Catering Business Permit Requirements in Boston, MA

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   You need an EIN from the IRS to hire employees, to operate a partnership or corporation, to pay certain excise taxes, or if you elect corporate tax treatment. A single-member LLC with no employees is not required to have one and may use the owner's Social Security number instead, though you will want one for a business bank account and for payroll tax filings. Apply with the IRS's online tool using the responsible party's SSN or ITIN. If you are forming an LLC or corporation, register the entity with the Secretary of the Commonwealth first — applying before the state filing can delay your EIN. Beware of websites that charge for an EIN; you never have to pay a fee.

   Official government source

   Free·Issued immediately online. You must complete the application in one session — it expires after 15 minutes of inactivity — and you can obtain only one EIN per responsible party per day.

   Free

   Issued immediately online. You must complete the application in one session — it expires after 15 minutes of inactivity — and you can obtain only one EIN per responsible party per day.

1. Massachusetts Retail Food Code (105 CMR 590.000) — Food Establishment Permit

   105 CMR 590.000, the State Sanitary Code's Chapter X, sets the minimum sanitation standards for every food establishment in Massachusetts, including catering commissaries. The Department of Public Health's Division of Food Protection writes and interprets the code, but it does not issue your permit — the local board of health where you operate does. In Boston that is the Inspectional Services Department's Division of Health Inspections; elsewhere, apply directly to the town or city board of health. There is no separate state permit to apply for.

   Official government source

   The state charges nothing. You pay the local board of health's fee. In Boston, a retail food establishment permit is a $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet ($100 plus $50 per additional 1,000 square feet above that), and a sit-down operation is a $200 minimum in its first year.·There is no separate state step. Apply to the local board of health — in Boston, that means plan review, the permit application, and an opening inspection you must pass before serving the public.

   The state charges nothing. You pay the local board of health's fee. In Boston, a retail food establishment permit is a $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet ($100 plus $50 per additional 1,000 square feet above that), and a sit-down operation is a $200 minimum in its first year.

   There is no separate state step. Apply to the local board of health — in Boston, that means plan review, the permit application, and an opening inspection you must pass before serving the public.

2. Massachusetts Meals Tax Registration for a Catering Business

   Massachusetts treats a catering business as a restaurant for tax purposes — the DOR meals guide lists 'catering businesses' in its definition of restaurant — so meals you sell are taxable. The state sales tax on meals is 6.25%, and a city or town may add a local option meals excise of 0.75% of gross receipts from restaurant meal sales, which brings the combined rate to 7%. Boston has adopted that local option, so catering sales in Boston are taxed at 7%, not 6.25%. Register with DOR on MassTaxConnect; you will get a Meals, Food and Beverages Registration Certificate for each business location, which must be displayed where customers can see it. The tax must be separately stated on every invoice or contract. Caterers have a specific record-keeping duty: record every job in a reservation ledger with the date, purchaser name, number of persons served, price total and tax amount, and keep the records at least three years (DOR may audit six years where tax is understated by more than 25%). Returns and payment are due by the 30th day after the close of the filing period.

   Official government source

   No fee. The Department of Revenue does not charge anything to open a sales tax or meals tax account on MassTaxConnect, and there is no annual renewal charge for the registration itself.·You complete the MassTaxConnect registration in one online sitting and get a confirmation email straight away. The registration certificate is mailed to you once DOR approves the account, and it must then be displayed at each business location where customers can easily see it.

   No fee. The Department of Revenue does not charge anything to open a sales tax or meals tax account on MassTaxConnect, and there is no annual renewal charge for the registration itself.

   You complete the MassTaxConnect registration in one online sitting and get a confirmation email straight away. The registration certificate is mailed to you once DOR approves the account, and it must then be displayed at each business location where customers can easily see it.

3. Massachusetts Caterer's License — ABCC (if serving alcohol)

   Under MGL c.138, s12C the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) itself issues an annual caterer's license to a catering business for the sale and service of alcoholic beverages at private events that are not open to the public, in cities and towns that have authorized s12 licenses. The licensee must buy all alcohol from a licensed wholesaler, carry liquor liability insurance of at least $250,000 per person / $500,000 per accident, use servers certified by a nationally recognized server-training program, and limit service to 5 hours per event. Alcohol may not be served at the caterer's own principal place of business. At least 48 hours before each event, the caterer must give the local police chief and local licensing authority written notice with a copy of the license, proof of insurance and manager contact information.

   Official government source

   $1,500 annual license fee (set by MGL c.138 s12C); renewable annually·Varies — apply to the ABCC; the 48-hour advance event notice to local police and the local licensing authority applies to every catered event

   $1,500 annual license fee (set by MGL c.138 s12C); renewable annually

   Varies — apply to the ABCC; the 48-hour advance event notice to local police and the local licensing authority applies to every catered event

1. Boston Food Establishment Permit (catering) — Inspectional Services

   A catering business operating from a fixed location in Boston needs a Food Establishment Permit from the Inspectional Services Department's Division of Health Inspections. The process runs in three parts: plan review of the commissary or kitchen, the permit application itself, and an opening inspection you must pass before serving the public. The permit is renewed annually. Plan review is triggered by construction, renovation, new equipment, or a menu change as well as by a new kitchen.

