Starting a new food business requires an application for the design approval for the fit-out of the new premises, followed by a separate application to apply for a food business licence.
On this page:
- Fixed food business
- Home-based food businesses
- Mobile food businesses (Including water carriers)
- Temporary food business
Fixed food business
A fixed food business includes:
- cafe/restaurant
- takeaway food shop
- bakery
- home business
- child care centre
- fruit and vegetable shop
- food manufacturer
- caterer
How to apply for a fixed food business
If you are wanting to open a licensable food business from a fixed location, follow the below steps:
Step 1 - Check the business does not require other approvals
Before applying for a food licence, contact Council on (07) 3829 8999 to see if any other approvals are required from the below teams:
- Plumbing Services
- Planning Assessment
- Trade Waste
Step 2 - Apply for a design approval
- Complete a Food Business Application form online and select the option to 'apply for a design approval for the fit out of a new food business';
- Upload your plans (for further information on the fit-out requirements for your premises, please refer to the Design and fit-out guide); and
- Pay the $674 application fee (this is a once-off fee for the assessment and approval of your application).
Please Note: Council will assess your application within 30 days and either issue an information request if further information is required or a preliminary approval to commence construction/fit-out.
Step 3 - Once the design approval application has been approved
- A preliminary approval and your approved plans will be emailed to you, allowing you to start the construction/fit-out of your food premises.
Please note:
- The preliminary approval is not a licence to operate your food business. A Food Business Licence is required prior to operating and is subject to a compliant final inspection.
- Once your construction/fit-out is complete, you will be required to submit another form to apply for your licence & pay the pro-rata licence fee.
Step 4 - Once the Construction/Fit-out is complete
Prior to operating your business, you are required to contact the Environmental Health Team on (07) 3829 8463 to:
- Book a final inspection with an Environmental Health Officer;
- Complete a Food Business Application form online and select the option 'apply for a food business licence for a new business'; and
- Make payment of the pro-rata licence fee (this fee is based on our current licence fee).
Please Note: The above form and fee is in addition to the initial design approval form and $674 application fee.
Step 5 - Issuing Food Business Licence
Your food business licence will be issued once:
- The pro-rata licence fee has been received;
- You have completed the Food Business Application form online to apply for a food business licence for a new business; and
- You have a compliant final inspection.
Please Note: All food business licences have an annual expiry date of 31 October. Your renewal notice will be emailed at least 60 days prior to the licence expiration.
Home-based food businesses
Operating a licensable food business from a domestic premises, such as your home, requires a Food Business Licence.
If you want to apply for a food business licence using your domestic kitchen, only applications for low-risk foods and activities will be considered. Low-risk activities do not involve the handling or storage of potentially hazardous foods.
Activities that involve high-risk foods or manufacture large amounts of food are required to be undertaken from a commercial premises or a separate commercial kitchen in your home.
Types of low-risk activities that would be considered from a domestic kitchen include:
- Making special occasion cakes
- Making cupcakes, biscuits, slices for a market stall
- Making jams and chutney
- Bed and breakfast accommodation
- Farm home stay
A home-based food business must still comply with the requirements in the Food Safety Standards, so there are some important considerations when using a domestic kitchen:
- Food and other items relating to the food business must be stored separately from domestic items
- Pets cannot have access to the kitchen
- While preparing or handling food for the business, other people (e.g. visitors and children) cannot have access to the kitchen
How to apply for a home-based food business
If you are wanting to open a licensable food business from your home, follow the below steps:
Step 1 - Check the business does not require other approvals
Before applying for a food licence, contact Council on (07) 3829 8999 to see if any other approvals are required from the below teams:
- Plumbing Services
- Planning Assessment
- Trade Waste
Step 2 - Apply for a design approval
- Complete a Food Business Application form online and select the option to 'apply for a design approval for the fit out of a new food business';
- Upload your plans (for further information on the fit-out requirements for your premises, please refer to page 32 of the Design and fit-out guide); and
- Pay the $674 application fee (this is a once-off fee for the assessment and approval of your application).
Please Note: Council will assess your application within 30 days and either issue an information request if further information is required or a preliminary approval to commence construction/fit-out.
Step 3 - Once the design approval application has been approved
- A preliminary approval and your approved plans will be emailed to you, allowing you to start the construction/fit-out of your food premises.
Please Note:
- The preliminary approval is not a licence to operate your food business. A Food Business Licence is required prior to operating and is subject to a compliant final inspection.
- Once your construction/fit-out is complete, you will be required to submit another form to apply for your licence & pay the pro-rata licence fee.
Step 4 - Once the Construction/Fit-out is complete
Prior to operating your business, you are required to contact the Environmental Health Team on (07) 3829 8463 to:
- Book a final inspection with an Environmental Health Officer;
- Complete a Food Business Application form online and select the option 'apply for a food business licence for a new business'; and
- Make payment of the pro-rata licence fee (this fee is based on our current licence fee).
Please Note: The above form and fee is in addition to the initial design approval form and the $674 application fee.
Step 5 - Issuing Food Business Licence
Your food business licence will be issued once:
- The pro-rata licence fee has been received;
- You have completed the Food Business Application form online to apply for a food business licence for a new business; and
- You have a compliant final inspection.
