Food truck licence in Ireland — every permit you need (2026)
A food truck in Ireland does not need one licence — it needs a stack of them, and getting one wrong can mean a closure order from the EHO on opening weekend. This guide covers every permit, certificate, and registration an Irish food truck or food trailer needs, in the order you should obtain them. Total time to get fully licensed: 6–10 weeks. Total cost across all permits in the first year: typically €1,200–€3,500 depending on county, trading volume, and insurance band.
The 7 licences + certs every Irish food truck needs
In order: (1) Business registration with the Companies Registration Office or Revenue, (2) FSAI food premises registration via your Local Authority (free, mandatory, 28 days before opening), (3) HACCP Level 2 food-safety certificate for every food handler, (4) Casual trading licence from the Local Authority where you trade — separate licence per council area, (5) RGI gas cert if you use LPG (annual renewal), (6) Public liability insurance (€6.5M minimum for festivals), (7) Vehicle / trailer road-legal documents — DOE for towed trailers, NCT + tax for self-propelled food trucks. Festivals add their own one-off vendor agreements on top.
FSAI food premises registration (free, mandatory)
Required by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland Act 1998. Form FSP01 goes to your Local Authority's Environmental Health Office at least 28 days before opening. The form is free; the EHO inspection that follows registration is the next step. Trading without FSAI registration is a criminal offence — fines run to €5,000 + closure on first conviction. See our /guides/fsai-registration-food-trailer for the full registration walkthrough.
Casual trading licence (per council, €100–€500/year)
Required to sell on a public street, square, or public open space (Phoenix Park, Grafton Street, Eyre Square in Galway, English Market frontage in Cork, etc.). Issued by the Local Authority — Dublin City Council, Cork City Council, Galway City Council, etc. Each council has its own designated zones, allocation rules, and fees. You need a separate casual trading licence in every council area you trade — operators who work both DCC zones and Fingal weekend markets hold two. Festival pitches and private events generally do not need a casual trading licence (the festival licence covers vendors).
RGI gas certificate (€200–€500, annual renewal)
If you use LPG for griddles, fryers, or coffee-machine boilers, an RGI-registered installer must certify the installation. Required by law and by every insurer. The cert covers gas-tightness, regulator compliance, and ventilation. Annual recertification is mandatory. Find an installer via rgii.ie/find-an-installer. Insurance underwriters check this paperwork before issuing public liability cover for any LPG-equipped trailer.
Public liability insurance (€6.5M+, €600–€2,500/yr)
Public liability is the single biggest legal exposure — a single hot-coffee scald case can cost six figures. Festival organisers demand a minimum €6.5M cover line; some major festivals (Electric Picnic, Forbidden Fruit) ask for €10M. Irish specialist brokers: O'Driscoll O'Neil, Aviva trade, Allianz trade. Add product liability (food poisoning), employer's liability if you hire staff, and motor/transit cover for the vehicle.
HACCP Level 2 certificate (€80 online, every food handler)
Food handler training under HACCP principles is required for everyone serving food. The Level 2 certificate (one-day online course via courses.ie, the FSAI website, or providers like Train4Less) is the typical minimum. The business owner often holds Level 3 or higher. Festival vendor managers ask to see certs before approval.
Vehicle + trailer paperwork
Self-propelled food trucks need NCT + motor tax + appropriate driving licence (Category B is fine up to 3,500 kg gross; over that needs C1). Towed trailers need a current DOE (Department of Transport — Vehicle Testing Service) every year and the tow vehicle's licence holder must have the B+E entitlement if the gross combination exceeds 3,500 kg. See /guides/towing-licence-bplus-e-trailer-ireland for the full towing-licence breakdown.
Festival-specific vendor agreements
Major Irish festivals (Electric Picnic, Body & Soul, Forbidden Fruit, All Together Now, Bloom, the National Ploughing Championships) run their own vendor approval process — typically an online application form, fee €500–€3,000 for the weekend, plus a copy of every permit above. Apply in autumn for the following summer; the major festivals are oversubscribed by 5–10x in the prime food categories.
What happens if you trade without one of these
EHO closure orders are immediate and public (the Local Authority can name your business on its public register). Insurance lapses trigger civil liability with no cover. Casual trading without licence: fines + confiscation of stock. RGI-uncertified gas: insurance void on any incident. The stack matters because regulators talk to each other — an FSAI inspection that finds no RGI cert triggers a follow-up from the Local Authority.
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