FSSAI licence for a food business: registration vs state vs central licence

Every food business in India, from a home baker to a cold-drink distributor, needs an FSSAI licence or registration under Section 31 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Turnover decides which one: basic registration up to ₹12 lakh a year, a state licence up to ₹20 crore, a central licence above that. You apply online on FoSCoS, pay ₹100 to ₹7,500 a year, and print the 14-digit number on every invoice and label.

Who needs an FSSAI licence

The Act defines a "food business operator" very widely: anyone who manufactures, processes, packs, stores, transports, distributes, imports or sells food. That includes:

• Home bakers, tiffin services and pickle makers selling from a home kitchen
• Cloud kitchens and restaurants, including those selling only through Swiggy and Zomato
• Sweet shops, tea stalls, juice bars and street food carts
• Kirana stores and supermarkets that sell packaged food
• Wholesalers, distributors and C&F agents for packaged food or beverages
• Cold storages, warehouses and transporters of food
• Importers and exporters of any food item, including spices and tea
• Online sellers of food on Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho or their own website
• Caterers, canteens, hostels, dhabas and even temporary stalls at exhibitions

The aggregators enforce this: Swiggy and Zomato will not onboard a kitchen without an FSSAI number, and Amazon asks for it before listing any grocery item. If you are only selling non-food items (crockery, kitchen equipment), you do not need it. Nutraceuticals, health supplements and food for special dietary use need a central licence regardless of turnover.

Registration, state licence or central licence

Some capacity thresholds override turnover. For example, a dairy handling more than 50,000 litres a day, a slaughter house above a certain size, or a manufacturing unit above 2 metric tonnes per day (excluding grains and cereals) needs a central licence even with lower turnover. State licence fees vary: manufacturers with capacity above 1 MT per day pay ₹5,000, smaller manufacturers pay ₹3,000, and hotels below 4-star as well as most other businesses pay ₹2,000. Restaurants and small manufacturing units generally fall at ₹2,000 to ₹3,000. Check the current fee table on foscos.fssai.gov.in, since the Food Authority revises it occasionally.

If you have outlets in more than one state, each outlet needs its own state licence in that state and the head office needs a central licence. A single-state chain needs one licence per premises, not one per company.

Documents you will need

For basic registration you need very little:

• A photo ID (Aadhaar, voter ID or PAN) of the proprietor or the authorised person
• A recent passport-size photograph
• Proof of address of the premises (electricity bill, rent agreement or property tax receipt)
• A short list of the food products or categories you will handle

For a state or central licence the list grows:

• Form B, completed and signed
• Blueprint or layout plan of the processing unit showing dimensions and area allocation (manufacturers and processors)
• List of directors, partners or proprietor with full address and contact details, plus their photo ID
• List of equipment and machinery with numbers and installed capacity (manufacturers)
• Water test report from a recognised or NABL-accredited lab, for manufacturers and restaurants
• Proof of possession of premises: rent agreement, electricity bill or sale deed
• Partnership deed, certificate of incorporation or MoA and AoA, as applicable
• Food safety management system plan or certificate (a simple written plan is enough for small units)
• NOC from the municipality or local body, and a fire NOC where the state requires it
• List of food categories to be manufactured (matching the categories in the FSS regulations)
• For central licence: IEC from DGFT for importers and exporters, and a recall plan

Have GST registration and Udyam handy too; they are not mandatory for FSSAI but the officer often asks for turnover proof, and they smooth the way for the current account and other registrations you will do around the same time.

Applying on FoSCoS step by step

FoSCoS (Food Safety Compliance System) at foscos.fssai.gov.in replaced the older FLRS portal and is the only place to apply.

1. Sign up with your mobile number and email. One login can hold multiple applications.
2. Choose "Apply for New License/Registration" and select your state and the type of business (kind of business, or KoB). The portal uses your answers to decide whether you need registration, a state licence or a central licence. Answer the turnover and capacity questions honestly; a wrong category leads to rejection later.
3. Fill the form. Form A for registration, Form B for licences. Enter the premises address exactly as on the electricity bill or rent agreement; this address is printed on the certificate.
4. Select food categories. Pick the categories that match your products, such as "Bakery products" or "Ready-to-eat savouries". You can add categories later through a modification application, but each change costs a fee, so include everything you realistically plan to sell in year one.
5. Upload documents as PDFs or JPEGs within the size limits shown on screen.
6. Choose validity of 1 to 5 years and pay the fee for that many years online. The receipt number is your reference until the licence is issued.
7. Inspection. For licences, a food safety officer may inspect the premises within 30 days. For registration this is rare. Keep the premises tidy, pest control records handy and the water test report visible.
8. Download the certificate from the portal once approved. It carries your 14-digit number and a QR code.

Timelines are roughly 7 days for registration and 30 to 60 days for licences. If the officer raises a query, respond within the time on the notice (usually 30 days) or the application is rejected and the fee is lost.

Fees, validity and the maths of paying upfront

The fee is per year and you can pay for one to five years at once. Renewal must be applied for at least 30 days before expiry; a late renewal attracts a penalty of ₹100 per day, and if the licence lapses you must apply fresh. Paying for five years upfront costs the same per year but removes four renewal deadlines and four chances to forget.

