Restaurants and food trucks.
Confirm the authority for your exact address. Some cities run their own health division, and building, planning, fire, sewer/grease and business-license approvals are separate even when Columbus Public Health — Food Protection Program (240 Parsons Ave); Franklin County Public Health for balance of county issues the health permit.
Cities with their own health department: Columbus. Food businesses inside these cities apply to the city health department (with its own fees and rules), not Franklin County. Confirm which authority covers your exact address.
About 3,022 food & drinking establishments operate here, serving a population of about 1,326,063. (U.S. Census 2023 estimate; County Business Patterns 2022, NAICS 722)
Ohio FSO/RFE licenses are priced by risk level (Class 1-4) and size (<25,000 vs >=25,000 sq ft), set annually by each board of health via cost analysis (OAC 3701-21-02.1/02.2); columbus.gov blocks automated retrieval (HTTP 403); Fee schedule PDF (blocked): https://www.columbus.gov/files/sharedassets/city/v/2/public-health/2024-food-program-fee-schedule.pdf; Secondary range cited by industry guides: ~$135-$500+ depending on class
Turnaround: Submit plans >=45 days before target opening; mobile license review up to ~30 days
Franklin County (Columbus) Public Health inspects under the Ohio Uniform Food Safety Code; no letter grade, inspection reports posted online.
Columbus Public Health issues MFSO licenses for Franklin-County-based trucks; Secondary guide figures: risk-tiered ~$150-$300/yr, large-metro MFSO ~$300-$500+; Requires plan review, menu, equipment layout, commissary letter, and pre-operational inspection
Fees/payment and forms are on the department site; application steps vary by concept — see the checklist below.
U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).
A code-compliant kitchen in Franklin County needs more than the health permit — these approvals are handled by separate offices. Confirm current requirements with each.
| Category | Annual fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| temporary/seasonal/special-event | — | Temporary FSO/RFE license, event-specific (apply >=5 days prior), Columbus Public Health |
| pushcart/limited operation | — | Vending FSO and pushcart mobile categories exist (Concession, Pushcart, Knockdown, Catering-type truck); Fees in blocked PDF |
| caterer | — | Ohio risk-level FSO/RFE scheme; catering handled as a catering-type mobile unit or catering FSO by risk level, not a standalone category; No separate bakery/grocery-deli/bar license |
Health-department plan review looks for specific, code-compliant fixtures. Compare spec-filtered options, then confirm counts and sizes with your local requirements. See the full list in what equipment a commercial kitchen requires.
Permit costs and rules change at the county line — compare Franklin County with its neighbors.
This is a typical sequence — confirm the exact sequence with your authority having jurisdiction.
Official plan-check requirements: plan-check guide →