Please Note: All food business licences have an annual expiry date of 31 October. Your renewal notice will be emailed at least 60 days prior to the licence expiration.
Mobile food businesses (including water carriers)
A mobile food vehicle is a "vehicle propelled by a motor or a food vending machine". The layout of the vehicle does not change yet the premises can be moved between locations.
You are able to operate a mobile food vehicle in any local government area within Queensland if you hold a current mobile food vehicle licence. However, you must consider where you choose to have your mobile food vehicle licensed, as you will need to make the vehicle available for inspection when requested. Generally, the mobile food vehicle will be licensed with the Council where the vehicle is garaged.
How to apply for a mobile food business
If you are wanting to operate a licensable mobile food business, follow the below steps:
Step 1 - Check the business does not require other approvals
Before applying for a food licence, contact Council on (07) 3829 8999 to see if any other approvals are required from the below teams:
- Plumbing Services
- Planning Assessment
- Trade Waste
- City Sports and Venues
If you are planning to operate your mobile food vehicle in a Redland City Council park or public open space, you will need approval to operate as a temporary commercial activity. This is a separate approval from your Food Business Licence. You can find more information about temporary commercial activities in parks or public open spaces here.
Step 2 - Apply for a design approval
- Complete a Food Business Application form online and select the option to 'apply for a design approval for the fit out of a new food business';
- Upload your plans (for further information on the fit-out requirements for your premises, please refer to the Design and fit-out guide; and or water carrier requirements); and
- Pay the $674 application fee (this is a once-off fee for the assessment and approval of your application).
Please Note: Council will assess your application within 30 days and either issue an information request if further information is required or a preliminary approval to commence construction/fit-out.
Step 3 - Once the design approval application has been approved
- A preliminary approval and your approved plans will be emailed to you, allowing you to start the construction/fit-out of your food premises.
Please Note:
- The preliminary approval is not a licence to operate your food business. A Food Business Licence is required prior to operating and is subject to a compliant final inspection.
- Once your construction/fit-out is complete, you will be required to submit another form to apply for your licence & pay the pro-rata licence fee.
Step 4 - Once the Construction/Fit-out is complete
Prior to operating your business, you are required to contact the Environmental Health Team on (07) 3829 8463 to:
- Book a final inspection with an Environmental Health Officer;
- Complete a Food Business Application form online and select the option 'apply for a food business licence for a new business'; and
- Make payment of the pro-rata licence fee (this fee is based on our current licence fee).
Please Note: The above form and fee is in addition to the initial design approval form and the $674 application fee.
Step 5 - Issuing Food Business Licence
Your food business licence will be issued once:
- The pro-rata licence fee has been received;
- You have completed the Food Business Application form online to apply for a food business licence for a new business; and
- You have a compliant final inspection.
Please Note: All food business licences have an annual expiry date of 31 October. Your renewal notice will be emailed at least 60 days prior to the licence expiration.
Temporary food business
Operating a temporary food stall at markets and events within Redland City Council may require a Food Business Licence. If you are preparing or handling unpackaged food for retail sale a licence is generally required. Some examples include (but are not limited to):
- Cutting fruit and vegetables
- Squeezing fruit/vegetable juice
- Takeaway food including hamburgers, hot dogs, kebabs, pizzas etc
- Meals prepared in the stall including curries, lasagne etc
- Scooping ice cream
- Desserts such as waffles and pancakes with toppings
- Other unpackaged foods, unless included in the list of exemptions
There are some exemptions where a licence is not required, these include (but are not limited to):
- Pre-packaged food
- Whole fruit and vegetables
- Selling snack foods that are not potentially hazardous e.g. biscuits, confectionary, dried fruit, cereals, popcorn etc.
- Drinks such as tea, coffee, soft drinks and alcohol, flavoured ice drinks
Not-for-profit organisations only need a licence when 'meals' are served on 12 or more occasions in a financial year. For example, a not-for-profit organisation fundraising sausage sizzle stall is not considered serving a meal, so can be carried out without a licence.
If you are preparing food for the market stall in advance (this includes chopping, cooking, assembly and packaging) you are required to do this from an approved food premises with a separate Food Business Licence.
How to apply for a temporary food business licence
If you are wanting to operate a temporary food business, follow the below steps:
Step 1 - Submit a temporary food business application
- Complete the Temporary Food Business Application form online;
- Upload a detailed plan of the stall – for more information refer to the artist impression of the minimum standards [PDF, 1.5MB] and
- Pay the required application fee:
- Limited Operation Licence (once off event up to four consecutive days in a single location) = $105
- Regular Operation Licence (annual licence - valid for 12 months from the date of issue) = $450
The plan must be clearly drawn and include information about:
- the tent/gazebo structure (roof, walls and flooring),
- location of equipment (cooking/food processing)
- food preparation and serving benches/tables
- hand washing facilities
- food storage (esky or refrigerator)
If the application form, plan and fee are submitted less than 5 business days prior to the event, an express processing fee of $105 may apply in addition to the application fee. Please note that an application may be refused if there is no capacity to process the application within the desired timeframe.
Step 2 - Issuing Food Business Licence
- An Environmental Health Officer will assess your application when the form, plans and payment are received.
- Once approved, your Food Business Licence will be emailed/posted to you.