Cottage food rules
Home Bakery License in Pennsylvania: What You Need
The exact Pennsylvania registration a home baker files, what it costs, and the paperwork to gather first.
On this page
What to remember
- There is no cottage food law in Pennsylvania. Home bakers register as a Limited Food Establishment.
- The fee is $35 a year, and the plan review is included.
- The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture handles the registration.
- Call the Department of Revenue about a sales tax license before you mail anything.
If you have been hunting for a cottage food license and coming up empty, that is why. The thing you actually file has a different name. Below is what to gather, who to call, and the order to do it in so your packet does not bounce back.
What Pennsylvania calls a home bakery
There is no separate cottage food statute in Pennsylvania. Home producers register as a Limited Food Establishment with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. That department handles registration for people who want to operate a home-based or noncommercial food production site, so it is the office you deal with, not your township and not the county.
Same kitchen, same bakes, different name on the form. Once you know the term, the searching gets a lot shorter.
What it costs and what you send in
Confirm this is the right registration
A Limited Food Establishment covers a home-based or noncommercial food production site. If you were opening a restaurant, a grocery store, or another food business serving customers on site, you would be looking at a Retail Food Facility License instead.
Call the Department of Revenue
Ring (717) 787-8201 and ask about a sales tax license. This is a required part of the Pennsylvania application, so do it early rather than at the last minute.
Get the sales tax paperwork in hand
You attach a copy of the license, or proof that you applied for one, to your application packet. No paperwork means an incomplete packet.
Fill in the Limited Food Establishment application
Work through the application packet published by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. Take your time on the kitchen details, since the plan review is part of what you are paying for.
Send it in with the $35
The registration runs $35 a year and includes the plan review. Keep a copy of everything you send.
When a different license applies
Not every food business in Pennsylvania files the same thing. A Retail Food Facility License is required for restaurants, grocery stores, and other food vendors before they can serve food to customers. A home kitchen selling bakes under a Limited Food Establishment registration is a different setup from that.
Before you take your first order
Once the registration is in place, the practical side starts: pricing, packaging, and keeping track of who ordered what. If you bake near a state line or sell to family across one, it is worth checking that state’s rules too, like New York or New Jersey.
Keep your paperwork where you can find it. The registration renews every year at $35, and that is easier to budget for when you know what each batch brings in. Our guide to doing this online covers the forms side in more detail.
Try the free bake pricing calculator
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Common questions
Do I need a cottage food license in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania does not have a separate cottage food statute. Home producers register as a Limited Food Establishment with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture instead.
How much does the Pennsylvania registration cost?
It is $35 a year, and that fee includes a plan review.
Who do I call about sales tax?
The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue at (717) 787-8201. You then attach a copy of the license, or proof of application, to your application packet.
Do I need a Retail Food Facility License?
That license is required for restaurants, grocery stores, and other food vendors before they serve food to customers. A home kitchen registers as a Limited Food Establishment.
Where does the application go?
To the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, which handles registration for home-based and noncommercial food production sites.
Sources
General information, not legal or tax advice. Fees and forms can change, so confirm the details with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and the Department of Revenue before you apply.