Home Bakery Permit Requirements in Bangor, ME

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. Maine Revenue Services — Sales Tax Registration

   Required for all businesses selling tangible personal property or taxable services in Maine. Maine charges a 5.5% state sales tax (food and lodging have different rates). Register with Maine Revenue Services online.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online)

   Free

   Immediate (online)

2. No Food Safety Manager Certification Required for a Home Bakery

   Maine does not require a certified food protection manager for a home food business. The Certified Food Protection Manager requirement in the Maine Food Code applies to eating establishments licensed by the Maine CDC Health Inspection Program - restaurants and similar operations - not to shelf-stable home food production, which the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry licenses under a Home Food License. DACF's Division of Quality Assurance & Regulations does not administer any food safety manager certification.

   Official government source

   $0 - not required for a home bakery·Not applicable

   $0 - not required for a home bakery

   Not applicable

1. Maine Home Food License (DACF)

   Maine has no blanket cottage-food exemption. Home bakers who sell to the public generally need a Home Food License (Home Food Processor) from the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Division of Quality Assurance & Regulations. The license covers shelf-stable products made in a home kitchen and sold retail or wholesale, including at farmers' markets; the kitchen is inspected and products must be properly labeled. Applicants on a private well must submit recent water test results.

   Official government source

   $20 (Home Food Processor license, DACF Food and Fuel License Application)·Issued after a home-kitchen inspection; apply on the Food and Fuel License Application and contact DACF QAR at 207-287-3841 to schedule

   $20 (Home Food Processor license, DACF Food and Fuel License Application)

   Issued after a home-kitchen inspection; apply on the Food and Fuel License Application and contact DACF QAR at 207-287-3841 to schedule

2. Bangor Business Licenses (only for specific regulated activities)

   Bangor has no general business license and no fee based on gross revenues. The City Clerk licenses only the activities enumerated in the City Code and fee schedule - for example victualers (eating places), lunch wagons, liquor, taverns, amusement devices, bowling, theaters, carnivals and circuses, innkeepers, pawnbrokers, secondhand and precious-metals dealers, taxis, mobile home parks, flammable liquid and explosives dealers, and marijuana establishments. If your activity is not on that list you need no city business license, only zoning and code compliance.

   Official government source

   Fees are set per license type in the City of Bangor Schedule of Fees - for example victualer $248 (no tables or under 2,000 sq ft) or $684 (over 2,000 sq ft), amusement device $60, taxi cab $118, pawnbroker $154, tavern $297. Fees rise each July 1 with the CPI-U.·Apply to the City Clerk before opening; licenses tied to inspections are issued after those are complete

   Fees are set per license type in the City of Bangor Schedule of Fees - for example victualer $248 (no tables or under 2,000 sq ft) or $684 (over 2,000 sq ft), amusement device $60, taxi cab $118, pawnbroker $154, tavern $297. Fees rise each July 1 with the CPI-U.

   Apply to the City Clerk before opening; licenses tied to inspections are issued after those are complete

Official Sources

• Maine Cottage Food Law
• City of Bangor City Clerk

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