How to Start a Food Truck Business in Georgia
How to Start a Food Truck Business in Georgia
Georgia has over 300 active food trucks in Atlanta alone. Add Savannah’s tourist-heavy riverfront, Augusta’s growing food scene, and a festival calendar that runs nearly twelve months a year, and you’re looking at one of the stronger food truck markets in the Southeast.
But here’s what most “how to start a food truck” guides skip over: the regulatory chain in Georgia is more complex than a single permit. You need a licensed commissary before you can get a health permit. You need a Certified Food Protection Manager on every truck. And your permit comes from your county — not the state — which means the rules and fees vary depending on where your home base is.
None of this is insurmountable. But going in without understanding it leads to expensive surprises. This guide covers the real sequence, in order, with actual costs.
Why Start a Food Truck in Georgia
The climate alone is a business argument. Georgia’s outdoor dining weather runs 10+ months a year — you’re not losing half your operating calendar to February snowstorms the way a food truck owner in Chicago is.
The economics also compare favorably to a brick-and-mortar. A fully equipped food truck costs $50,000-$200,000. A restaurant build-out in Georgia runs $250,000-$500,000, and that’s before you factor in the lease deposit and tenant improvement timeline. You can be operational in a food truck in 90 days. A restaurant takes six to twelve months minimum.
The market infrastructure is genuinely good. Metro Atlanta has brewery tap rooms actively booking food trucks for dinner service, office park lunch programs, farmer’s markets in Decatur and Roswell, and a festival season that runs from Sweetwater 420 Fest in April through the Shaky Boots country festival and beyond. Savannah’s tourism traffic creates consistent foot traffic near Forsyth Park and the City Market. Augusta has been building out its food truck presence alongside the Riverwalk and downtown development.
The 2022 HB 1443 legislation made multi-county operation significantly more practical. Under that law, if you hold a valid mobile food permit from one Georgia county, other counties are required to recognize it without putting you through a full reinspection. You may still need to register and pay local fees in each county you operate — but you’re not starting from scratch every time you cross a county line. That’s a real operational advantage.
Don’t mistake any of this for easy money, though. The startup costs are substantial, the permit process takes time, and the daily operational requirements — particularly around commissary use — are stricter than most people expect.
Step 1: Choose Your Business Structure
Form an LLC before you do anything else. File online at ecorp.sos.ga.gov for $100. That’s the Georgia Secretary of State’s Corporations Division portal, and it handles the whole thing.
Food businesses carry outsized liability exposure. A customer gets sick, claims an allergic reaction, or gets burned by a grease splatter — your personal assets are exposed if you’re operating as a sole proprietor. An LLC creates a legal wall between the business and your personal finances. For $100, there’s no reason not to.
After formation, you’ll pay a $60 annual registration fee each year (that’s a $50 base fee plus a mandatory $10 service fee, effective September 6, 2025). Annual registrations are due between January 1 and April 1. Miss that window and there’s a $25 late penalty.
Get your EIN from the IRS at irs.gov/ein — it’s free and takes about five minutes online. You’ll need it for your bank account, tax registrations, and most permit applications.
Step 2: Secure a Commissary / Base of Operation
This is the step that catches most people off guard. In Georgia, you cannot get a food truck health permit without a licensed commissary or approved base of operation already in place. Not a pending agreement — an actual, confirmed arrangement.
Georgia DPH requires your base of operation to have: a handwashing sink, a potable fresh water supply tap, a wastewater dump facility, food storage capacity, and dishwashing capability for equipment too large to wash on the truck itself. It has to be a licensed commercial facility — your home kitchen doesn’t qualify.
Two requirements that surprise people:
You must return to your base of operation daily. This isn’t a once-a-week thing. Every operating day, you’re loading up from and returning to your commissary. Plan your geography accordingly — a commissary 40 miles from your primary operating area adds serious time and fuel costs.
You cannot share a base of operation with another food truck permit holder. Each permit holder needs their own separate commissary agreement. This is a DPH rule tied to liability and foodborne illness traceback. If there’s a contamination event, inspectors need a clean chain of custody.
