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Local permits & fees

Collin County, TX Food Facility Permits & Fees

Restaurants and food trucks.

Collin County Development Services (unincorporated + contracting cities); City of Plano Environmental Health Division (within Plano) · department site →
Fees change often — always confirm the current amount with the department before you budget.

Collin County food-facility health permits run about $40–$600 annually, depending on size or sales volume. Confirm the exact amount with Collin County Development Services (unincorporated + contracting cities); City of Plano Environmental Health Division (within Plano) before you budget.

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 Collin County Development Services (unincorporated + contracting cities); City of Plano Environmental Health Division (within Plano) issues the health permit.

Cities with their own health department: Plano, Frisco, McKinney, Allen, Wylie, The Colony, Celina. Food businesses inside these cities apply to the city health department (with its own fees and rules), not Collin County. Confirm which authority covers your exact address.

The restaurant market in Collin County

What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.

2,599
food & drink establishments
51,326
industry jobs
$1,273M
annual payroll
$24,808
avg wage / worker
  • 975 full-service restaurants
  • 1,078 limited-service & fast food
  • 37 bars & drinking places
  • 371 snack & coffee bars
  • 26 mobile food & trucks

▲ 3.7% change in establishments since 2022 (2,507 → 2,599).

The average foodservice wage here is $1,725 above the Texas average ($23,083); Texas has about 60,229 food & drink establishments statewide.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (NAICS 722, food services & drinking places) — establishments with paid employees. Some small-county payroll figures are withheld by Census for confidentiality.

Last verified: 2026-08-17 — we re-confirmed the serving authority, its contact, and that the fees below match the current published schedule. Fee schedules may carry an earlier effective date (shown per fee); local ordinances & amendments aren’t individually reviewed, so confirm current rules with the authority having jurisdiction.See something out of date? Report an update →

Restaurant / food-facility permit

Food Establishment Permit
  • Collin County (unincorporated + Wylie, Melissa, Lowry Crossing, Weston, Josephine, Farmersville) health facility permit by size: 2,000-4,000 sq ft $300
  • 4,001-8,000 sq ft $400
  • 8,001-20,000 sq ft $500
  • over 20,000 sq ft $600. Day Care kitchen $150
  • Temporary Event $40

County only permits unincorporated areas and 6 listed cities; for all other Collin cities (incl; Plano) apply to that city directly; City of Plano runs its own Environmental Health permitting; Plano-specific fees not captured here (contact City of Plano); Verify county fees may be listed under 'Health Permits' on Development Services main page

Plan review — required

Fee not published online.

Turnaround: Complete plans must be submitted, reviewed and approved before construction/remodel begins (per City of Plano Food Code; county follows plan-review procedures)

Plan-review details & forms →

Reach the department

Office4690 Community Ave, Suite 200, McKinney, TX 75071

Inspection grading

Numeric score

Texas (TFER) demerit-based inspection: score = 100 minus demerits, fail above 30 demerits; administered by city/county health authorities, reports public.

Inspection scores & grading

Grading system: demerit. Collin County Development Services permits/inspects food establishments ONLY in unincorporated areas, using Texas Food Establishment Rules (TFER, Ch. 228) - demerit-based (items weighted 1/2/3). Incorporated cities run their own environmental health/food inspection programs.

Look up Collin County restaurant inspection scores →

Food truck / mobile permit

Mobile Food Establishment Permit
Fee not published online — contact the department.

County issues mobile food establishment permits via Citizen Self-Service portal; specific fee not published on fee page; NOTE: Effective 2026-07-01 Texas moved mobile food unit permitting to the STATE (Texas DSHS); verify current authority; fee not found

How to apply

Fees/payment and forms are on the department site; application steps vary by concept — see the checklist below.

What it costs in permit fees to open here

The government permit & plan-review fees below total roughly $40–$600 for Collin County:

  • $40–$600 — food-facility permit

That’s the paperwork only. Add buildout, equipment, deposits and licenses with the cost-to-open calculator. Fees change — confirm current amounts with the department.

How Collin County’s permit cost compares

At about $40/year, Collin County’s restaurant health permit is below the Texas median ($258) and below the U.S. median ($125) — higher than about 15% of U.S. counties.
Ranked 3rd-lowest of 247 Texas counties by permit cost.

Comparison uses the lowest published annual restaurant-permit figure in each county; confirm your exact tier with the department.

Local food-service market

About 2,507 food & drinking establishments serve ~1,195,359 residents in Collin County — one per ~477 residents, denser than the Texas average (one per ~566).

U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).

Budget the permit stack

Start with ~$40 annual health permit.

