California Vending Machine Permits and Licenses

Vending permits and licenses by state · California

California has no general state license for vending machines, and most operators need one thing from the state: a free seller's permit from the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) that covers every machine they run. California exempts most food from sales tax, but not food sold from a vending machine. Tax is due on 33% of receipts from cold food, candy and hot coffee, and on all receipts from sodas and hot food. A county health permit applies only if a machine sells food beyond nuts, candy, packaged snacks and drinks that are safe without refrigeration. Below is each requirement and the law it comes from.

California vending requirements at a glance

FreeSeller's permit

7.25%Statewide sales tax

11.75%Highest local rate (Oct. 2026)

33%Of vending food receipts taxed

Required

Seller's permit

One free permit from CDTFA covers all your machines. Post its number on each machine.

See details →

Recommended

Resale certificate

Buy inventory tax-free with Form CDTFA-230. You collect the tax when it sells.

See details →

Applies

Tax on vending food

Cold food, candy, juice and hot coffee are taxed on 33% of receipts. Sodas and hot food on 100%.

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Depends

Health permit

Not needed if a machine sells only nuts, candy, packaged snacks and drinks that are safe without refrigeration.

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Not required

Trading card license

Pokémon cards need only the seller's permit.

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Not required

Mystery products

No special license. They are taxable merchandise, covered by your seller's permit.

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Varies

Local permits

Cities and counties can require a business license, business tax certificate or zoning approval.

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Depends

LLC annual tax

Every California LLC pays $800 a year, starting with its first year.

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Last reviewed: October 28, 2026  ·  Sources: California Revenue and Taxation Code, California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, California Health and Safety Code, California Department of Public Health, California Secretary of State, Franchise Tax Board, federal regulations (full list at the bottom)  ·  General information, not legal advice.

• Requirements and laws
• Do you need a license?
• Sales tax
• Food and drinks
• Cards, mystery and toys
• Federal rules
• Business setup
• FAQ
• Sources

California requirements and the laws behind them

Do you need a license to run a vending machine in California?

Not a general one. California regulates what your machines sell and how you report tax on it, not the machines themselves. When we searched CalGold, the state's business permit directory, for retail and direct-selling businesses, it listed a seller's permit and local business, health and zoning permits, but no vending machine license.

If your machines sell anything taxable, like trading cards, toys or soda, or food priced over 15 cents, the one state permit you need is a seller's permit. Add a county health permit if a machine sells food outside the snack exemption, like sandwiches or milk. Cities and counties can layer on their own business license or zoning rules, so check with the city where each machine will sit before you install it.

The one state vending license is for water machines

California does license one kind of vending machine. Under Health and Safety Code 111120, every operator of a water vending machine needs a Water Vending Machine Operator License from the California Department of Public Health, renewed every year. CDPH defines a water vending machine as a water-connected machine that dispenses drinking water. A machine that sells sealed bottles is not water-connected, so this license does not apply to it.

Sales tax on vending sales in California

The seller's permit

California's sales tax registration is called a seller's permit, and CDTFA issues it. Under Regulation 1574, Vending Machine Operators, anyone operating vending machines that dispense taxable items, or food priced over 15 cents, must hold one. CDTFA's Publication 118 says the operator is the person who stocks the machine and collects the money from it.

• Cost: free. CDTFA may require a security deposit in some cases, such as a history of nonpayment (Publication 73).
• Coverage: "One permit is sufficient for all machines of one operator" (Regulation 1574(a)(1)).
• Statement on each machine: post this, or something close to it, in plain view on every machine: "This vending machine is operated by [name], [address], who holds Permit No. [number] issued pursuant to the Sales and Use Tax Law."
• Local tax: a vending sale takes place where the machine sits (Regulation 1802(b)(1)). If your machines are in more than one county, attach a schedule to your return showing the tax for each county (Regulation 1574(a)(3)).
• Where to apply: online at cdtfa.ca.gov. Select Register, then Register a New Business Activity.

You collect the tax, so buy your inventory tax-free

The sales tax on taxable vending sales is yours to report and pay. That is why you should not also pay sales tax when you buy the inventory. Under Regulation 1668, a supplier who takes a resale certificate from you on time and in good faith does not owe tax on the sale.

• Form CDTFA-230, General Resale Certificate: CDTFA's own form. Enter your seller's permit number, the kind of products you sell and a description of what you are buying, then sign it and give it to the supplier. Download CDTFA-230 (PDF).
• Other formats: CDTFA does not require a specific form. A letter, note or purchase order counts if it has your name and address, your seller's permit number, a description of the products, the words "for resale," the date and a signature. Words like "nontaxable" or "exempt" do not count (Publication 103).
• Blanket certificates: allowed. One certificate kept on file with a supplier covers repeat purchases, and it stays in effect until you revoke it in writing.
• Out-of-state suppliers: CDTFA publishes no list of accepted multistate forms. Since any document with all of the elements above counts, a multistate certificate can work if it carries every one, including your California seller's permit number. CDTFA-230 is the safer choice.

