New York, NY Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Food Truck Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Full-term permit cap
- 3,000 citywide
- Borough-designated permits
- 200 total, 50 per outer borough
- Annual license fee
- $25 (supervisory: $500)
- First-year pushcart/vehicle permit fee
- $50, then $25/yr
- Unlicensed vending fine
- $150-$250 plus civil penalty
- Inspection deadline
- Present vehicle within 3 months
Summary
New York City caps mobile food vending at 3,000 full-term permits and requires every vehicle or pushcart to carry a commissioner-issued permit before vending in a public space. Vendors also need a separate $25 annual food vendor license, and operating without either draws steep civil penalties.
It shall be unlawful to vend food from any vehicle or pushcart in a public space without having first obtained a permit for such vehicle or pushcart from the commissioner in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter. ... No new full-term permits shall be issued until the number of such permits which are in effect is less than 3,000. Thereafter, the maximum number of such permits which may be in effect shall be 3,000 and no new permits shall be issued in excess of such maximum number.
Full Breakdown
NYC Administrative Code § 17-307 makes it unlawful for anyone to act as a food vendor without first obtaining a license from the commissioner, and separately unlawful to vend food from a vehicle or pushcart in a public space without a permit for that specific vehicle or pushcart. Effective July 1, 2032, vending will also require a supervisory licensee physically present at the cart or truck. The commissioner sets vehicle and pushcart size/design standards, and no vendor may vend from anything other than a compliant vehicle or pushcart.
Full-term permits are capped at 3,000 citywide; two hundred of those are borough-designated (50 each for the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island), administered through separate borough waiting lists. New full-term permits issued after July 1, 2022 for those borough-specific slots go only to holders of a supervisory license. Permittees must present their pushcart or vehicle for a Department inspection within three months of application certification and pass inspection within six months. Fees under § 17-308 run $25/year for a standard license ($500/year for a supervisory license), and $50 for the first year of a pushcart/vehicle or fresh-fruit-and-vegetable permit, dropping to $25/year after that; a lost or destroyed license/permit/plate costs $10 to replace.
Fresh-fruits-and-vegetables permit holders (green carts) may sell only produce, water, raw single-ingredient nuts and other Department-designated healthful items, and only from a green cart or designated vehicle.
Violations & Fines
Under § 17-325, operating without the required license or permit is a violation carrying a $150-$250 fine, plus a separate civil penalty of $150-$1,000 and $100 per day of continued unlicensed operation (rising to a flat $1,000 civil penalty plus $250/day for 'continued unlicensed activity' as the Department defines it, and up to $1,000 more if the vendor had a chance to get licensed or join the waitlist). Most other subchapter violations carry escalating civil penalties: $25 first offense, $50 second, $100 third (plus the remedies in § 17-317(f)), $250 for any further offense within two years of the first. Failing to affix a current grade or grade-pending card draws a flat $500 penalty. Cases go before the Environmental Control Board or an OATH tribunal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need both a license and a permit to run a food truck in NYC?
How many mobile food vending permits does NYC issue?
What happens if I vend without a permit in NYC?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in New York
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