Plus building, fire, and business-license fees that vary locally — use the cost calculators and the checklist below to budget the full stack.

The full approval stack

A code-compliant kitchen in Collin County needs more than the health permit — these approvals are handled by separate offices. Confirm current requirements with each.

Building / plansCollin County Development Services (unincorporated only; TX cities issue their own building permits)
Fire marshalCollin County Fire Marshal - commercial inspections in unincorporated areas (IFC 2021)
Zoning / planningN/A - Texas counties have no zoning authority; zoning exists only within incorporated cities (limited county controls for SOB/junkyards/slaughter only)
Sewer / greaseCollin County Development Services - On-Site Sewage Facilities (OSSF/septic, unincorporated); grease/FOG via municipal utility inside cities
Business licenseN/A - Texas has no general county/state business license (TX Comptroller sales-tax permit only)

Grease trap & FOG requirements

Under 2015 UPC and 2015 IPC (state-adopted minimum; municipality selects), food establishments here must control fats, oils & grease (FOG) with a grease interceptor or trap, and typically register with the local sewer/wastewater authority. Restaurants must install an approved grease interceptor under the state-adopted plumbing code, with discharge governed by the local sewer authority's FOG program.

Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Collin County Development Services (unincorporated + contracting cities); City of Plano Environmental Health Division (within Plano) (contact above).

Fire suppression & backflow

Hood fire suppression: commercial cooking under a Type I hood needs a wet-chemical suppression system to NFPA 96, permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal. Commercial kitchen hood suppression must meet NFPA 96 and the locally adopted International Fire Code, enforced by the local fire marshal (no single mandatory statewide edition). See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.

Backflow prevention: Backflow prevention assemblies (typically an RPZ) require annual testing by a certified tester through the local water utility's cross-connection control program. A certified backflow assembly (often an RPZ) on the water service, tested annually, is standard — confirm with your water utility.

Watch out for

  • Temporary/short-term food permit only for operations not more than 14 days at a single location; application due 5 business days prior
  • Jurisdiction is fragmented: county covers unincorporated + 6 named cities only; larger cities (Plano, McKinney, Frisco, Allen) permit independently

Other food-service permits in this jurisdiction

CategoryAnnual feeNotes
temporary/seasonal/special-event$40Temporary Event permit (short-term event, up to 14 days at a single location)

Equipment your Collin County plan review will check

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.

Nearby counties

Permit costs and rules change at the county line — compare Collin County with its neighbors.

How to open: typical permitting sequence

This is a typical sequence — confirm the exact sequence with your authority having jurisdiction.

  1. Confirm whether Collin County or another local jurisdiction (city/district) handles your exact address.
  2. Confirm zoning and permitted use.
  3. Prepare your menu and scaled plans.
  4. Include an equipment schedule with ANSI/NSF spec sheets.
  5. Submit water-heater and hood documentation.
  6. Pay plan-review fees.
  7. Respond to plan-check corrections.
  8. Obtain Environmental Health plan approval.
  9. Obtain building, plumbing, mechanical and fire approvals.
  10. Schedule rough-plumbing, pre-final and final health inspections.
  11. Pay the operating-permit / application fees.
  12. Receive approval before storing or preparing food.

Official plan-check requirements: plan-check guide →

Frequently asked questions

How much is a food permit in Collin County?

Collin County (unincorporated + Wylie, Melissa, Lowry Crossing, Weston, Josephine, Farmersville) health facility permit by size: 2,000-4,000 sq ft $300; 4,001-8,000 sq ft $400; 8,001-20,000 sq ft $500; over 20,000 sq ft $600. Day Care kitchen $150; Temporary Event $40 These are annual health-permit fees, usually tiered by seating or size; confirm your exact category with the department.

Is plan review required in Collin County?

Yes — plan review is required before you build or remodel a food facility.

Do I need a commissary for a food truck in Collin County?

In most cases, yes — most mobile units must operate from an approved commissary; confirm exemptions with the department. County issues mobile food establishment permits via Citizen Self-Service portal; specific fee not published on fee page; NOTE: Effective 2026-07-01 Texas moved mobile food unit permitting to the STATE (Texas DSHS); verify current authority; fee not found

Who issues food permits in Collin County?

Food permits here are issued by Collin County Development Services (unincorporated + contracting cities); City of Plano Environmental Health Division (within Plano). See the department site for current details.

Are city building and fire approvals separate?

Yes — building, plumbing, mechanical and fire approvals are always separate from the health permit and are often handled by different offices.
Sources: www.collincountytx.gov · www.collincountytx.gov · www.plano.gov · content.civicplus.com · observed 2026-08-06