Guide To Vital Documents Required For FSSAI Registration and Step-by-Step Procedure

The  Food Safety and Standards Authority of India or FSSAI is an organization that monitors and governs the food business in India and is an autonomous body that was established by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. The FSSAI is established to ensure that standard quality and hygiene is maintained in the food business. The FSSAI carries out standardized quality checks of food products in order to curtail the adulteration of food and stop the sale of sub-standard products.

In order to ascertain that standard procedures are being followed in the food manufacturing, processing, and related business, the FSSAI issues a Licence or Registration to the food business operators (FBOs) and this certification is mandatory. Whether a business ds a needs a registration or a license depends on the nature of the business and the size of the business (check Piloto Asia for more guidance).

The registration or license is in the form of certification and has a 14 digit number that needs to be printed on the packaging of food products in order to verify that all the quality measures and standards have been followed during the manufacturing, process, handling, etc of the product.

Details of the FSSAI Registration Procedure

Since it has been established that a license or registration from the FSSAI is mandatory for food business operators, the next step is to learn about the FSSAI registration documents required and the procedure and for FSSAI license too. The volume of business, premises of the business, installed capacity, etc. are factors which decide whether the business needs a registration or a license. Usually, petty food businesses require a registration, medium-sized food businesses can opt for a State level license and large scale food businesses require a central license.

Documents required for FSSAI Registration

The list of documents required to obtain a license (both State and Central) include –

• PAN details of the proprietor or Directors or Company of the food business
• Address proof of proprietor or Directors which can be any of the following- Aadhar, Passport, Voter Card, Driving License, etc.
• Passport size picture of proprietor or Directors of the business
• Declaration
• Proof of possession of premises such as either a Rental Agreement or Utility Bill
• Certificate of Incorporation / Partnership Deed / MOA & AOA
• List of food products manufactured or processed or stored
• Food safety management system plan, (if it is in place)
• Trade License, if it is available
• List of food category
• List of the pieces of equipment

The list of documents for a basic registration include

• PAN details of the proprietor or Directors or Company of the food business
• Address proof of proprietor or Directors which can be any of the following- Aadhar, Passport, Voter Card, Driving License, etc.
• Passport size picture of the proprietor or Directors
• Declaration
• Certificate of Incorporation / Partnership Deed / MOA & AOA

FSSAI Registration Procedure

The FSSAI registration procedure includes –

• Checking the eligibility of the business for a registration or a license. This information can be obtained from the FSSAI website- https://www.fssai.gov.in/
• Select the type of registration applicable, that is a registration, State license or Central license.
• Next, sign up on the food licensing & registration system and apply online for either a license or registration.
• On the FSSAI website, there is a food license registration form A that needs to be filled.
• Along with the uploading of this Form A, the supporting documents required need to be uploaded too.
• The fees for the registration need to be paid, such that in case of a Central license it is via online methods, and for a State license or registration payment can be made online or offline via challan etc.
• Next, Form B needs to be filled and filed with the Government. Form B needs to be printed, signed, scanned and uploaded again, for which an acknowledgment will be generated.
• The government department might send back the application with suggested edits which need to be responded to with 15 days or the application can be rejected.
• Within the next 7 days from the date of submission the Application can either be accepted or rejected by the Department and this decision has to be intimated in writing to the applicant. In the case of State and Central FSSAI license, the time frame taken by the department for responding to the application varies from 30 to 50 days.
• In case the application is accepted by the Department, then it will grant the food business operator with a registration certificate which has the registration number mentioned as well as a photo of the applicant.
• This Certificate of Registration needs to be displayed prominently by the FBO at the business premises, during the business hours.

An FSSAI license or registration is easy to apply for and obtain, once you know the details of the FSSAI registration documents needed and the procedure for application.