Worked example: a Bengaluru cloud kitchen

Priya runs a Bengaluru cloud kitchen selling North Indian meals through Swiggy and Zomato. Her first-year turnover projection is ₹35 lakh, so she needs a state licence, not basic registration. Her kitchen is not a manufacturing unit, so she falls in the ₹2,000 per year slab for food service establishments.

• State licence fee for 5 years: 5 × ₹2,000 = ₹10,000
• Water test from an NABL lab: about ₹1,500 (confirm locally; prices vary)
• Pest control contract for the year: about ₹6,000
• Consultant for the application, optional: ₹2,000 to ₹5,000

Total compliance cost for five years of validity: roughly ₹17,500 to ₹22,500, or under ₹400 a month. Compare that with the penalty for operating without a licence, up to ₹5 lakh under Section 63, and with the fact that Swiggy and Zomato would not list her kitchen at all.

Priya also checks the turnover trigger. If she crosses ₹20 crore, she must upgrade to a central licence. That is a long way off, but if she opens a second kitchen in Hyderabad, the Hyderabad unit needs its own Telangana state licence and her head office needs a central licence for multi-state operation.

Displaying the number: invoices, packaging, premises

Regulation 2.1 of the FSS (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011, as amended, requires the 14-digit number to appear:

• On the label of every packaged food item, along with the FSSAI logo
• On invoices, cash memos, bills and receipts issued by the business
• At a prominent place in the premises, and for restaurants on the menu card and at the entrance

For invoices this simply means adding a line such as "FSSAI Lic. No. 21224XXXXXXXXX" near your GSTIN. If you sell packaged food, the label must also carry the FSSAI logo in the prescribed format next to the number. Home bakers who deliver in boxes should print or stick a label with the number on every box.

The number is verifiable on the FSSAI website, and food safety officers do spot checks. Once issued, put the number in your invoice template so it prints on every bill. If you make GST invoices, the FSSAI number goes alongside the mandatory GST fields; both must be on the same document for a packaged food sale.

Labelling basics for packaged food

If you pack food for sale, the FSS (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020 apply. The essentials on a pre-packaged food label are:

• Name of the food and the list of ingredients in descending order of weight
• Nutritional information per 100 g or 100 ml and per serving
• Veg or non-veg symbol (green or brown mark) of the prescribed size
• Declaration of food additives, allergens and any "contains added sugar or flavour" statements
• Name and complete address of the manufacturer or packer, and of the brand owner if different
• FSSAI logo and licence number of the manufacturer and, for a brand owner, its own number
• Net quantity in metric units, as also required under Legal Metrology
• Lot or batch number, date of manufacture or packing, and "best before" or "use by" date
• Country of origin for imported food
• Instructions for use where needed, and MRP inclusive of all taxes

Font size rules depend on the pack's principal display area, and some declarations (like veg or non-veg logo size) are specified in millimetres. Homemade goods delivered fresh in a box still need the name, FSSAI number and date of packing; a full nutrition panel is required only for products with a shelf life that are sold as pre-packaged goods. When in doubt, follow the packaged food rules fully; it is cheaper than a relabelling order.

Penalties for not complying

The FSS Act has a graded set of penalties:

An amendment to decriminalise some of these and convert small offences to compounding fines has been discussed; check the latest notification. In practice, a first-time small business found without registration is usually given an improvement notice and time to apply, but the aggregator delisting is instant, and that hurts more than the fine.

Common mistakes

• Choosing basic registration to save money when turnover is above ₹12 lakh. The certificate is invalid for your actual scale, and the aggregator or a food safety officer can treat you as unlicensed.
• Applying under the wrong kind of business. A cloud kitchen that also packs and sells ready-to-eat snacks online is both a food service and a manufacturer; declare both activities.
• Using a home address while operating from a rented commercial kitchen. The licence is premises-specific; a change of address needs a modification application.
• Forgetting to add new product categories. Selling cold-pressed juices under a licence that lists only bakery products is a misbranding risk.
• Not printing the number on invoices and boxes. The most common finding during inspections.
• Missing renewal. The ₹100 per day late fee adds up, and a lapsed licence means a fresh application and a gap in aggregator listings.
• Ignoring the water test. Officers routinely ask for it at inspection; get it done before you apply.
• Skipping training. FSSAI expects at least one trained Food Safety Supervisor (FoSTaC certified) in licensed premises; the course takes a day.

Also keep hygiene records. Schedule 4 of the licensing regulations lists the sanitary and hygienic requirements: pest control, staff medical fitness, cleaning schedules and temperature logs. A simple register satisfies most inspections.

How VyaparKit helps

Once your FSSAI number is issued, add it to your business profile so it prints on every GST invoice and cash memo you generate, next to your GSTIN and address. Print product labels with the brand name, FSSAI number, batch and packing date for boxes and jars. Use the letterhead maker for replies to food safety notices and supplier correspondence, and a packing list for wholesale dispatches to distributors or exporters.

Next steps

• Estimate your first-year turnover honestly and pick registration, state or central licence accordingly.
• Get a water test report and set up pest control before you apply, so inspection is a formality.
• Apply on foscos.fssai.gov.in with all documents and pay for 3 to 5 years to reduce renewal risk.
• Add the 14-digit number to your invoice template, menu, packaging labels and premises signage on day one.
• Put the expiry date and a 60-day-before reminder in your compliance calendar.