   Official government source

   A retail food establishment permit is a $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet; over that it is $100 plus $50 for each additional 1,000 square feet. A sit-down operation with takeout is a $200 minimum in the first year, with the fee based on gross annual sales after that; without takeout it is a $200 minimum up to 100 seats plus $1 for every seat above 100.·Plan review and a passed opening inspection both come before you may operate. Contact the Division of Health Inspections at 617-635-5326 (1010 Massachusetts Ave., 4th floor) for current scheduling.

   A retail food establishment permit is a $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet; over that it is $100 plus $50 for each additional 1,000 square feet. A sit-down operation with takeout is a $200 minimum in the first year, with the fee based on gross annual sales after that; without takeout it is a $200 minimum up to 100 seats plus $1 for every seat above 100.

   Plan review and a passed opening inspection both come before you may operate. Contact the Division of Health Inspections at 617-635-5326 (1010 Massachusetts Ave., 4th floor) for current scheduling.

2. Boston Food Establishment Permit (Catering) — Inspectional Services

   Caterers in Boston need a Food Establishment Permit from the Inspectional Services Department's Division of Health Inspections, not the Boston Public Health Commission. The process runs in three parts: a plan review of the kitchen, the permit application covering food handling and commissary arrangements, and an opening inspection that must be passed before you serve the public. If you cater one-off events rather than operating a fixed kitchen, a temporary food service permit covers the event itself.

   Official government source

   Retail food establishment: $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet; over 2,500 square feet it is $100 plus $50 for each additional 1,000 square feet. A sit-down operation is a $200 minimum in the first year. A temporary food service permit for an event is $30 for the first day plus $5 for each additional consecutive day, up to 14 days.·Plan review and an opening inspection both come before you may operate; call the Division of Health Inspections at 617-635-5326 for current scheduling

   Retail food establishment: $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet; over 2,500 square feet it is $100 plus $50 for each additional 1,000 square feet. A sit-down operation is a $200 minimum in the first year. A temporary food service permit for an event is $30 for the first day plus $5 for each additional consecutive day, up to 14 days.

   Plan review and an opening inspection both come before you may operate; call the Division of Health Inspections at 617-635-5326 for current scheduling

3. City of Boston — Certificate of Occupancy (commissary space)

   Before Inspectional Services will issue a Food Establishment Permit, your commissary must have legal occupancy for food service use — proof of legal occupancy from the ISD Building Division is one of the items the food permitting process asks for. Check the space's existing Certificate of Occupancy in the ISD document room at 1010 Massachusetts Avenue, 5th floor before signing a lease. If the space is not already classified for food service, you file a long form permit to change the occupancy, and the Boston Fire Department must review fire protection and life safety and sign off electronically before the certificate issues.

   Official government source

   From Boston's published building fee schedule: a commercial change of occupancy is $50; a long form building permit is $50 plus $10 for every $1,000 of estimated construction cost; a short form permit is $20 plus $10 per $1,000. Trade permits are separate — plumbing at $20 plus $5 per fixture, sprinkler at $20 plus $1 per head, and gas at $20 plus $5 per appliance with $50 for each furnace. Starting work before the permit is issued doubles the fee.·Comes before the food establishment permit, so build it into the front of your schedule. Length is driven by your build-out plus the Fire Department's document review, systems testing, and final walkthrough — call Inspectional Services at 617-635-5300.

   From Boston's published building fee schedule: a commercial change of occupancy is $50; a long form building permit is $50 plus $10 for every $1,000 of estimated construction cost; a short form permit is $20 plus $10 per $1,000. Trade permits are separate — plumbing at $20 plus $5 per fixture, sprinkler at $20 plus $1 per head, and gas at $20 plus $5 per appliance with $50 for each furnace. Starting work before the permit is issued doubles the fee.

   Comes before the food establishment permit, so build it into the front of your schedule. Length is driven by your build-out plus the Fire Department's document review, systems testing, and final walkthrough — call Inspectional Services at 617-635-5300.

4. Boston Temporary Food Service Permit (catered events)

   Serving food to the public at a Boston venue requires a food permit from the Inspectional Services Department's Division of Health Inspections. For a one-off or short-run event, that is a temporary food service permit; a caterer operating an ongoing business also needs a Food Establishment Permit and, where there is construction, renovation, new equipment or a menu change, a plan review appointment with ISD Health. Every food establishment is inspected before it may serve the public.

   Official government source

   Temporary food service permit: $30 for the first day plus $5 for each additional consecutive day, for not more than 14 days. A standing Food Establishment Permit is separate — retail food is a $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet, and sit-down restaurants a $200 minimum in the first year.·Apply well ahead of the event and allow time for inspection; contact ISD Health at 617-635-5326 for current lead times

   Temporary food service permit: $30 for the first day plus $5 for each additional consecutive day, for not more than 14 days. A standing Food Establishment Permit is separate — retail food is a $100 minimum under 2,500 square feet, and sit-down restaurants a $200 minimum in the first year.

   Apply well ahead of the event and allow time for inspection; contact ISD Health at 617-635-5326 for current lead times

Official Sources

• Boston Inspectional Services Department
• Boston Public Health Commission — Food Safety
• Massachusetts Department of Public Health — Food Establishment Permitting
• Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission
• MassTaxConnect

Related Guides