Bakery permits and licenses in Washington
The statewide credentials every bakery needs to operate in Washington, plus city-specific guides for the cities we cover.
This page covers only the Washington statewide credentials for bakeries. Federal credentials that apply nationwide are on the Bakeries overview, and each city layers its own permits on top.
The credentials below are the Washington-wide requirements that apply to every bakery in the state. Each city and county layers its own permits, fees, and inspections on top. To see the requirements for a specific city, choose it from the Washington cities list below.
Washington credential overview
| Credential | Level | Fee | Renewal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington State Business License (Unified Business Identifier) | State | $50 to open the business and its UBI, plus $10 to register a trade name; renewal carries a $5 processing fee a year before any endorsements | Annual |
| Retail Sales Tax Registration (Bakery Item Exemption) | State | No registration fee; set up with the business license. The rate is 6.5% state plus a local add-on, around 10.35% combined in Seattle, so confirm the current rate for your location at the DOR rate lookup | Ongoing; returns filed monthly, quarterly, or annually by volume |
| Business and Occupation (B&O) Tax | State | 0.471% of gross receipts for retailing, 0.484% for wholesaling or manufacturing; no flat fee and no deduction for costs | Filed on the same excise return as sales tax |
| WSDA Food Processor License | State | Scaled by the gross sales WSDA inspects, from $55 under $50,000 up to $825 over $10 million; the published schedule traces to a 2019 form, so confirm the current amount with WSDA Food Safety | Annual (license year ends June 30) |
| WSDA Cottage Food Permit | State | $355 for a two-year permit | Every 2 years |
| Washington Food Worker Card | State | $10 per card | First card valid 2 years, then 3 years on renewal; 5 years with approved added training |
| Washington Employer Accounts (Workers Comp, Unemployment, Paid Leave, WA Cares) | State | No fee to open; ongoing premiums by classification and payroll (L&I workers comp by hours, plus unemployment, Paid Family and Medical Leave, and WA Cares) | Quarterly reporting |
| WSDA Weighing and Measuring Device Registration (Commercial Scale) | State | A small under-400-pound scale endorsement runs a modest annual fee, on the order of $16 plus a processing fee in older references; confirm the current amount with WSDA Weights and Measures | Annual, added as an endorsement on the business license |
| Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) Certification | State | About $100 to $200 through an approved provider, including the exam | Every 5 years (varies by provider) |
Washington cities
City and county rules stack on top of the statewide credentials.
Each bakery credential in Washington, explained
Grouped by the level of government that issues it, broadest first. Every bakery in Washington needs these regardless of city.
State level
9 credentials
Washington State Business License (Unified Business Identifier)
One Business License Application gives you the nine-digit Unified Business Identifier that every state agency keys off, and the same form opens your Department of Revenue tax accounts and, once you hire, your L&I and Employment Security employer accounts. Retail, wholesale, and cottage bakeries all need it. A second location is free to add; most other changes cost $10.
- Fee
- $50 to open the business and its UBI, plus $10 to register a trade name; renewal carries a $5 processing fee a year before any endorsements
- Renewal
- Annual
- Processing
- The UBI issues quickly online; allow 2 to 4 weeks for the full license
Retail Sales Tax Registration (Bakery Item Exemption)
Washington taxes prepared food but carves out plain bakery goods. Bread, rolls, bagels, croissants, pastries, doughnuts, cakes, pies, muffins, and cookies are exempt from sales tax unless you hand the customer an eating utensil with the sale, or prepared food tops 75 percent of your total food sales, at which point even the bread becomes taxable. A napkin holder on the counter does not trip it; putting a fork in the customer's hand does. Savory meal items like quiche or piroshki are taxable regardless, and a taxable coffee sold next to an exempt scone must be priced separately or the whole charge is taxed.
- Issued by
- Washington Department of Revenue
- Fee
- No registration fee; set up with the business license. The rate is 6.5% state plus a local add-on, around 10.35% combined in Seattle, so confirm the current rate for your location at the DOR rate lookup
- Renewal
- Ongoing; returns filed monthly, quarterly, or annually by volume
- Processing
- Active as soon as the UBI issues
Business and Occupation (B&O) Tax
The B&O tax falls on gross receipts, not profit, so a bakery can owe it in a year it loses money. A retail bakery reports all income under the retailing classification and then deducts its exempt food sales; a wholesale or manufacturing bakery reports under wholesaling or manufacturing. A bakery that both makes and sells its goods can land under two classifications at once, but the Multiple Activities Tax Credit cancels the double tax. Some cities, Seattle among them, levy their own B&O on top of this one.
- Issued by
- Washington Department of Revenue
- Fee
- 0.471% of gross receipts for retailing, 0.484% for wholesaling or manufacturing; no flat fee and no deduction for costs
- Renewal
- Filed on the same excise return as sales tax
- Processing
- Active with your DOR registration
WSDA Food Processor License
This is the wholesale and manufacturing license, required under RCW 69.07 for a bakery that makes baked goods to sell to grocers, restaurants, or other resellers. A pure retail storefront does not need it, because the local health department already licenses and inspects that operation, and that split is the thing bakers most often get wrong. A storefront that also sells wholesale needs both this license and its county health permit. The license is non-transferable and carries an initial inspection with later unannounced visits.
