How to start a takeaway business in the UK: a step-by-step checklist

Opening a takeaway means dealing with several sets of rules at once: food safety, planning, licensing, waste, insurance and tax. None of them is hard on its own, but the order matters. Some, like planning permission, need sorting before you sign a lease, and others, like registering your food business, have a fixed deadline before you open.

This checklist covers what a new takeaway in the UK needs, with links to the official guidance for each step. Rules differ between England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in places, and your council is the best source for anything local.

1. Check planning permission before you sign a lease

In England, hot food takeaways have their own planning category. Since 1 September 2020, a hot food takeaway, meaning a place selling hot food that is mostly eaten off the premises, has been 'sui generis', which means it sits outside the standard use classes. GOV.UK guidance says a change of use to a sui generis use is subject to full local consideration, which in practice means applying for planning permission.

The same guidance notes that this gives councils more control over how many hot food takeaways open in an area. So before you commit to a unit, ask the council's planning department whether it already has permission for a takeaway, and if not, how likely it is to get it.

Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own planning systems. Food Standards Scotland's start-up checklist, for example, says to confirm with your council's planning department that the premises have the right permission to operate as a food business.

2. Register your food business

Every food business must register with its local council. GOV.UK says (opens in a new tab) you must register at least 28 days before you start trading, and advises against registering too early. The FSA's guidance says registration is free and cannot be refused. You register each site separately, and the rule covers home-based, mobile and online-only food businesses as well as shops.

In Scotland, Food Standards Scotland says you must register with your council's environmental health service at least 28 days before opening, that registration is free, and that each premises needs registering.

Once you are registered, the council will inspect you. Inspections are unannounced, and you will get a food hygiene rating. The FSA says inspectors are not visiting to find faults or to shut you down, and that all businesses should be able to achieve the top rating.

3. Get trained and write down your food safety procedures

The FSA says you and your staff must be trained in food hygiene, and that you will need to show you have been adequately trained. It is not compulsory to hold a food hygiene certificate, but the FSA recommends a qualification and your council can suggest suitable courses.

You must also have food safety procedures based on HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) principles. In plain terms, that means a written system that:

1. Identifies the hazards that could make your food unsafe.
2. Finds the points where you can prevent, remove or reduce each hazard.
3. Sets limits for each of those points.
4. Monitors them.
5. Checks that the system works.
6. Fixes problems when something goes wrong.
7. Keeps records.

You do not have to build this from scratch. In England, the FSA's Safer Food Better Business (SFBB) packs cover personal hygiene, pest control, cross-contamination and cleaning. In Scotland, Food Standards Scotland's start-up checklist suggests a HACCP-based guide such as CookSafe.

Allergens are part of this. You must be able to tell customers if a dish contains any of the 14 allergens, and for online and phone orders that information must be available before the customer orders and when the food is delivered. The FSA offers free online allergy training. Our guide to allergen rules for takeaways goes into more detail.

4. Get the premises right

The FSA says your premises must let you prepare food safely, with handwashing facilities, changing facilities, ventilation, lighting and drainage. Floors, walls, ceilings, surfaces and equipment must be easy to clean and kept in good repair. You also need a fire risk assessment, and your local fire service can advise.

It is worth talking to the council's environmental health team before you fit out a kitchen. Changing a layout before you open is much cheaper than changing it after an inspection.

5. Check whether you need a late night licence

In England and Wales, selling hot food or hot drink to the public between 11pm and 5am is 'late night refreshment' under Schedule 2 of the Licensing Act 2003 (opens in a new tab). It is a licensable activity, which the Act says must be carried on under a premises licence (or as a permitted temporary activity). The Schedule covers food supplied 'on or from' your premises, whether it is eaten there or elsewhere.

'Hot' here means heated so it can be eaten above the ambient air temperature. There are exemptions, including areas or times your council has designated, vending machines, free food and supplies by registered charities. If you plan to open after 11pm, speak to your council's licensing team before you set your opening hours.

Scotland has a different law. Section 42 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (opens in a new tab) sets out a late hours catering licence for premises used between 11pm and 5am to sell food to the public, whether it is eaten on or off the premises. Under section 9 (opens in a new tab) of the same Act, that licence only applies where your council has resolved to require it, so ask your council's licensing department whether you need one. Food Standards Scotland's start-up checklist (opens in a new tab) lists late hours catering among the licences you may need. If you plan to sell alcohol, ask the same licensing team about that too.

6. Sort out your waste

GOV.UK says businesses must sort and store waste safely, use a registered waste carrier, and complete a waste transfer note for each load that leaves the premises. In England, the Simpler Recycling rules, in force since 31 March 2025, mean businesses must separate food waste and dry recycling from general waste. Micro-firms with fewer than 10 full-time equivalent employees have until 31 March 2027 to comply.

The FSA adds kitchen-specific advice: put food waste in the bin rather than down the sink, use sink strainers, manage fat, oil and grease with a grease trap or removal unit, and remove rubbish quickly so it does not attract pests. In Scotland, the FSS checklist says to have a waste management contract in place.

7. Get insured

If you employ anyone, employers' liability insurance is a legal requirement from the day you become an employer. GOV.UK says the policy must cover you for at least £5 million and come from an authorised insurer, and you can be fined £2,500 for every day you are not properly insured. The main exemption is if you employ only a close family member.

Other cover, such as public liability or contents insurance, is worth discussing with a broker. The FSA's guidance points to the Association of British Insurers' business insurance guidance as a starting point.

8. Plan for business rates and VAT

Your council collects business rates on the premises. In England, GOV.UK says you may get small business rate relief if your property's rateable value is less than £15,000 and your business uses only one property, and you pay no business rates on a property with a rateable value of £12,000 or less. Your council can tell you what you qualify for. Rates and reliefs work differently in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, so check locally.

You must register for VAT once your taxable turnover goes over £90,000 in a 12-month period. Hot takeaway food is standard-rated, so VAT affects your prices once you are registered. Our guide to VAT on hot takeaway food explains the rules.

9. Choose your till and ordering system

Before you open, decide how you will take orders at the counter, by phone, online and through any delivery apps, and how those orders will reach the kitchen. Check the contract length, the card fees, whether the system keeps working if the internet drops, and who you call when something goes wrong on a Friday night. ChefSynk's plans are monthly rolling with no setup fee, start at £35 a month ex VAT and include the first month free; you can compare them on our pricing page.

Sources

• GOV.UK, Food business registration (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• FSA, Starting a food business (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• GOV.UK, Food safety management systems (HACCP) (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• FSA, Safer Food Better Business (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• FSS, Registering a food business (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• FSS, Starting a food business checklist (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• GOV.UK, Addendum: hot food takeaways use in the new Use Class Order (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• Licensing Act 2003, section 1 (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• Licensing Act 2003, section 2 (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• Licensing Act 2003, Schedule 2 (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, section 9 (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, section 42 (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• GOV.UK, Managing your waste: an overview (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• GOV.UK, Simpler Recycling: workplace recycling in England (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• GOV.UK, Employers' liability insurance (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• GOV.UK, Small business rate relief (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)
• GOV.UK, Register for VAT (opens in a new tab) (checked 12 November 2026)