Restaurant permits in Seattle, Washington

The food permit for a Seattle restaurant comes from the county, not the city, because Public Health Seattle and King County is the single health authority inside the city limits, so there is no separate Seattle health permit. A full-service kitchen that cooks, hot-holds, or handles raw meat is automatically Risk 3, the top tier, and is inspected three times a year. The fee is set by seat count, the permit will not issue until plans pass and the pre-opening inspection clears, and it does not transfer to a new owner.

Issued by

Public Health, Seattle and King County, Food Protection Program

Fee

$945 a year for 0 to 12 seats, rising by seat band to $1,008, $1,134, $1,260, and $1,386 for the largest rooms; prorated in the first year, with late fees from 10 to 30 percent

Renewal

Annual (permit year April 1 to March 31)

Processing

Issued after plan review and a passed pre-opening inspection; book the inspection at least a week out

Before you build or remodel, you submit floor plans, an equipment list, your menu, and a questionnaire through the county permit center, and the plans must be stamped before the pre-opening inspection is scheduled. Because review is billed by the hour past the base, a full kitchen build-out routinely runs past the base hours and into added charges, so a complete first submission and a pre-submittal meeting pay for themselves.

Issued by

Public Health, Seattle and King County, Food Protection Program

Fee

$1,008 for new construction (first 4 hours) or $756 for a remodel (first 3 hours), then $252 an hour beyond, billed again for revisions; paid before the operating permit

Renewal

One-time per build, remodel, or change of ownership

Processing

Several weeks for a complete package, longer if revisions come back

Every business with a place of business in Seattle needs the city certificate under SMC 5.55, on top of the statewide UBI, and a restaurant plainly does. You register and later file your city taxes through the FileLocal portal, and the certificate must hang where customers can see it. New restaurants default to annual filing for the first year.

Issued by

City of Seattle, Office of City Finance

Fee

$73 for a new business at the lowest 2026 tier ($37 if you open July 1 or later); renewal is tiered on prior-year Seattle revenue, plus $10 per extra location

Renewal

Annual (expires December 31)

Processing

Minutes to a few days through FileLocal, longer by mail

Seattle runs its own B&O tax separate from the state's, filed with the city rather than the Department of Revenue, and a restaurant reports under retailing. The Seattle Shield change effective January 1, 2026 raised the rate to 0.342 percent but lifted the no-tax threshold to $2 million in city revenue, so most restaurants now owe nothing here, though the return is still mandatory and the business license fee is figured on revenue before the deduction.

Issued by

City of Seattle, Office of City Finance

Fee

0.342% of Seattle gross receipts under the retailing classification as of 2026, with no tax owed under $2 million in city revenue and a $2 million standard deduction above it; filed through FileLocal

Renewal

Ongoing; every business files even when no tax is due

Processing

Self-assessed and filed through FileLocal

Turning a non-restaurant space into a restaurant needs an SDCI construction permit for the change of use and a certificate of occupancy before you open, with separate trade permits for the electrical, mechanical hood, plumbing, and gas work. The occupancy class is the thing to watch: under 50 occupants you are Business (B), but at 50 or more you become Assembly (A-2), which forces stricter egress, sprinklers, and fire alarm, and in an older building can mean structural work. Confirm the class before you sign a lease, because a 55-seat plan in a space that never had A-2 sprinklers gets expensive fast.

Issued by

Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI)

Fee

Valuation-based plus a $292 an hour review rate and a 5 percent technology surcharge (2026); a full kitchen fit-out commonly runs several thousand to five figures, and a Master Use Permit adds land-use review fees when triggered

Renewal

One-time per project; the certificate of occupancy holds until the use changes

Processing

3 to 9 months for a commercial tenant improvement, by complexity

Any permanent storefront sign over 5 square feet or that is lit needs an SDCI sign permit under the Seattle Sign Code, and an illuminated sign folds in an electrical permit. A blade sign that reaches over the public right-of-way also needs SDOT sign-off, and a sign in a landmark or special review district needs a certificate of approval from the Department of Neighborhoods first. Apply through the Seattle Services Portal.

