Catering Food Licence QLD: Application Help

Where you cook and where you serve

A catering licence in QLD starts with your preparation premises. Caterers generally work from a fixed kitchen licensed by the local council, and a separate preparation premises can need its own licence. Planning and fitout approvals sit outside the food licence, so if you rent a commercial kitchen, raise it early.

Next is where the food is served. Off-site catering means serving potentially hazardous food away from your principal place of business, such as at a client's venue. The test is where it's served, not necessarily where it's prepared. Ordinary food delivery and mobile food stalls aren't off-site catering, and catering at your own premises is treated differently.

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Getting your catering application together

Map your service model
Tell us about your kitchen, menus, where you serve, typical guest numbers and how many events you run a year.
Identify the application
We help work out the council pathway for a new business, takeover or change, and point out program questions to confirm with council.
Prepare supporting material
We help organise the details council is likely to ask about into a clear application. Your council confirms requirements and makes the decision. Our help covers the application, not writing the food safety program or arranging audits. If you plan to supply alcohol at functions, that's a separate liquor approval, and we can help with that too.

When an accredited food safety program applies

Queensland guidance requires an accredited food safety program for these catering models:

Off-site catering
Businesses that mainly cater on-site
On-site catering at part of a licensed premises for 200 or more people on 12 or more occasions a year

Chefs preparing catering food at a preparation bench

Frequently Asked Questions

Is delivering food the same as off-site catering?

Not necessarily. Queensland Government guidance says ordinary food delivery, such as pizza, and mobile food stalls are not off-site catering in the legal sense. Describe your service model to council.

Do caterers need a food safety program?

It depends on how you operate. Under Queensland Government guidance, off-site caterers and businesses mainly catering on-site need an accredited program. Your council confirms what applies to your business.

Do I need a new licence if I buy a catering business?

Check before settlement. Brisbane City Council, for example, requires a new food business licence on takeover, and other councils set their own process.