The certificate covers products you resell, not the machines you sell them from. If you pull inventory for your own use instead of selling it, you owe use tax on what you paid for it, due on the return for the period you first use it (Revenue and Taxation Code 6094; Regulation 1668(g)).

Sales tax rates

The statewide rate is 7.25%. Most areas add district taxes that range from 0.10% to 2.00% each, and some areas have more than one (CDTFA). On CDTFA's list of rates effective October 1, 2026, the highest is 11.75%, in Lancaster and Palmdale. Rates change, so look up each machine's address with CDTFA's rate lookup.

What is taxable in a California vending machine

California exempts most food from sales tax, but the exemption does not apply "when the food products are sold through a vending machine" (Revenue and Taxation Code 6359(d)(5)). Instead, the law taxes a fixed share of vending food receipts. The Legislature set that share at 33%, the statewide average of vending food that would be taxable, to keep audits simple (RTC 6359.2). Here is how it works, per Publication 118 and Regulation 1574(b):

• 33% of receipts: cold food products, including candy, chips, juice and bottled water, plus hot coffee, hot tea and hot chocolate.
• 100% of receipts: carbonated drinks and hot prepared food other than hot coffee, tea and chocolate.
• Low-price food: not taxed at sale if it sells for 15 cents or less, or for 25 cents or less from a coin-operated bulk vending machine that dispenses unsorted food or candy at random. Drinks and hot food do not qualify (RTC 6359.4).
• Tax-included prices: California presumes your vending prices already include tax. Back it out before you report, using CDTFA's sales tax factors. At a 7.25% rate, the factor for food taxed at 33% is 32.2289%, so $10,000 in food receipts means $3,222.89 in taxable receipts.

Keep separate records of partially taxable and fully taxable sales. Anything that is not food is generally taxable in full: trading cards, sealed Pokémon product, mystery items, toys and general merchandise. The bulk vending break covers food and candy, not toys.

These rules cover only true vending. CDTFA says an item a customer can reach before paying, or that the machine does not dispense right after payment, is not sold through a vending machine. If you run coolers that open before payment, ask CDTFA how to report those sales.

Food and drinks: when you need a county health permit in California

California's food safety law, the California Retail Food Code, lists vending machines as food facilities (Health and Safety Code 113789), and a food facility cannot open for business without a valid permit (HSC 114381). The state does not issue that permit. CDPH says the code is "primarily enforced by 62 local environmental health regulatory agencies," so you apply to the county or city environmental health department where the machines sit (CDPH Retail Food Program).

The code's definition of a vending machine leaves out any device that dispenses only these items (HSC 113938):

• Peanuts, nuts, popcorn, gum, hard candy and prepackaged candy.
• Cookies, crackers and similar snacks.
• Drinks that are not potentially hazardous, meaning they do not need time or temperature control to stay safe.
• Prepackaged ice.

A machine stocked only with those items falls outside the definition, so the state code does not call for a health permit. Sandwiches, salads, milk or anything that has to stay cold to stay safe brings the machine under the code. Counties set their own procedures, so confirm with the county before you install.

Machines that need a permit follow the code's vending rules (HSC 114145). Each machine or location shows the owner's name, address and telephone number. Each machine keeps a cleaning log covering at least the past 30 days. Machines are built to NSF International or National Automatic Merchandising Association standards, and outdoor machines need overhead protection.

Each local governing body sets its own permit fee (HSC 114381(d)). Los Angeles County's fee schedule for fiscal year 2026 to 2027, for example, lists $71 for 1 to 3 vending machines and $26 for each additional machine.

California rules for trading cards, mystery products and toys

Pokémon and other trading cards

California has no special license for selling trading cards. They are taxable merchandise, so the seller's permit covers you. The legal questions with card machines are about intellectual property, not state permits: stock authentic product, and keep Pokémon characters and logos off the machine itself. Our guide to the legal side of trading card vending machines covers both, and the Pokémon vending machine guide covers the business.

Mystery products and toys

We found no special California license for selling mystery products, such as blind boxes, mystery bags and capsule toys, from a machine. They are taxable merchandise like trading cards and toys, generally taxed on 100% of receipts, so your seller's permit covers them.

Federal rules that apply in California and every other state

ADA reach ranges

Where vending machines are provided, at least one of each type has to meet the operable parts rules in the 2010 ADA Standards (sections 228.1 and 309). The parts a customer operates, like the screen, card reader and pickup door, have to sit within reach: between 15 and 48 inches above the floor for an unobstructed reach (section 308).

