Home Bakery Permit Requirements in Bowling Green, KY

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you have employees or operate as an LLC or corporation. Free from the IRS.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online application)

   Free

   Immediate (online application)

1. Kentucky Department of Revenue — Sales and Use Tax Permit (Retailer's or Seller's Permit)

   KRS 139.200 imposes a 6% tax on the gross receipts of all retailers from retail sales of tangible personal property and of digital property, and from the furnishing of the services enumerated in subsection (2). That enumerated list is long and catches many service businesses that assume they are untaxed: landscaping services including lawn care and maintenance, tree trimming, landscape design and installation, and snow plowing or removal (paragraph (g)); janitorial services including residential and commercial cleaning and carpet, upholstery and window cleaning (h); small animal veterinary services (i); pet care services including grooming, boarding, pet sitting and obedience training (j); non-coin-operated laundry and dry cleaning (l); indoor skin tanning (n); non-medical diet and weight reducing (o); extended warranty services (p); photography and photofinishing (q); telemarketing (r); lobbying (t); executive employee recruitment (u); website design and development (v) and website hosting (w); bodyguard services (z); security system monitoring (aa); private investigation (ab); process serving (ac); repossession (ad); personal background checks (ae); parking and valet (af); rental of space for meetings, conventions, weddings, banquets, parties and other short-term social events (ai); social event planning and coordination (aj); leisure, recreational and athletic instructional services (ak); recreational camp tuition (al); personal fitness training (am); massage except when medically necessary (an); cosmetic surgery (ao); body modification including tattooing, piercing, scarification and branding (ap); non-medical laboratory testing (aq); interior decorating and design (ar); household moving (as); specialized design (at); lapidary (au); labor to repair or maintain commercial refrigeration equipment where no property is sold (av); labor to repair or alter apparel, footwear, watches or jewelry where no property is sold (aw); prewritten computer software access services (ax); and data brokering services (ay), the last effective August 1, 2026. KRS 139.240(1) requires every person presently engaged in or desiring to engage in business as a retailer or seller in Kentucky to file a permit application for each place of business, and KRS 139.250 requires the department to issue a separate permit per location, makes it nonassignable, limits it to the person named, and requires it to be conspicuously displayed. There are no local sales and use taxes in Kentucky, so the rate is 6% statewide.

   Official government source

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes a charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop registration·Not published by the Department of Revenue. KRS 139.240(1) requires the application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer, and KRS 139.240(4) waives the written signature for electronic registrants, so file through the Kentucky Business One Stop before the first taxable sale

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes a charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop registration

   Not published by the Department of Revenue. KRS 139.240(1) requires the application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer, and KRS 139.240(4) waives the written signature for electronic registrants, so file through the Kentucky Business One Stop before the first taxable sale

2. Kentucky Food Code — Certified Food Protection Manager (not required for home-based processors)

   The certified food protection manager requirement comes from Kentucky's food code, 902 KAR 45:005, which adopts the 2013 FDA Food Code and applies to food service establishments and retail food stores. A home bakery operating as a registered home-based processor under KRS 217.136 is exempt from the food establishment permit requirements of KRS 217.035, 217.037 and 217.095, so the certified food protection manager rule does not apply to it. The certification is still a reasonable voluntary step, and it becomes mandatory if the bakery moves into a commercial kitchen or otherwise operates as a permitted food establishment. Kentucky accepts a test that is part of an accredited program, such as an ANSI-accredited ServSafe course, or a local health department class.

   Official government source

   Kentucky sets no fee for the certification; the cost is set by the accredited course provider or the local health department class and is not required for a registered home-based processor·Not set by regulation; course and examination length varies by provider

   Kentucky sets no fee for the certification; the cost is set by the accredited course provider or the local health department class and is not required for a registered home-based processor

   Not set by regulation; course and examination length varies by provider

1. Kentucky CHFS Food Safety Branch — Home-Based Processor Registration

   A home bakery in Kentucky operates as a home-based processor under KRS 217.136, registered with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services Food Safety Branch, (502) 564-7181 — not with the Department of Agriculture, and not as a "microprocessor." A home-based microprocessor is a separate, narrower programme for farmers who grow a primary ingredient and can acidified or low-acid foods, trained by the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service under KRS 217.138. Registration is on Form DFS-250 and lists the processor's name, the physical address where production occurs, and the products to be made. A home-based processor may not produce acid foods, acidified food products, formulated acid food products, or low-acid canned foods. Every container must be labelled with the operation's name and address, the product's common name, ingredients in descending order by weight, net weight or count, the processing date, and the statement "This product is home-produced and processed" in 10-point type. Products may be sold only directly to consumers within Kentucky — from the home by pick-up or delivery, at a market, roadside stand, community event, or online. Current statute sets no annual gross sales cap. The cabinet may inspect the facility annually and will inspect on complaint or on evidence of misbranding or adulteration.

   Official government source

   $50 registration fee with Form DFS-250, and a $50 annual fee to renew·Not published by the Food Safety Branch. Registration is valid one year and expires March 31 each year regardless of when it was issued

   $50 registration fee with Form DFS-250, and a $50 annual fee to renew

   Not published by the Food Safety Branch. Registration is valid one year and expires March 31 each year regardless of when it was issued

2. City of Bowling Green Finance Department — Business License

   Bowling Green requires all businesses operating within city limits to register with the Office of Occupational License (Finance Department) — a one-time $50 registration fee (a $275 cash bond may also apply), not an annually re-issued license. Businesses must also file and pay an Occupational License Tax of 2% of net profits (increased from 1.85% effective Jan. 1, 2024) via annual Net Profit Tax Returns, plus periodic Employee Withholding Tax Returns if they have employees.

   Official government source

   $50 one-time registration fee; ongoing 2% Occupational License Tax on net profits·Processing time not published by the city

   $50 one-time registration fee; ongoing 2% Occupational License Tax on net profits

   Processing time not published by the city

Official Sources

• Kentucky Home-Based Microprocessor License
• City of Bowling Green Finance Department

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