- Fee
- Scaled by the gross sales WSDA inspects, from $55 under $50,000 up to $825 over $10 million; the published schedule traces to a 2019 form, so confirm the current amount with WSDA Food Safety
- Renewal
- Annual (license year ends June 30)
- Processing
- About 4 to 6 weeks from a complete application to the opening inspection
WSDA Cottage Food Permit
Selling baked goods from home in Washington is a paid, inspected permit, not the free exemption Oregon offers. Under RCW 69.22 you apply, pay $355, and pass a WSDA inspection of your home kitchen before you sell. Only shelf-stable goods qualify, with no refrigerated fillings, and sales must go direct to the end consumer, so no wholesale, no consignment, and no selling through a third-party shop. Gross sales are capped at $35,000 a year, each item carries the required home-kitchen disclaimer label, and every baker needs a Food Worker Card. Check your city or county for any home-occupation zoning rules.
- Fee
- $355 for a two-year permit
- Renewal
- Every 2 years
- Processing
- A WSDA inspection of your home kitchen comes before the permit issues
Washington Food Worker Card
Everyone who handles unwrapped food in your bakery needs a Food Worker Card, and a new hire has 14 days to get one. The only valid online source is foodworkercard.wa.gov; cards from lookalike .com sites or from other states do not count. The card is good statewide and required under RCW 69.06 and WAC 246-217 for retail, wholesale, and cottage operations alike.
- Fee
- $10 per card
- Renewal
- First card valid 2 years, then 3 years on renewal; 5 years with approved added training
- Processing
- Same day; the online course and test take about 90 minutes
Washington Employer Accounts (Workers Comp, Unemployment, Paid Leave, WA Cares)
Only if your bakery has employees. Checking the employer box on the business license opens all four at once: workers compensation through the L&I state monopoly, which no private insurer can replace, plus unemployment insurance, Paid Family and Medical Leave, and the WA Cares long-term-care fund through Employment Security. Part-time bakery help counts, and everything reports quarterly.
- Fee
- No fee to open; ongoing premiums by classification and payroll (L&I workers comp by hours, plus unemployment, Paid Family and Medical Leave, and WA Cares)
- Renewal
- Quarterly reporting
- Processing
- Opened with the business license when you mark that you will hire
WSDA Weighing and Measuring Device Registration (Commercial Scale)
If you set a price by weight, for example bread sold per pound, each commercial scale must be registered before use, be NTEP-certified and legal for trade, and have been serviced and stickered by a registered service agent. A scale used only to portion dough internally, where no price rides on the reading, does not need it. Unregistered devices draw a $100 penalty each. Seattle has historically run its own weights-and-measures program, so a Seattle bakery should confirm whether it registers with WSDA or the city.
- Issued by
- Washington State Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures Program (registered through DOR)
- Fee
- A small under-400-pound scale endorsement runs a modest annual fee, on the order of $16 plus a processing fee in older references; confirm the current amount with WSDA Weights and Measures
- Renewal
- Annual, added as an endorsement on the business license
- Processing
- Registered with the business license or added later as an endorsement
Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) Certification
Washington's retail food code (WAC 246-215) expects a person in charge with demonstrated food-safety knowledge, and a manager certificate is the clean way to meet it, more so for higher-risk bakery-cafes. It sits above the basic Food Worker Card, and completing an approved course also stretches your Food Worker Card to a 5-year renewal. Confirm whether your operation legally requires one with your local health jurisdiction.
- Fee
- About $100 to $200 through an approved provider, including the exam
- Renewal
- Every 5 years (varies by provider)
- Processing
- Same day; the exam result is immediate
Washington-specific things to watch for
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a license to sell baked goods in Washington?
Yes, and which one depends on your model. A retail storefront gets a food establishment permit from the local health department (Public Health Seattle and King County in Seattle). A wholesale or manufacturing bakery needs a WSDA Food Processor License. A home baker needs a paid WSDA Cottage Food Permit. Every model also needs a Washington business license and UBI from the Department of Revenue.
Can you sell baked goods from home in Washington?
Yes, under the Cottage Food Law (RCW 69.22), but it takes a real permit. You pay $355 for a two-year WSDA Cottage Food Permit, pass a home-kitchen inspection, sell only shelf-stable goods direct to consumers (no wholesale or consignment), stay under $35,000 in annual gross sales, label each item with the home-kitchen disclaimer, and hold a Food Worker Card.
Are baked goods taxable in Washington?
Usually not. Plain bakery items such as bread, pastries, cakes, and cookies are exempt from retail sales tax unless you physically hand the buyer an eating utensil, or prepared food makes up more than 75 percent of your food sales, which makes everything taxable. Beverages like coffee are taxable and must be itemized separately from exempt baked goods.
Does a retail bakery need a WSDA license in Washington?
Generally no. A storefront selling only to walk-in customers is a retail food establishment licensed by the county health department, not WSDA, so the county permit takes the place of a WSDA license. You only add a WSDA Food Processor License if you also sell wholesale to grocers or restaurants, and then you carry both.
You just read through every credential your bakery needs in Washington.
Each one has a different renewal date, a different fee, and a different agency. CredentiAlert tracks all of them and reminds you before any of them lapse, so you can spend your time running your business, not managing a renewal calendar.
- WA Department of Revenue, Apply for a Business License
- WA Department of Revenue, Bakeries Industry Guide (Sales Tax)
- WA Department of Revenue, Business and Occupation Tax
- WSDA Food Safety, Food Processors
- WSDA Cottage Food Program
- WA Food Worker Card (official site)
- WA Department of Health, Food Worker and Industry
- WA Labor and Industries, Insurance
- WSDA Weights and Measures, Device Registration
Last verified 2026-06-04. Requirements change. Always confirm with the issuing department before applying.