Skai Solutions added up the published Auckland Council fees: a single site template food control plan costs NZ$396 to register, NZ$99.19 in food business levy plus a NZ$12.65 collection fee, and NZ$792 to verify, so about NZ$1,300 in year one.
Registration is charged by your registration authority, which for most restaurants and cafes is the local council, and the fees are published. Auckland Council is the largest single registration authority in the country and its schedule, read on 3 September 2026, is below. Every figure includes GST and none of it is refundable.
| What you are paying for | Fee |
|---|---|
| Template food control plan, registration | NZ$396 |
| Template food control plan, renewal | NZ$198 |
| Template food control plan, verification | NZ$792 |
| National Programme 1, 2 or 3, registration | NZ$297 |
| National Programme, renewal | NZ$198 |
| National Programme 1 and 2, verification | NZ$396 |
| National Programme 3, verification | NZ$594 |
| Amendment to a registration | from NZ$63 |
| Reprint of a food grade certificate | NZ$89 |
Source: Auckland Council food registration and alcohol licence fees. Other councils set their own fees and they differ, sometimes by a hundred dollars or more, so treat this as the shape of the cost rather than the exact number for your town. Which document you need is set by risk: a restaurant or cafe that cooks and serves higher risk food runs a food control plan, while lower risk operations run a National Programme. The Ministry for Primary Industries registration guide is the authority on which one applies to you.
Note that registration is priced on a set minimum block of time. Anything beyond it is charged hourly, and corrective follow up activity is billed per 30 minutes plus travel and information gathering. A messy first verification costs more than a clean one, which is the strongest financial argument for having your paperwork in order before the verifier arrives.
Central government introduced a Food Business Levy in 2024. It took effect on 1 July 2025, it applies to every registered food business in New Zealand, and it is collected by your council and passed to the Ministry for Primary Industries. It is being phased in over three years and it is not finished rising.
| Levy year | Fee, including GST |
|---|---|
| 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026 | NZ$66.13 |
| 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027 | NZ$99.19 |
| From 1 July 2027 | NZ$132.25 |
There is also a NZ$12.65 collection fee on top. So the levy line on your renewal is going from NZ$66.13 to NZ$132.25 over three years, a doubling, and it is charged annually whatever your renewal date happens to be. If you do not pay it, the debt is forwarded to the Ministry, which can add penalties and interest.
This is the part almost nobody writes down, and it matters the moment you open a second site.
Under a template food control plan, the levy is charged per registered site. Under a National Programme, it is charged per registered business. A three site operator on template food control plans pays the levy three times. The same operator on a National Programme pays it once.
At the 2026 to 2027 rate that is NZ$297.57 against NZ$99.19, so about NZ$198 a year, rising to about NZ$264 a year from 1 July 2027. It is not a reason to choose the wrong document, because the risk profile of your food decides that and food safety is not a line to optimise. It is a reason to know what your registration structure is costing you, and a reason to ask the question properly if you run several sites with genuinely different risk profiles.
Single site, template food control plan, Auckland Council fees, in the levy year to 30 June 2027. This is Skai Solutions adding up the published fees above, not a quote.
| Line | Cost |
|---|---|
| Template food control plan registration | NZ$396.00 |
| Food business levy, 2026 to 2027 | NZ$99.19 |
| Levy collection fee | NZ$12.65 |
| Verification | NZ$792.00 |
| First year total | NZ$1,299.84 |
A renewal year without a verification due is NZ$198 plus NZ$99.19 plus NZ$12.65, which is NZ$309.84, rising to NZ$342.90 once the levy reaches NZ$132.25. Verification is charged each time it happens and how often that is depends on your compliance history, so budget for it landing rather than assuming a fixed cycle.
Then add the licence if you pour alcohol. Auckland Council publishes on licence fees by risk category, from NZ$368 application and NZ$161 annual at very low risk to NZ$1,207.50 and NZ$1,437.50 at very high risk, with a medium risk venue at NZ$816.50 and NZ$632.50. A manager's certificate is NZ$316.25. A licensed medium risk restaurant is therefore looking at roughly NZ$2,400 of registration, verification and licensing in a first year before it has bought a single plate.
Everything on this page is a cost you cannot negotiate. The levy is legislated, the fees are set by council, and verification happens whether trade was good that quarter or not. Compare that with the rest of the New Zealand cost base: wage costs run at about 40% of hospitality revenue on Restaurant Association of New Zealand figures, and the adult minimum wage has been NZ$23.95 an hour since 1 April 2026.
The lesson operators draw from a page like this is usually to cut somewhere, and there is nothing here to cut. The other move is to stop losing revenue you have already paid the fixed costs to earn. A booking that never gets taken because the phone rang during service costs you the cover and the covers you had already staffed for. That is the one number on the page you can actually move. Our hospitality wages in New Zealand page works the wage side, Skai Solutions in New Zealand covers what we do here, and New Zealand pricing is what it costs.
Australia runs a different framework and a different price ladder. The Australian equivalent is priced on food handler certificate cost in Australia.
Skai Solutions answers the calls your team cannot get to during service, for a flat monthly fee, so the bookings you already paid the overheads to earn actually land.
Book a Free DemoNZ$396 with Auckland Council for a template food control plan, plus the food business levy of NZ$99.19 for the year to 30 June 2027 and a NZ$12.65 collection fee. Verification is charged separately at NZ$792. Other councils set their own fees, so check your own registration authority.
Risk. A food control plan is for businesses making or selling higher risk food, which covers most restaurants and cafes that cook. A National Programme is for lower risk operations. The Ministry for Primary Industries decides which applies to your business, not you, and the fees differ: NZ$297 to register a National Programme with Auckland Council against NZ$396 for a template food control plan.
An annual charge introduced by central government in 2024 and effective from 1 July 2025. It applies to every registered food business, is collected by your council and passed to the Ministry for Primary Industries, and is being phased in: NZ$66.13 to 30 June 2026, NZ$99.19 to 30 June 2027, then NZ$132.25 from 1 July 2027.
It depends on your registration type, and this is the detail that catches multi site operators. Under a template food control plan the levy is charged per registered site. Under a National Programme it is charged per registered business. Three sites on template food control plans pay it three times, which is about NZ$198 a year more at the 2026 to 2027 rate.
Auckland Council publishes on licence fees by risk category. Very low risk is NZ$368 to apply and NZ$161 a year. Medium risk is NZ$816.50 and NZ$632.50. Very high risk is NZ$1,207.50 and NZ$1,437.50. A manager's certificate is NZ$316.25. These are set by government rather than by the council.
About NZ$1,300 for a single site unlicensed venue on a template food control plan with Auckland Council, adding registration, levy, collection fee and one verification. A licensed medium risk restaurant is closer to NZ$2,400 once the on licence application, annual fee and a manager's certificate are added.