Your options:
- Rent space at a licensed commissary kitchen. Georgia has a solid network of these. Expect to pay $12-$25/hour for shared time, or $800-$1,500/month for a dedicated arrangement. The Georgia Department of Agriculture maintains a list of licensed shared community kitchens at agr.georgia.gov.
- Partner with an existing licensed restaurant. Some restaurants will rent their kitchen during off-hours. You’ll need a formal written commissary agreement for the health department — a handshake doesn’t work.
- Build your own licensed commercial kitchen. The most expensive option upfront, but gives you full control. Worth considering only if you’re planning to scale into catering or multiple trucks.
Lock down your commissary agreement first. Everything else in the permit process depends on it.
Step 3: Get Your County Health Permit
Georgia doesn’t issue a single statewide food truck permit. Your permit comes from the Environmental Health department in your home county, operating under the Georgia Department of Public Health framework (Chapter 511-6-1).
The process looks like this:
- Submit a plan review application to your county health department. This includes your truck layout, equipment list, and proposed menu. The health department reviews it to make sure your setup can handle what you want to cook.
- Once plans are approved, schedule a truck inspection. An environmental health inspector physically examines your truck and equipment.
- Permit is issued after passing inspection — with your commissary agreement already in hand.
Permit fees run $200-$600 per year depending on the county. Smaller, rural counties tend to be on the lower end. Fulton and DeKalb typically run higher. Budget $400 as a reasonable middle estimate.
Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) — mandatory. At least one person on every food truck must hold a valid CFPM certification. The most common path is ServSafe, but any ANSI-accredited exam qualifies. The course and exam together run approximately $150-$200, and the certification is valid for five years. Everyone else handling food must have a Food Handler certification, obtained within 30 days of hire.
This isn’t optional and it isn’t bureaucratic boilerplate. If your CFPM-certified person quits and you haven’t trained a replacement, you’re technically out of compliance.
Multi-county operation under HB 1443: Once you have a valid mobile food permit from your home county, other Georgia counties must accept it without requiring a full reinspection. You’ll likely still need to register with each county and may owe local fees — but you’re not rebuilding your permit from scratch. This is a meaningful change from how it worked before 2022, and it’s worth understanding before you plan your route territory.
For questions about the permit process, Georgia DPH’s info line is (404) 657-6534.
Step 4: Get Your Local Business License and Permits
Your county health permit covers food safety. Your local business license covers the right to operate a business in a given jurisdiction. These are separate, and you need both.
Occupation Tax Certificate: Every county requires one. Fees typically run $50-$200 per year based on gross receipts or a flat rate depending on the county. Apply through your county or city’s business licensing office.
SAVE Affidavit and E-Verify Affidavit: Both are mandatory for all Georgia business license applications, no exceptions.
The SAVE Affidavit (Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements) verifies lawful presence in the US under O.C.G.A. § 50-36-1. It requires notarization and a Secure and Verifiable Document — a driver’s license or passport works.
The E-Verify Affidavit requirement under O.C.G.A. § 36-60-6 splits based on size: if you have 11 or more employees, you must be registered for E-Verify and provide your user number. Fewer than 11 employees? You file an exemption affidavit instead.
Additional local permits to check:
- Some cities require a separate mobile food vendor permit or zoning approval on top of the county business license. Atlanta, Savannah, and Augusta each have their own requirements — check with each city’s planning or business licensing department before you start operating regularly in a new location.
- Fire department inspection is typically required for any truck running propane and cooking equipment. Don’t skip this — it’s both a legal requirement and genuinely important given what can go wrong with a commercial hood over a high-BTU burner.
- Some cities regulate vehicle signage — dimensions, placement, what can be displayed on a vehicle operating as a commercial vendor. Check local ordinances before you wrap your truck.
Step 5: Vehicle and Equipment Requirements
Your truck isn’t just a vehicle — it’s a licensed food service establishment on wheels, and Georgia DPH treats it accordingly.
