Minnesota Vending Machine Permits and Licenses

Vending permits and licenses by state · Minnesota

Minnesota has no general state license for vending machines. Most operators need one sales tax permit from the Department of Revenue, and that one permit covers machines at every location. Machines that sell food usually add a Food Handler license from the Department of Agriculture and a yearly fee for each machine. Minnesota exempts most vending food from sales tax, but candy, soft drinks and prepared food are taxed. Below is each requirement and the law it comes from.

Minnesota vending requirements at a glance

OneSales tax permit for all machine locations

6.875%State sales tax

9.875%Highest combined rate (St. Paul)

$25Yearly state fee per food vending machine

Required

Sales tax permit

One Department of Revenue permit covers your machines at every location. No fee is set in statute.

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Recommended

Resale certificate

Buy inventory tax-free with Form ST3, Certificate of Exemption. You collect the tax when it sells.

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Applies

Tax on vending food

Candy, soft drinks and prepared food are taxed. Chips, cookies, milk and plain water are not.

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Depends

Food Handler license

For food machines, from MDA or a delegated city or county. MDA charges $50 to apply, from $90 a year.

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Depends

Food machine fee

$25 a year per food vending machine, $10 for nut machines. Soda-only machines pay none.

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Not required

Trading card license

Pokémon cards need only the sales tax permit.

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Not required

Mystery products

No special license. They are taxable merchandise, covered by your sales tax permit.

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Varies

Local permits

Cities can license machines. Minneapolis licenses each machine that sells food or snacks.

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Last reviewed: October 28, 2026  ·  Sources: Minnesota Statutes, Minnesota Rules, Minnesota Department of Revenue, Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Minnesota Department of Health, City of Minneapolis, 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

Minnesota requirements and the laws behind them

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

Not a general vending license. Minnesota regulates what your machines sell and how you collect tax on it, not the machines. The Revisor of Statutes' official index of vending machine laws lists laws on food inspection, sales tax, tobacco, blind vendors on state property, city license fees and other topics, but no statewide license for vending operators.

If your machines sell anything taxable, you need a sales tax permit, and food machines add a Food Handler license and a yearly machine fee. Cities can license vending machines too, so check with the city where each machine will sit.

Card-only machines are covered the same way

The sales tax definition covers any machine "that accepts payment including honor payments" (Minn. Stat. 297A.61, subd. 34), the food law's definition includes machines that take a "card, or key" (Minn. Stat. 28A.03, subd. 10), and the Department of Revenue counts swiping a card as coin-operated (Coin-Operated Devices).

State buildings have a special rule. In buildings owned or rented exclusively by a state agency, the commissioner of employment and economic development has exclusive authority to set up vending facilities run by blind operators (Minn. Stat. 248.07, subd. 7).

Sales tax on vending sales in Minnesota

The sales tax permit

Before your first taxable sale, register with the Department of Revenue for a Minnesota Tax ID Number and a sales and use tax account (Registering Your Business). Under Minn. Stat. 297A.84, an active Minnesota tax ID for sales tax counts as your permit.

• Cost: the permit statutes set no fee. The commissioner must issue a permit to each applicant who files the application and any required security, unless the applicant owes delinquent sales tax (Minn. Stat. 297A.83; 297A.84). The Department can require a deposit or bond of up to $10,000 (Minn. Stat. 297A.92).
• Coverage: one permit. An operator with vending machines in more than one location "is not required to secure a separate permit for each location" (Minn. R. 8130.2500, subp. 5).
• Where to apply: online through the Department's e-Services, or by phone. You list the local taxes that apply when you register.
• Local tax: charge the rate where the customer receives the product, which for vending is the machine's location (Reporting Sales Tax). The Sales Tax Rate Calculator gives the rate for any address.
• Commissions: figure tax on total taxable receipts, before any fees or commissions you pay the location.
• Tax-included prices: the Department treats vending receipts as including sales tax, so subtract the tax before you report.

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

The sales tax on taxable vending sales is yours to collect and send to the state, so you should not also pay it when you buy the inventory. The Department's vending guide says it plainly: "Do not pay sales or use tax on items sold in a vending machine" (Nontaxable Purchases).

• Form ST3, Certificate of Exemption: check reason H, Resale, add your Minnesota Tax ID Number, business name, address and type of business, and sign it. Give it to the supplier, not the Department. Download Form ST3 (PDF).
• Blanket certificates: allowed. ST3 is a blanket certificate unless you check the single-purchase box. It does not expire unless your information changes, though the Department suggests updating it every three to four years (Nontaxable Sales; Minn. Stat. 297A.72).
• Out-of-state suppliers: Minnesota is a Streamlined Sales Tax member, and the Department posts the Streamlined Certificate of Exemption, SSTGB Form F0003, for Minnesota and other member states (Streamlined Sales and Use Tax). The Department's pages we reviewed do not name the Multistate Tax Commission's Uniform certificate, so give suppliers ST3 or F0003.
• Misuse: the Department may charge $100 for each transaction where a certificate is misused to evade tax.

