 4 permits beyond the ones every business needs.

Permits particular to each business type in Huntington, WV, compared with a restaurant
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a restaurantOnly a restaurant needsOnly it needs
Coffee shops4400
Food trucks5312
Retail stores2131
Auto repair shops4044
Childcare centres5045
Contractors and trades6046
Fitness studios3043
Salons and barbers4044
Veterinary clinics4044

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 and food trucks page. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Huntington permits page and the WV state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. Restaurants and Food — the Department's own current environmental health program page describing food establishment plan review requirements, with no fee amount published anywhere on the pageCabell-Huntington Health Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-11
  2. SF-5, Application for a Permit to Operate a Food Establishment (Rev. 5/08) — the Department's own current fillable application, pre-printed with the Cabell-Huntington letterhead, whose 'Permit Fee' field is left blank for internal office completion rather than pre-printed with an amountWest Virginia Department of Health & Human Resources / Cabell-Huntington Department of Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-11
  3. SF-35, Food Establishment Plan Review Application (Rev. 6/2009) — the Department's own current plan-review application, with no fee amount stated anywhere in the formWest Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, Bureau for Public Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-11
  4. West Virginia Code section 16-2-16 — food handler permits, capped at $10 and valid statewideState of West Virginia · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04

Related

Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.