Common Victualler License

Any person or business that wants to sell food at a fixed location in Boston must get a Common Victualler (CV) License. This includes:

• Sit-down restaurants
• Cafes
• Takeout-only establishments where food is made to order

You don’t need a CV License if you're opening one of these:

• A mobile cart or food truck
• A bakery with no seating and no food made to order (instead, you need a Food Service Permit)
• A convenience store with no seating, or where prepared food makes up 10 percent or less of your annual revenue

Your CV License must be issued with the address that matches the location of your business. Not all addresses in the City of Boston allow food businesses. Before you apply, check the zoning of your location using the City of Boston zoning viewer tool, and learn more about zoning and food businesses in our guide, How to Open a Restaurant in Boston.

You must also attend a virtual public hearing before the board and participate in a community engagement process if:

• Your address doesn’t already have or was not previously licensed by the Board with an approved CV License
• You intend to operate outside of the previously approved business hours from this previously-approved Licensing Board CV
• You intend to operate outside the hours of 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

Contact your neighborhood liaison to learn what kind of community process (such as flyering or a presentation to a civic or neighborhood organization) will be required as part of the application.

Have these documents ready before you apply. We can’t accept incomplete applications.

If you also hold an alcohol license tied to this CV License, you’ll pay another fee based on your alcohol license type. 

Don’t submit payment until Licensing Board staff asks you to.

You can pay:

• Online: Credit card, debit card, or electronic check (there's a 2.75 percent fee for card payments; no fee for electronic check).
• By mail: Check payable to “City of Boston” (include your license name and number in the memo).
• In person: Cash, by appointment only at window M-8 at City Hall, or with a credit card or check in person in room 809.

There is a 2.75% fee for credit and debit card transactions. There is no fee for electronic check payments. Rejected online payments will incur an additional fee.

Step 1: Download and Complete the Application

Apply online through the Licensing Board's application portal. This is the only way to apply.

If you’re missing any required documents, or the documents aren’t correct, we’ll contact you to fix it.

Depending on your address's licensing history and proposed hours, your application will either be scheduled for a public hearing or move straight to a Board vote.

Step 2: Start the Community Process through the Office of Neighborhood Services

Contact your Office of Neighborhood Services (ONS) Liaison as early as possible — ideally before you submit your application. Your liaison will tell you if you’re required to participate in a community engagement process, exactly which local neighborhood meetings you need to attend, and which neighbors you must notify.

At your Licensing Board hearing, a Mayor’s Office representative will report on whether you completed the community process and whether it supports your application.

Step 3: Attend the Licensing Board Hearing

After you submit your complete application, and your community process is complete, the Licensing Board will schedule your hearing. From submission to hearing, expect several weeks depending on the volume of applications and whether your community process is complete.

The Board’s virtual public hearings are typically held twice a month on Wednesdays using Zoom. See a list of upcoming board hearings. At the Board hearing, you or your representative will present the business plan and concept to the Licensing Board.

Plan for a 3-minute presentation. Your presentation should include:

• Business proposal and concept 
  • Type of cuisine or food that will be offered
  • Size of establishment
  • Hours of operations
  • Experience and qualifications of the ownership and management team
• Demonstration of public need for a license of the type at the location

The Thursday following the hearing, the Board will consider and vote on your application. Applications that have successfully reached this stage of the process are typically approved, subject to the Board’s final review and vote. 

Step 4: Receive an Email from Licensing Staff

We’ll send you an email with a notice of approval. 

At this time, you can submit your Inspection Certificate, Place of Assembly Permit, and Wage Theft Prevention form if you didn’t have them when you first applied.

Step 5: Pay Fees

We’ll send you an email invoice for the fees due. Fees are based on your type of business and its capacity.

Once your fees are paid, we’ll email you to let you know when your license is ready. Pick up your license in person at City Hall, Room 809. The Licensing Board does not mail or email licenses. They are on special paper with an embossed stamp.

Your license is valid for the calendar year listed on it. Hang it in a clear and visible spot at your business. 

Keep in mind: You must get your Common Victualler License before you can receive a Food Service Health Permit from the ISD Health Division.

You must renew your license annually. 

We mail renewal packages directly to your licensed business address at the end of September each year. Renewal applications must be submitted online by October 31 each year. If you do not receive your renewal packet by October 1, please call us at 617-635-4170 or email RenewCV@boston.gov.

The late fee is double the fee of your Common Victualler license.

Filing and paying the renewal fee online does not mean your license is renewed. Once you submit your application, a member of the Board’s staff will review the submission. We’ll let you know if it’s complete, or if there's more information or documents needed.

Please be advised: Operating without a valid license is a serious violation and may result in enforcement action by the Licensing Board, including the suspension, revocation, or denial of other licenses issued by the Board, as permitted by applicable law. 

Step 1: Complete the Renewal Application Online

Your renewal packet will include instructions and a renewal application for you to complete and upload onto the online form, along with the following documents:

• A three-tiered invoice or bill
• Wage theft form

Please follow the instructions carefully. You will need to gather and submit copies of other documents that are not included in the packet, including:

• An Inspection Certificate (not required for places under 50 capacity), and
• (If over 49 capacity), a Place of Assembly Permit, or the proof of payment. 

On the online form, you will be required to complete the following documents:

• A 24-Hour Emergency Contact Form, and
• An Ownership Identification Form (optional).

You cannot edit your Google Form once you have submitted it.

Keep in mind: Only an officer or manager listed on the license renewal (Board approved) may sign the renewal application. Learn about how to change a manager or corporate office.

Step 2: Pay Fees

Pay your renewal fees online, in person (by appointment), or by mail.

Step 3: Receive an Email from Licensing Staff

After we receive your online renewal application and payment, we’ll reach out to you using the email provided on the online form. In this email, we’ll confirm that your application is complete.

If your application isn’t complete, please reply directly to our email with the outstanding documents or confirmation of payment.

Do not submit another renewal application on the online Google Form for the same license.

Sending separate emails or submitting another renewal application on the Google Form will delay the review of your application.

Step 4: Pick Up Your License

Once your process is complete, we’ll send you a confirmation email. Save this as a receipt and be prepared to present confirmation when you pick up your license.

Pick up your physical license by coming to City Hall Room 809 beginning the second week of December. Licenses must be picked up before the end of the year as the new year license must be properly displayed on your premise January 1 of the new year.