Skip to Content

Can your Food Trucks and Travel State to State for Deliveries and Sales?

Yes. Food trucks in the United States can move from one state to the other. While food truck operators can’t simply move from state to state and set up shop wherever they choose, it is still feasible to run a multi-state food truck business.

Most of the time, this entails staying abreast of policies and guidelines that are operational in the states they want to enter. Food trucks have gained prominence in recent years to the extent that they are currently deemed the speediest segment of the food market.

Trying to come up with a strategy that isn’t already obscured by the multitudes of food trucks in the nation will indeed be difficult.

Every business has its own unique set of licensing procedures. The procedure to apply for a license for your food truck can differ based on where you intend to conduct business.

And because your food truck is essentially a fast food chain, you will need to comply with any existing legislation related to food handling and safeness, as well as challenges such as parking and zoning.

If you’re extremely fortunate, you might be capable of operating in various locations with a single license, but you might be limited in the places you can park as well as how long you can park there.

How Can Food Trucks Travel State to State in the United States?

If you wish to move from state to state, the following is a comprehensive guide on how to do so.

  1. Relocating

One of the fundamental things to think about is whether you want to move your entire enterprise or just travel between states. The formalities of moving your entire company will be determined by your business organization.

The route you move your business will be determined by your personal circumstances as well as any company associates involved. Most businesses are organized as LLCs to benefit from lower startup costs and the separation of personal assets.

  1. Roaming

Another issue is traveling from state to state. A food truck business may want to travel between states for a variety of reasons. When it is winter, for instance, a growing number of truck owners usually move to warmer areas where they can get more foot traffic.

Meanwhile, when roaming, licensing requirements, permits, and local ordinances vary and must be followed. This complicates matters, as smaller companies frequently attempt to reach their statutory duty while also running a full-time business.

Regulatory Bottlenecks of Relocating or Moving Your Food Truck From State to State

There are several factors to take into account when moving your food truck to another state. The following regulatory bottlenecks can be encountered:

1. Business Organization

The legal formalities of moving your entire company from one state to another are frequently determined by your corporate structure.

  • Partnership and sole proprietorship

Food trucks that are designated as sole proprietorships or partnerships basically relocate and register to be doing business within the new state by filing a DBA. However, unless you’re a corporation or a limited liability company (LLC), you must end up making specific decisions and take official decisions.

  • Food Truck LLCs

A few actions are expected of food trucks structured as limited liability companies that move from one state to another. In the case of LLCs, the options are likely to focus on how to better manage the move from an organizational point of view.

You can choose to keep the food truck LLC in the previous state and confirm it as an international LLC in the new state. You can also forfeit the previous state’s LLC and form a new one.

You can decide to either form an LLC in the new state and then have members (shareholders) from the previous LLC donating their membership interests to you.

Aside from that, you can register a food truck LLC in the new state and integrate it with the established one. Preserving the food truck LLC in the old state and forming an international LLC in the new state requires paying duplicate annual fees. It may also make tax filing more difficult for vendors. There are no federal tax implications to liquidating an LLC.

The LLC doesn’t indicate any profit from the liquidation because it is a pass-through entity. There is no need for a new federal EIN.

Despite the fact that the LLC in the new state will be mandated to procure a new EIN, this will only be utilized for a couple days—until the consolidation is concluded.

  • Food Truck Corporations

When a food truck corporation moves its corporate offices to a new state, it should also take the appropriate action. They have the option of continuing to operate as a food truck corporation in the old state and registering as an international corporation conducting business in the current state, dissolving the corporation in the old state and forming a corporation in the new state.

2. Business Permits

To remain on the side of the law, you’ll need to have business licenses in any state you conduct business in. These vary by state and will necessitate detailed investigation before making the leap.

A few food truck owners make the mistake of thinking that because the business is mobile, it can conduct operations wherever.

Although you might hold a legitimate business license in your home state, this doesn’t give you the right to provide meals in other states.

Rather, you must obtain business licenses in every state where you plan to conduct business. You can accomplish this task by looking for “[state] business license” and continuing to implement the official instructions.

3. Permits

In addition to state-level business licenses, you’ll need to obtain the necessary permits. The type of permit you require will be determined by the area you intend to operate.

You should visit the web page of your local city or county to determine which permits you might require, however the most prevalent are:

  • Health permit
  • Sign permit
  • Zoning permit

You can start serving from your food truck within this location after you have obtained all the proper licenses. Note that food truck owners every once in a while run into problems with local authorizations that require a business to be authorized in that state.

Conclusion

Food trucks in the United States can travel from one state to the next as long as they are a registered business with both the requisite permits and authorizations from the local government.

Although trying to move your food truck to another state may appear to be a brilliant solution, make sure to think about the myriad of legal considerations before making the transition.