Issued by

Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI)

Fee

A base fee on the first 32 square feet plus per-increment charges above that, plus a 5 percent technology surcharge; a sign projecting over the sidewalk adds an SDOT street-use permit. Confirm current amounts in the SDCI fee subtitle

Renewal

One-time per installation

Processing

About a week if the application is complete and clean

A full-service kitchen does not get the out a low-grease bakery might. Under SMC 21.16 grease is a prohibited discharge, so SPU requires every commercial kitchen with a county food permit to install and maintain a grease interceptor, triggered at the tenant improvement. SPU runs the FOG program for Seattle addresses, not the county, and as of October 1, 2025 SPU also issues the side sewer permit to connect the interceptor, a job that used to sit with SDCI. Let grease pass 25 percent of the interceptor volume and you are in violation.

Issued by

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), Fats Oils and Grease Program

Fee

No standalone program fee; the interceptor is a capital cost, commonly $2,000 to $30,000 or more for a gravity unit, plus an SPU side sewer permit to connect it

Renewal

Ongoing; keep the interceptor maintained so grease stays under 25 percent of volume

Processing

Reviewed with the plumbing and building work

SPU treats a restaurant as a high health hazard, so it requires a reduced pressure assembly to isolate your premises at the water service, and often added protection at individual fixtures. The triggers are everywhere in a kitchen: the dishwasher, espresso machine, combination oven, carbonated beverage lines, ice machine, mop sink, and pre-rinse sprayer. Every assembly is tested yearly by a state-certified tester who reports straight to SPU, and SPU can shut off your water for noncompliance.

Issued by

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), Cross-Connection Control Program

Fee

No SPU fee for the requirement; each assembly needs a plumbing permit to install and a private certified tester for the annual test, commonly $75 to $250 per assembly

Renewal

Annual testing by a certified tester, results filed to SPU through the SwiftComply portal

Processing

Installed with the plumbing work; tested at install and every year after

Only needed if you put tables or service in the public right-of-way, a sidewalk or curbspace, not for seating on your own property. The catch for a restaurant that pours: serving alcohol outside requires that the outdoor area be drawn into your LCB licensed premises, so the LCB diagram, not the SDOT permit, is what legally extends alcohol service to the sidewalk. Coordinate the two before you set a single table.

Issued by

Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT), Street Use

Fee

A year-round permit runs about $1,317 to issue for the first space plus per-square-foot occupation fees (a seasonal permit is lower); occupation fees waived citywide through January 1, 2026 are now back in effect. Confirm 2026 rates with SDOT

Renewal

Annual (year-round) or seasonal (expires October 31)

Processing

Allow several weeks, including a 10-business-day public notice

Only if your restaurant serves alcohol. Seattle issues no separate alcohol permit; the state LCB license is the operative one, but under RCW 66.20 the LCB notifies the Seattle Mayor's office of every new and renewing application in the city, and the city has 20 days to file written objections, as do schools and churches within 500 feet. The city can attach conditions, on hours, noise, or security, that ride on the state license. A clean location clears quietly; a contested one can stall for months.

Issued by

City of Seattle (Mayor's Office) as local authority to the Washington LCB

Fee

No separate city fee on top of the state LCB license; the city may attach conditions to the state license rather than issue its own permit

Renewal

Tied to the annual LCB license; the city is notified before renewal with its own objection window

Processing

20-day city objection window inside the LCB process; a 14-day notice is posted at the premises

A restaurant cooking under a Type 1 grease hood needs an annual Seattle Fire operational permit, and the hood and its suppression system must pass a separate construction inspection, with pre-testing reported to the city's third-party vendor, before it can run. Watch the two different thresholds: the building code flips you to Assembly (A-2) at 50 occupants, with the egress and sprinkler duties that brings, but the Seattle Fire assembly operational permit and its fee do not kick in until 100 occupants.

Issued by

Seattle Fire Department, Fire Prevention Division

Fee

The commercial kitchen Type 1 hood permit carries no extra fee if you already hold another fire operational permit for the space; the Assembly permit at 100 or more occupants runs $571 a year (100 to 199) or $715 (200 to 999)

Renewal

Annual

Processing

Permit follows an inspection; the hood install is inspected separately before it goes into service