If you are an aspiring restaurateur, then it is not breaking the news that the venture you are pursuing comes in with the requirement of acquiring a plethora of licenses. It is, indeed, not a cake walk. What does a new restaurateur think about at the initial phase? He or she brainstorms into choosing the perfect location, hiring the correct employees, and then acquiring the food business license. Licences for restaurants are tough to be achieved and hence they deserve to receive a fair share of concern as well. Without a business license, the other matters stand futile. There are many areas that require license much later.

To ensure that your restaurant sets off with a good start, do check the following list of licences for restaurants that you need to get:

1. Occupancy Certificate

Certificate of occupancy declares the safety of the building towards the employees and the customers. The city or the town council/municipality issues this certificate only after a thorough investigation. The majority of restaurants open their doors to the general public only after they get their eatery certified.

2. Restaurant Business License

This permit is also issued by the town or city council/municipality which gets the business the authorization to conduct its business in that very locational jurisdiction. The acquiring of this license involves filling out of substantial paper works for registering the business name along with the payment of application fees.

3. Getting the Employee Identification Number

The employee identification number or EIN, informs of one’s employment status to the government. It is also a tax identification number that is obtained from the website after filling a form and paying fees for it. It can also be applied by phone or mail. The EIN also lets the employee file tax every year.

4. Food Service License

It is impossible for a restaurant to operate without a food service license. The acquiring of this permit involves the thorough inspection of the city’s or country’s health department officials who ensure that the restaurant is safe & eligible to serve food by complying to all the food safety standards, laws and regulations. In many cases, the employees are asked to go through a safety training program alongside having the food handler’s certificate.

5. Music Permit

If you are planning to include live music sessions in your restaurant, then you must abide by the copyright law protecting the music you choose to play. Yes. You have to get formal permission from the authorities before you choose to play music in your restaurant. In case, you are thinking of hiring a creative artist to play original scores; then you have to get the entertainment permit as well to pay entertainment tax. The companies that hold performance rights will get the business owner permission to perform copyrighted musical creations. Without such licenses, the owner is entitled to a hefty amount of fines along the line. This is an optional inclusion in this list of licences for restaurants.

6. Liquor license

Planning to sell liquor at your eatery? Then obviously, a liquor license is the permit you need for it. The liquor laws are different in every state and country. The authorities restrict from ‘anyone’ to sell liquor, so there are some liquor laws that are relatively strict. The liquor law specifies the time of and place of serving alcohol along with its tariff. As per the location of the restaurant, the owner must require beer, wine and liquor licenses; all three to serve them. Apply fast for a liquor license if you want to serve it on time as the licenses may take up to a year for you to achieve it. The application fees range in between hundreds to thousands of Dollars with extra charges for their annual renewal.

7. Sign Permit

You will always need a new signage to get the attention of your target audience for your restaurant. So, before starting to advertise of it, you must get a sign permit from the licensing authorities. This will allow you to carry out your marketing campaign without any hindrance and also the size and location of your signs.

8. Food Handler’s Permit

Food handler’s permit is a legal necessity. This guarantees the restaurant’s compliance of the food protection, sanitation, storage and preparation norms. Employees require the license by passing the food handler’s course and also purchase it. The cost of the permit as well varies from country to country and has to be renewed in every 3 to 5 years. A mandatory inclusion in this list of licences for restaurants.

Conclusion

This list of licenses and permits needed to open a restaurant is just the basic; your country might need more or fewer permissions to open a restaurant. In all these mayhem, never forget to purchase and install a robust restaurant and kitchen management software that will be the ultimate digital assistant for you by streamlining all functions of the business for faster and better output. From managing stock to making payments to engineering menu to providing analytical reports, the one-stop solution of software is the solution you can root for to work for you regularly to fetch the desired results you have always wanted.