The certificate covers products you resell, not your equipment. Vending machines and repair parts are taxable purchases (Taxable Purchases and Use Tax). If you pull inventory to use, donate or give away, you owe use tax on it (Minn. Stat. 297A.63; 297A.73).

Sales tax rates

The state rate is 6.875%, which is 6.5% plus a 0.375% constitutional tax that runs until July 1, 2034 (Minn. Stat. 297A.62). Cities, counties and the seven-county Twin Cities metro area add their own. The Department's Local Sales and Use Tax Rate Guide for October to December 2026 lists St. Paul at 9.875%, the highest combined rate in the guide, and Minneapolis at 9.025%. Special local taxes are not included.

What is taxable in a Minnesota vending machine

Minnesota exempts food, except candy, soft drinks, dietary supplements and prepared food (Minn. Stat. 297A.67, subd. 2). Before July 1, 2017, all food sold through a vending machine was taxable. Now "the only taxable foods sold through vending machines, snack boxes, or honor boxes are prepared food, soft drinks, candy, and dietary supplements" (Taxable Sales; Minn. Stat. 297A.61, subd. 34).

• Taxable: candy bars, gum, honey roasted nuts, soda, sports drinks, sweetened water, and hot coffee or cocoa.
• Exempt: unsweetened bottled water, milk, cookies, muffins, licorice, chips, nuts and popcorn (Food and Food Ingredients).
• Flour rule: an item with flour on its label is not candy, so a candy bar that lists flour is exempt (Candy).
• Schools and nonprofits: taxable vending food stays taxable when the machine sits at a school or is run by a nonprofit.
• Records: keep records separating taxable and exempt sales. Without them, all sales are considered taxable.

An older rule, Minn. R. 8130.4700, last published in 2009, still says all vending food is taxable. The Department's current guides follow the 2017 statute.

Anything that is not food is generally taxable: trading cards, sealed Pokémon product, mystery items, toys and souvenirs. Clothing, over-the-counter drugs and newspapers are exceptions, though jewelry and sunglasses are taxable.

Food and drinks: the Food Handler license and machine fees

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) licenses food vending. MDA's food license page lists vending machines among the businesses it handles, and the Department of Health's licensing page says it does not license them. State law treats a person who sells food "through the use of vending machines" as a food handler (Minn. Stat. 28A.05), and no one may sell food without a license (Minn. Stat. 28A.04).

• Food Handler license: MDA charges a $50 nonrefundable application fee, then a yearly fee based on gross food sales and food safety risk (Minn. Stat. 28A.08), plus a surcharge of at least $5 (Minn. Stat. 17.033). The lowest tier is $90 a year, for less than $30,000 in sales of only prepackaged nonperishable food, with a statement filed with MDA. Expect about 30 to 45 days after a complete application (Food Licensing Modernization).
• Fee for each machine: $25 a year per food vending machine, or $10 for a nut machine (Minn. Stat. 28A.09).
• Gumball and candy machines: machines with only gum balls, hard candy, unsorted candy or packaged ice owe no state fee, though a city or county can charge up to the state fee.
• Soda-only machines: machines with only bottled or canned soft drinks owe no state, city or county inspection fee.
• Locations: each license covers one place of business. A food handler with $50,000 or less in food sales can add up to two more locations with MDA approval (Minn. Stat. 28A.06). Ask MDA how to list a route of machines.
• Who issues it: MDA, except where it has delegated retail food licensing to a local agency: Bloomington, Brooklyn Park, Minneapolis, Minnetonka, St. Cloud, and parts of Hennepin and Ramsey counties (MDA Retail Food Program). Delegated agencies charge their own license fees. A city or county that inspects vending machines charges its machine fee in place of the state's, capped at the state amount.

The licensing law's exclusions do not cover machines that sell only sealed snacks; the small-seller fee tier is the break. One exclusion may help card and merchandise operators: a business whose main line is not food can sell bottled or canned soft drinks and prepackaged candy or nuts, if those are the only foods it sells, without a food license (Minn. Stat. 28A.15, subd. 7; MDA exclusions). Ask MDA whether your route qualifies.

Machines with food that needs temperature control must stop vending automatically when they cannot hold safe temperatures (Minn. R. 4626.0615).

Minnesota rules for trading cards, mystery products and toys

Pokémon and other trading cards

Minnesota has no special license for selling trading cards. They are taxable merchandise, so the sales tax 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

Blind boxes, mystery bags and capsule toys are merchandise, like any other toy. They are taxable at the state rate plus local tax where each machine sits, so the sales tax permit covers them. We found no special license for selling them from a vending machine. See our mystery vending machines page.

