Licensing and notifying

Businesses need to:

1. submit a licence application form, online or by post 
2. pay a one-off application fee and first annual licence fee
3. be ready to meet relevant food standards, as set out for each industry sector
4. be ready to be audited or inspected.

When the Food Authority has reviewed the application and is satisfied the business can meet food safety standards, it will issue the licence and any appropriate stamps and brands.

In some cases a licence can be issued pending completion of the audit or inspection.

If the result of the audit or inspection is unacceptable, the licence may not be approved and the licence application may be rejected.

A Food Authority licence is not transferable from one person or business to another.

Processing times

We will assess your application and write to you within 10 working days to let you know if we need any more information.

In that letter we will also let you know a timeframe for any audit or inspection that is needed.

We aim to finalise your application within 4 weeks after the audit or inspection. 

Permissions and conditions

When the licence is issued, it will set out the specific food activities and processes which are permitted.

There may also be conditions applied to the licence. These can be varied by notice in writing from the Food Authority.

Display

On every premises to which the licence relates, a copy of the licence needs to be displayed.

For food transport vehicles which need a Food Authority licence, we will send a label or sticker which needs to be displayed on the vehicle at all times.

Calculation

The licence fee applied to your business is calculated based on the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) food handlers involved in food handling.

The number of FTE food handlers is used as it also accommodates businesses who use part-time food handlers in their operations. For the purposes of this calculation, an FTE working week is 38 hours.

To calculate the number of FTE food handlers your business has, add up all the hours that the food handlers are undertaking food handling activities during a working week and divide by 38 hours (average working week).

For example, if a facility had 4 food handlers to handle food for 25 hours per week, this would equate to approximately 3 FTE food handlers.

Fees are set out in Schedule 3 of the Food Regulation 2015.

Fees are indexed each year with the change in the Consumer Price Index.

Payment

If you are applying online you will be asked to make a credit card or BPAY payment at the end of the application.

If you are posting your application you can pay by:

1. Credit card:
   • To pay by MasterCard and Visa card, please fill in the card details on the licence application form
   • A 0.4% merchant surcharge will occur on credit card transactions
   • Please note: We do not accept American Express.
      
2. BPAY, internet banking or telephone:
   • submit your completed application form without payment to the Licensing Unit by
     • Fax to 02 6552 7239
     • Post to PO Box 232, Taree NSW 2430
     • Email to food.licensing@dpi.nsw.gov.au
     • An invoice will then be forwarded to you for payment.
        
3. Cheque or money order:
   • Mail money order or cheque, crossed ‘Not negotiable’ and made out to NSW Food Authority, with completed application form to:
     NSW Food Authority
     PO Box 6682, Silverwater NSW 1811.

Licence holders can apply to pay the annual fee by installments - contact the Licensing Unit on 1300 552 406. 

Businesses that need to notify to local council operate at the retail level and include:

• restaurants, cafés and takeaways
• mobile food outlets
• food stall holders at regular, temporary or one-off events
• grocery stores and supermarkets
• businesses which sell food as a smaller part of their business such as chemists, cinemas, corner stores, petrol stations and sporting facilities
• childcare providers that provide food
• school canteens
• importers of food or ingredients that retail the product from their business premises
• seafood retailers (unless they hold a Food Authority licence).
   

From 1 September 2015, you do not need to notify your business details to the Food Authority. 

The Food Authority accepts that business applications to local council for services, permits and approvals, and rates notice registrations satisfy the requirement for food businesses to notify to local council. 

Contact your local council.

Businesses that need to notify to the Food Authority include:

• home-based food businesses that do not retail their product from the home premises
• food manufacturers or wholesalers that do not hold a Food Authority licence
• importers that do not retail their product from their business premises
• small egg farms (fewer than 20 dozen eggs/week)
• small poultry meat farms (growing fewer than 100 birds)
• businesses that transport live poultry. 
   

You need to keep your notification up to date if any details change after you have notified, so it's a good idea to keep your reference number and password.

Notification records are private for each food business, so if you purchase an existing business you need to notify the business again with your details.

To notify now visit www.foodnotify.nsw.gov.au

If any of your details change you need to update them by contacting the NSW Food Authority at food.licensing@dpi.nsw.gov.au or on 1300 552 406, option 2.

Businesses that do not need either to notify their business and activity details nor hold a Food Authority licence include:

• not-for-profit fundraising events and charities, as long as any food that requires temperature control will be consumed immediately after thorough cooking
• primary production food businesses such as farms other than dairy, egg or poultry meat farms, fishing or shellfish production are not exempt and need either a licence or to notify.
   

From 1 September 2015, most retail food businesses no longer need to notify their business and food handling details to the Food Authority.

The Food Authority recognises that business details supplied by retail food businesses to councils meet legal requirements and the notification outcome intended under the Food Standards Code.

This change benefits retail food businesses such as restaurants, cafes, caterers, supermarkets and mobile and temporary food vendors. These businesses now only need to give their business details once – to their local council.

For more see notification requirements for food businesses (pdf 205kb).