Register your food business

You are required by law to register your food business premises with us.

Food business registrations must be completed at least 28 days before you start trading and covers premises, vehicles and trailers.

Why must my business be registered?

Registration of food businesses enables us to keep an up to date list of all premises, vehicles and trailers in the city.

Our environmental health officers will then make visits to inspect food standards, health and safety. How often we visit will depend on the type of business.

Food poisoning can be disastrous for a new business – word gets around. When starting a new catering business it is very important to get things right at the start because it will make it much easier for you to run your business well in the future.

Do I need to register my business?

Registration applies to most types of food business, including catering businesses run from home and mobile or temporary premises, such as stalls and vans. If you use two or more premises, you will need to register all of them.

If food premises are used by several catering businesses (for example, a community hall or conference centre), the person who allows the premises to be used for this purpose is responsible for registering them.

How to register

Fees

There is no fee for registering your food business

Registration form

To download a food business registration form, click on the PDF icon below:

Note: It is an offence to give information on your registration which you know to be false.

Returning your application

Complete and return your registration form to the address below.

What else do I need to do?

Before opening, contact us to organise waste and recycling collection and get appropriate training and tools – it could cost you more money if don’t.

It makes good business sense to serve food that is safe to eat – good food hygiene helps prevent food poisoning and protects your reputation with customers.

You might need to register as self-employed and/or register for Valued Added Tax (VAT). These registration processes are completely separate from registering your food premises.

If you want to make changes to your premises, remember that you might need planning permission.

You will need to pay business rates on most premises and licences for certain activities, such as selling or supplying alcohol or selling hot food between 11pm and 5am.

Checklist

Below is a checklist of these and other issues you need to consider. More advice about each of these is available form the Food Standards Agency website.

Checklist for a new food businesses

Have you registered your premises?
Do the design and construction of your premises meet legal requirement?
Have you put food safety management procedures in place and are you keeping up-to-date records of these?
Do you and your staff understand the principles of good food hygiene?
Have you considered health and safety and fire safety arrangements?
Have you registered as self-employed?
Do you need to register for VAT?
Are you keeping records of all your business income and expenses?
Are you keeping records of your employees’ pay and do you know how to pay their tax and National Insurance contributions?
Do you describe food and drink accurately?
Do you need to apply for a licence to sell alcohol, for entertainment, for selling hot food and drink late at night, or selling food on the street?

Business Link also provide advice for food businesses.

Contact us

To find out more about food safety and standards, contact us using either our online form or by:

e-mail: city.direct@wolverhampton.gov.uk
Phone: 01902 551155
Minicom: 01902 555554
Fax: 01902 551195

Write:

Food and Environmental Safety
Regeneration and Environment
Wolverhampton City Council
Civic Centre
St. Peter's Square
Wolverhampton
WV1 1DA

Location map of Civic Centre