Claw and crane machines

Minnesota taxes the use of amusement devices, and the Department of Revenue names cranes as an example (Taxable Sales). Merchandise you stock in a claw machine is not resale inventory. A sale of property that will be awarded to players is a retail sale, not a sale for resale (Minn. Stat. 297A.61, subd. 4), so you pay tax when you buy it. Minneapolis adds a 3% entertainment tax on the use of amusement devices and games (Fact Sheet 164M).

Plush and toys

We found no Minnesota registration for stuffed toy makers or sellers; the bedding law covers mattresses, pillows and similar items made for sleeping or reclining (Minn. Stat. 325F.25). A commercial retailer may not sell a toy it knows has been recalled for safety (Minn. Stat. 325F.135).

Federal rules that apply in Minnesota 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 Minnesota

• Entity: form an LLC with the Minnesota Secretary of State by filing articles of organization. The statute sets the fee at $135 (Minn. Stat. 322C.0201); confirm the total with the Secretary of State before you file. File a free annual renewal by December 31 each year after that, or the LLC can be administratively terminated (Minn. Stat. 322C.0208).
• Minimum fee: corporations and partnerships, including LLCs with two or more members, owe it only when Minnesota property, payroll and sales total $1,280,000 or more for 2026. A single-member LLC reported on its owner's Form M1 does not (Minimum Fee).
• Local rules: cities can license vending machines and can raise those fees only after notice and a hearing (Minn. Stat. 471.707). Minneapolis licenses each machine that sells food or snacks, renews every April, and does not license bottled and canned soda machines (City of Minneapolis). If the property owner holds the city license, you still owe the sales tax. Check zoning and licensing with each city.

Minnesota vending permit and license FAQ

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

There is no general vending machine license. You need a sales tax permit from the Department of Revenue if you sell taxable items, and one permit covers all your locations. Machines that sell food also need a Food Handler license from the Department of Agriculture and a $25 yearly fee per machine.

Do I need a food license for a snack vending machine in Minnesota?

Generally yes. Vending operators who sell food are licensed as food handlers by the Department of Agriculture or a delegated city or county. The lowest MDA fee is $90 a year for under $30,000 in sales of only prepackaged nonperishable food, plus a $50 application fee and the per-machine fee.

Is vending machine food taxed in Minnesota?

Only some of it. Since July 1, 2017, the only taxable foods sold through vending machines are candy, soft drinks, prepared food and dietary supplements. Chips, cookies, milk and unsweetened bottled water are exempt.

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

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

How much does a Minnesota sales tax permit cost?

The permit statutes set no fee. Your permit is your Minnesota Tax ID with an active sales tax account, and the Department of Revenue can require a deposit or bond.

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

Not if you buy it to resell. Give your supplier Form ST3, Certificate of Exemption, marked for resale, or Streamlined Form F0003. Inventory you use or give away is subject to use tax, and merchandise you stock in claw machines is taxable when you buy it.

Do I need a separate sales tax permit for each machine location in Minnesota?

No. Minnesota Rules, part 8130.2500, says an operator with vending machines in more than one location does not need a separate permit for each one. Charge the local rate where each machine sits.

Are claw and crane machines taxed in Minnesota?

Yes. Each play is taxable, merchandise you stock in the machine is taxable when you buy it, and Minneapolis adds a 3% entertainment tax.

Sources

1. Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, Statutes Topic Index: Vending Machines
2. Minn. Stat. 297A.61, 297A.62, 297A.63, 297A.67, 297A.72, 297A.73, 297A.83, 297A.84 and 297A.92, sales and use tax
3. Minn. R. 8130.2500, permits (vending machines) and Minn. R. 8130.4700, prepared food, candy and soft drinks
4. Minnesota Department of Revenue, Vending Machines and Other Coin-Operated Devices and Coin-Operated Devices
5. Department of Revenue, Registering Your Business and Nontaxable Sales
6. Department of Revenue, Form ST3, Certificate of Exemption, Streamlined Sales and Use Tax and SSTGB Form F0003
7. Department of Revenue, Local Sales and Use Tax Rate Guide, October to December 2026, Sales Tax Rate Calculator and Fact Sheet 164M
8. Department of Revenue, Food and Food Ingredients, Candy and Minimum Fee
9. Minn. Stat. 17.033, 28A.03, 28A.04, 28A.05, 28A.06, 28A.08, 28A.09 and 28A.15, food licensing
10. Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Food Licenses, Retail Food Program, Exclusions and Exemptions and Licensing Modernization
11. Minnesota Department of Health, Food, Pools, and Lodging Licensing and Minn. R. 4626.0615
12. Minn. Stat. 325F.25, bedding and 325F.135, recalled toys
13. Minn. Stat. 248.07, blind vendors and 471.707, city vending license fees
14. City of Minneapolis, Vending Machine license
15. Minn. Stat. 322C.0201 and 322C.0208, LLC formation and annual renewal
16. 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design and U.S. Access Board guide to operable parts
17. 21 CFR 101.8, calorie labeling of food in vending machines
18. 7 CFR 210.11, competitive food standards (Smart Snacks)