Calorie labeling for food

If you own or operate 20 or more vending machines that sell food, federal rules require calorie information for any item whose Nutrition Facts label the buyer cannot see before buying (21 CFR 101.8). In glass-front machines, packages that show calories on the front in large enough type can meet the rule.

Schools

Machines that sell food to students during the school day may stock only items that meet the USDA's Smart Snacks nutrition standards. The school day runs from midnight until 30 minutes after the official school day ends (7 CFR 210.11).

Setting up the business in California

• Entity: form an LLC with the California Secretary of State. Articles of Organization (Form LLC-1) cost $70. A Statement of Information (Form LLC-12) is due within 90 days of registering and every two years after that, for $20.
• LLC annual tax: every LLC doing business or organized in California pays the Franchise Tax Board $800 a year, even in a year with no business, until the LLC is canceled. The first payment is due by the 15th day of the 4th month after you file with the Secretary of State. The first-year exemption covered only tax years that began in 2021 through 2023, so an LLC formed in 2026 pays from year one.
• LLC fee: an LLC with more than $250,000 in California income also owes a separate fee, from $900 to $11,790 depending on income.
• Local rules: your city or county may require a business license or business tax certificate, a fictitious business name statement and zoning approval. CalGold lists these by city.

California vending permit and license FAQ

Do I need a license to put a vending machine in California?

California has no general vending machine license. If you sell taxable items or food priced over 15 cents, you need a seller's permit from CDTFA, which is free and covers all your machines. Add a county health permit only if your machines sell food beyond nuts, candy, packaged snacks and drinks that are safe without refrigeration.

Do I need a health permit for a snack vending machine in California?

Not under state law, if the machine dispenses only nuts, popcorn, gum, candy, cookies, crackers or similar snacks, drinks that are not potentially hazardous, or packaged ice. The Retail Food Code does not count those devices as vending machines (HSC 113938). Sandwiches, milk or other food that must stay cold needs a permit from the county or city environmental health department.

Is vending machine food taxed in California?

Yes, in part. Tax applies to 33% of receipts from cold food, candy, noncarbonated drinks and hot coffee, tea and chocolate sold through vending machines (RTC 6359.2). Carbonated drinks and other hot food are taxed on 100%, and prices are presumed to include tax.

Do I need a license to sell Pokémon cards from a vending machine in California?

No special license. Trading cards are taxable merchandise, so your seller's permit covers sales tax. Stock authentic product and keep Pokémon characters and logos off the machine itself.

How much does a California seller's permit cost?

Nothing. CDTFA issues seller's permits free, though it may require a security deposit in some cases. One permit covers all the machines of one operator.

Do I pay sales tax on inventory I buy for my vending machines in California?

Not if you buy it to resell. Give your supplier a resale certificate, such as Form CDTFA-230, with your seller's permit number and the words "for resale." You then report sales tax when the items sell from your machines. Inventory you take for your own use is subject to use tax on what you paid for it.

What do I have to post on a vending machine in California?

Every operator who needs a seller's permit must post a statement on each machine with the operator's name, address and permit number (Regulation 1574). Machines that need a health permit also need a sign with the owner's name, address and telephone number (HSC 114145).

Sources

1. CDTFA, Regulation 1574, Vending Machine Operators
2. CDTFA, Publication 118, Vending Machine Food Sales: Applying and Reporting Tax and Sales Tax Factors
3. Revenue and Taxation Code 6359, food products, 6359.2, vending machine food and 6359.4, vending machine operator
4. CDTFA, Publication 73, Your California Seller's Permit (October 2026)
5. CDTFA, Regulation 1802, Place of Sale (vending machine operators)
6. CDTFA, Regulation 1668, Sales for Resale and Form CDTFA-230, General Resale Certificate
7. CDTFA, Publication 103, Valid Resale Certificates
8. Revenue and Taxation Code 6094, use tax on resale purchases
9. CDTFA, Sales and Use Tax Rates, effective October 1, 2026 and rate lookup
10. GO-Biz, CalGold permit assistance tool
11. CDPH, Water Vending Machine License Procedures and Health and Safety Code 111120
12. CDPH, Retail Food Program
13. California Retail Food Code: HSC 113789, 113938, 114145 and 114381, and the January 1, 2026 edition
14. Los Angeles County Public Health, FY 2026 to 2027 fee schedule
15. California Secretary of State, Limited Liability Company forms and fees
16. Franchise Tax Board, Limited Liability Company: annual tax and LLC fee
17. 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design and U.S. Access Board guide to operable parts
18. 21 CFR 101.8, calorie labeling of food in vending machines
19. 7 CFR 210.11, competitive food standards (Smart Snacks)