No single county health department - Connecticut food licensing is delegated to town health departments and multi-town health districts (e.g., City of Bridgeport Environmental Health; City of Stamford Health Dept; Town of Fairfield Health Dept; Greenwich Health Dept) · department site →
Fees change often — always confirm the current amount with the department before you budget.
Fairfield County food-facility health permits run about $575 annually. Confirm the exact amount with No single county health department - Connecticut food licensing is delegated to town health departments and multi-town health districts (e.g., City of Bridgeport Environmental Health; City of Stamford Health Dept; Town of Fairfield Health Dept; Greenwich Health Dept) 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 No single county health department - Connecticut food licensing is delegated to town health departments and multi-town health districts (e.g., City of Bridgeport Environmental Health; City of Stamford Health Dept; Town of Fairfield Health Dept; Greenwich Health Dept) issues the health permit.
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amendments aren’t individually reviewed, so confirm current rules with the authority having jurisdiction.See something out of date?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
Annual Food Establishment License (CT Class 1-4, per Connecticut Public Health Code and CGS 19a-36i)
set by each town/district, varying by class AND seating capacity
not a county fee
For reference, an out-of-county CT town (East Hartford) charges $575 for a Class IV license
Fairfield County town fees are comparable but must be confirmed on each town'
State adopted the 2022 FDA Food Code (eff. 2023); inspections categorize violations as Priority/Priority Foundation/Core with no letter grade or numeric score; reports public via local health departments.
Food truck / mobile permit
Mobile Food Establishment License (town-issued; no statewide CT food-truck license)
set by each town/district by class
not published as a uniform figure
See the operating town'
s Fee &
Licensing Schedule
Connecticut has NO statewide food-truck license; each of ~71 local health departments and ~19 health districts licenses mobile units separately, so a truck must be licensed in each town it operates; A signed commissary letter (commissary must be a licensed CT food establishment, not a home kitchen) is required for plan-review submission
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 $575 for Fairfield County:
$575 — 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 Fairfield County’s permit cost compares
At about $575/year, Fairfield County’s restaurant health permit is above the Connecticut median ($125) and above the U.S. median ($125) — higher than about 99% of U.S. counties.
Ranked 3rd-lowest of 3 Connecticut counties by permit cost.
Comparison uses the lowest published annual restaurant-permit figure in each county; confirm your exact tier with the department.
Budget the permit stack
Start with ~$575 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.
Grease trap & FOG requirements
Under IPC 2021, food establishments here must control fats, oils & grease (FOG) with a grease interceptor or trap, and typically register with the local sewer/wastewater authority. Grease interceptors are required where grease-laden waste is produced, sized under the state plumbing code, with the FOG discharge permit issued by the local sewer authority.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with No single county health department - Connecticut food licensing is delegated to town health departments and multi-town health districts (e.g., City of Bridgeport Environmental Health; City of Stamford Health Dept; Town of Fairfield Health Dept; Greenwich Health Dept) (contact above).
Fire suppression & backflow
Hood fire suppression (IFC 2021): 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 follows NFPA 96 and is permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal under the Connecticut State Fire Safety/Prevention Code. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.
Backflow prevention: An annual RPZ/backflow assembly test is required under state cross-connection control rules and administered by the public water supplier. A certified backflow assembly (often an RPZ) on the water service, tested annually, is standard — confirm with your water utility.
Watch out for
CT is town/district-run: there is no Fairfield County health department; Bridgeport, Stamford, Fairfield, Greenwich, etc; each license and set their own fees
License class (1-4) is statewide-defined, but the actual license and plan-review fees are set locally by each town/district and are not published as a single county schedule
Other food-service permits in this jurisdiction
Category
Annual fee
Notes
temporary/seasonal/special-event
$125.00
'Temporary Vendor; Festival' (seasonal); Fairfield County CT has no county health dept; licensing is municipal/district; Figures are City of Bridgeport (reference jurisdiction provided); General food establishments licensed by size/class (Class 1-4, $230-$400), not by the caterer/bakery/commissary categories
Equipment your Fairfield 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.
set by each town/district, varying by class AND seating capacity; not a county fee; For reference, an out-of-county CT town (East Hartford) charges $575 for a Class IV license; Fairfield County town fees are comparable but must be confirmed on each town's Fee & Licensing Schedule (Bridgeport, Stamford, Fairfield, Greenwich, etc.) These are annual health-permit fees, usually tiered by seating or size; confirm your exact category with the department.
Is plan review required in Fairfield County?
Yes — plan review is required before you build or remodel a food facility. Typical fees: plan-review fee is set per town and required for new or remodeled Class 2, 3, and 4 establishments; amounts vary by town (see each town's Fee & Licensing Schedule)
Do I need a commissary for a food truck in Fairfield County?
In most cases, yes — most mobile units must operate from an approved commissary; confirm exemptions with the department. Connecticut has NO statewide food-truck license; each of ~71 local health departments and ~19 health districts licenses mobile units separately, so a truck must be licensed in each town it operates; A signed commissary letter (commissary must be a licensed CT food establishment, not a home kitchen) is required for plan-review submission
Who issues food permits in Fairfield County?
Food permits here are issued by No single county health department - Connecticut food licensing is delegated to town health departments and multi-town health districts (e.g., City of Bridgeport Environmental Health; City of Stamford Health Dept; Town of Fairfield Health Dept; Greenwich Health Dept). 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.