How to Start a Food Truck in Toronto

The two licences, in order

Toronto regulates food trucks through two separate documents, and the order you apply matters. Everything else (health inspection, insurance, the truck itself) feeds into these.

First: the Motorized Refreshment Vehicle owner licence (V15). This is the licence to operate the truck at all. It is required whether you sell on a street corner or on a friend's parking lot. Cost: $1,464.14 total — a $286.47 non-refundable application fee up front and a $1,177.67 licence fee once approved. It renews annually for $973.91.

Second: the Mobile Food Vending permit (R54). This is what lets you sell on public roads at pay-and-display stations. You cannot get it without the V15 — the city states plainly that a mobile vending application will not be processed without the business licence. Fees (HST included): $3,896.58 for six months, $5,844.88 for nine months, $7,793.15 for twelve months.

April 2026 brought bylaw changes that made the rules simpler and more inclusive. The practical effect for food trucks: since June 15, 2026, permit holders can operate up to 12 hours at a time at a spot, up from five. One new restriction to know: food trucks cannot operate on Gould Street as of July 30, 2026.

Step 1: Sort the paperwork for the V15 licence

Apply online through the city's licence portal. The city is blunt about this: applications do not start until every required document is uploaded, and incomplete applications are not held. For a sole proprietor, the checklist is:

• Valid G-class Ontario driver's licence
• Proof of legal work status (Canadian birth certificate, passport, citizenship card, PR card, SIN card, or a study/work permit)
• Driving record abstract from ServiceOntario, no more than 30 days old
• Criminal Record and Judicial Matters Check, no more than one year old
• Vehicle ownership registered in the applicant's name
• A photo that meets the city's photo requirements
• Ontario business name registration (if you operate under any name other than your own)
• Certificate of $2,000,000 commercial general liability insurance, signed and stamped by the insurer
• A valid Safety Standards Certificate from an approved MTO inspection station, no more than 36 days old
• A list of every product and food item you plan to sell
• If the truck has propane or natural gas equipment, proof of inspection by a certified technician (the TSSA site lists certified technicians)
• The health inspection letter — covered in Step 2

The screening bar is real. Municipal Licensing and Standards can deny the licence for things like a sexual offence conviction, serious criminal convictions within the last five to ten years, or nine or more demerit points on your driving record at application time. Sort out any outstanding by-law fines first — those are also grounds for denial.

Partnerships and corporations apply with the same vehicle, insurance, health, and safety documents, plus the corporate paperwork (articles of incorporation or corporate profile report within one year, ID and background checks for all directors/officers, annual return declaration).

Step 2: Pass the Toronto Public Health check

Before the city approves the V15, you need a Proof of Health Inspection Letter from Toronto Public Health. Arrange it by calling 311 or the Health Connection Line at 416-338-7600. This is the gateway to DineSafe: the inspection program that rates Toronto food premises and posts results publicly.

Under the licence, your truck must meet O. Reg. 493/17, Ontario's Food Premises regulation — the same standard a restaurant faces. The practical requirements for a truck:

• A hand-washing basin (separate from dishwashing sinks), with hot and cold running potable water
• A two-compartment sink for washing and sanitizing utensils
• Mechanical refrigeration that holds cold food at 4°C or below, plus hot-holding equipment that keeps food at 60°C or above
• Adequate ventilation for cooking fumes
• Food-contact surfaces that are smooth, non-absorbent, and easy to sanitize
• Sufficient potable water and wastewater tank capacity to last a full service

Toronto's bylaw also requires at least one certified food handler on every shift who can supervise food safety. Get certified through Toronto Public Health's Food Handler Certification program: a six-hour course plus exam, with a certificate valid for five years. Private providers accredited by Toronto Public Health are also accepted. Budget around $30 to $60.

Step 3: Secure a commissary (service base)

A food truck cannot run on street spots alone. You need a commissary — a home base where food is prepped, water tanks are filled, wastewater is legally discharged, and the truck is cleaned and serviced. Toronto makes this visible: the licence requires the commissary address painted on both sides of the truck in 10 cm lettering, alongside the business name, licence number, and plate number.

In practice, a commissary is a licensed commercial kitchen or inspected food premises. Some operators lease space at a commissary kitchen; others run trucks out of their own restaurant's kitchen. Whatever the arrangement, Toronto Public Health inspects the whole operation, so the base has to meet the same O. Reg. 493/17 standards. Choose this before you buy the truck — your prep capacity, storage, and water/waste logistics all flow from it.

Step 4: Get the truck road-ready

The vehicle requirements go beyond the food equipment. Toronto requires:

• Contrasting paint colours on both sides of the vehicle
• Painted lettering: client's name (10 cm), business name (10 cm), licence number (6.3 cm), plate number (15 cm), and the commissary address (10 cm)
• A valid Safety Standards Certificate, no more than 36 days old at application
• A propane/natural gas inspection certificate from a certified technician if applicable

If you are building a truck out, have the food equipment laid out with the health inspector's checklist in mind before the build is finished — moving plumbing and sinks after the fact is the expensive way to do it. If buying a used food truck, ask for the previous operator's health inspection history and check the equipment against the list in Step 2 before you pay.

Step 5: Know where you can legally sell

With the V15 alone, you can sell on private property and commercial parking lots with the property owner's permission, as long as zoning allows food trucks in that area. No city permit is needed for private spots — but the property owner may charge you rent or a percentage of sales, and zoning conditions apply.

To sell on public roads, you need the R54 Mobile Vending permit. The rules at pay-and-display spots:

• Stay 30 metres from an open and operating restaurant (food courts excluded)
• Two trucks maximum per block
• Up to 12 hours at a time at one location
• Pay the parking meter fees yourself
• Gould Street is off-limits entirely
• Green P parking lots are available with a separate Green P permit

The city is studying designated Mobile Vending Zones that could make the street rules simpler, but those have not launched yet.

The numbers worth knowing

• V15 owner licence: $1,464.14 total ($286.47 application + $1,177.67 licence fee), renewal $973.91/year
• Mobile Vending permit: $3,896.58 (6 mo) / $5,844.88 (9 mo) / $7,793.15 (12 mo), HST included
• Required insurance: $2,000,000 commercial general liability
• Food handler certificate: valid 5 years, roughly $30–$60
• Health inspection letter: arrange via 311 or 416-338-7600
• Distance from restaurants on public roads: 30 metres
• Max two trucks per block; max 12 hours at one spot
• Driving record screening: 9+ demerit points is grounds for denial

Sources: Food Trucks (toronto.ca), Food trucks, vending carts & ice cream trucks — overview (toronto.ca), Street vending bylaw review (toronto.ca), Food Handler Certification Program (Toronto Public Health), O. Reg. 493/17: Food Premises.

Rules are current as of October 2026, including the April 2026 bylaw changes. Confirm fees and permit conditions on the city pages before applying — fees change periodically.

Related guides

• How to register a sole proprietorship and get a GST/HST number in Canada — the business-paperwork side of the food truck: business-name registration, the CRA business number, and when GST/HST registration kicks in.
• How to start building credit in Canada — financing the truck build starts with your score.