Equipment minimums: Georgia DPH mobile food service standards require a three-compartment sink, a dedicated handwashing sink (separate from the three-compartment — you can’t wash hands where you wash equipment), adequate mechanical refrigeration, and proper ventilation with a commercial hood system. The hood isn’t optional if you’re doing any cooking that generates grease-laden vapors.
Your truck goes through a county health inspection before your permit is issued. The inspector checks equipment function, plumbing, ventilation, surface materials, and whether your setup matches your submitted plans. Don’t buy a truck and then try to fit your menu around what’s already in it — start with your menu concept and build or source the truck to match.
Propane systems: Must comply with NFPA standards. A fire suppression system is required for cooking operations. This is non-negotiable and directly tied to your fire department inspection. Used trucks sometimes have suppression systems that are expired or not properly certified — verify this before you buy.
Temperature logging: Georgia requires a valid commercial kitchen-grade thermometer and temperature logs. This is active ongoing compliance, not just a permit-day thing. Inspectors check logs during routine inspections.
Insurance: You need commercial auto insurance on the truck (personal auto policies explicitly exclude commercial use). You also need general liability insurance for your business operations. Budget $3,000-$6,000/year combined. If you have three or more employees — including part-time — Georgia requires workers’ compensation coverage under the State Board of Workers’ Compensation (sbwc.georgia.gov).
Step 6: Register for State Taxes
Register at the Georgia Tax Center (gtc.dor.ga.gov) before your first sale.
Sales tax: All food truck sales are subject to Georgia sales tax. The state base rate is 4%, but the combined rate including local taxes typically runs 7-9% depending on the county where you’re serving. The rate that applies is determined by where the transaction happens — not where your truck is registered. If you serve lunch in Fulton County on Tuesday and DeKalb County on Thursday, you’re collecting and remitting at each county’s rate. Keep clean location records.
Employer withholding: If you’re hiring anyone, register for employer withholding tax through GTC as well. Georgia’s income tax rate is a flat 5.19% for 2025.
Federal: Get your EIN at irs.gov/ein if you haven’t already. Free, immediate, done online.
Costs at a Glance
No sugar-coating here. Food trucks are not a cheap entry into the food business. They’re cheaper than a restaurant — but that bar is set at $400,000.
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| LLC filing (one-time) | $100 |
| Annual LLC registration | $60/year |
| Food truck, used | $40,000-$100,000 |
| Food truck, new custom | $75,000-$200,000 |
| Commissary rental | $800-$1,500/month |
| County health permit | $200-$600/year |
| CFPM certification (ServSafe) | ~$150-$200 (valid 5 years) |
| Occupation Tax Certificate | $50-$200/year |
| Commercial auto + general liability insurance | $3,000-$6,000/year |
| Workers’ comp (3+ employees) | Varies by payroll |
Total first-year estimate:
- Used truck scenario: approximately $60,000-$130,000
- New custom truck scenario: approximately $100,000-$230,000
The commissary rental alone runs $9,600-$18,000 per year. That’s a fixed cost you’re paying whether you’re doing $5,000 in sales that month or $25,000. Build it into your financial model before you commit to anything.
The Sequence That Actually Matters
The permit dependencies in Georgia run in a specific order. Skip a step and you’ll be backtracking.
- Form your LLC and get your EIN
- Secure your commissary agreement (this unlocks everything else)
- Submit plan review to your county Environmental Health department
- Get your CFPM certification (don’t wait — schedule the exam early)
- Pass truck inspection → receive county health permit
- Get your Occupation Tax Certificate + file SAVE and E-Verify affidavits
- Register for sales tax at Georgia Tax Center
- Get commercial auto and liability insurance
- Schedule fire department inspection
The commissary is the linchpin. Every food truck operator who’s gone through this process in Georgia will tell you the same thing: find your base of operation before you buy a truck. It determines your geography, your daily operating cost, and your timeline to permit approval.
Once you’re permitted in your home county, HB 1443 opens the rest of the state. That’s the real upside of starting in Georgia right now — the regulatory framework, while demanding, is at least structured to let you grow across county lines without starting over every time.