Cost of Opening a Venue: Fees and Budget
Which official fees for opening a venue can be checked in the statutes: CEIDG, alcohol permits, BDO, power of attorney, and how to price the rest of the budget.
The question "how much does it cost to open a restaurant" has two answers. The first concerns official fees and is short, because most of them can be checked in the statutes. The second concerns rent, refurbishment and equipment and depends on the premises, the city and the concept. The second cannot honestly be squeezed into a table with a single figure.
The cost of opening a foodservice business in its official part comes down to a few items today: registration in CEIDG (the Central Register and Information on Business Activity) is free of charge, alcohol permits cost from PLN 525 per type, and BDO registration (Poland's waste database register) costs PLN 200 for a micro-entrepreneur. Below is each of them with its source, followed by a list of expenses whose amounts you have to collect yourself.
The key points in brief
- Registration in CEIDG is free of charge (Art. 13 of the CEIDG Act).
- Alcohol permits in the first year: PLN 525 for a permit for drinks up to 4.5% and beer, PLN 525 for a permit for drinks from 4.5% to 18%, and PLN 2,100 for a permit for drinks above 18% (Art. 111(2) of the Act on Upbringing in Sobriety).
- Entry in the BDO register, where it applies to your business: a registration fee of PLN 200 for a micro-entrepreneur and PLN 800 for others, and in following years an annual fee of the same amount.
- You file the application for entry in the Sanepid register of establishments (Sanepid is the State Sanitary Inspection) at least 14 days before starting operations (Art. 64(1) of the Act on Food and Nutrition Safety). We found no fee for the entry itself in the Act.
- The biggest costs are not the official fees, but rent, fitting out the premises, equipment, and the period in which you pay for the premises before the first sale.
Official fees we can verify
| Item | Amount | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Application for entry in CEIDG | PLN 0 | Art. 13 of the CEIDG Act |
| Permit for drinks up to 4.5% and beer (first year) | PLN 525 | Art. 111(2)(1) of the Act on Upbringing in Sobriety |
| Permit for drinks from 4.5% to 18% (first year) | PLN 525 | Art. 111(2)(2) |
| Permit for drinks above 18% (first year) | PLN 2,100 | Art. 111(2)(3) |
| Entry in the BDO register: registration fee | PLN 200 (micro-entrepreneur) or PLN 800 | Regulation of the Minister of Climate and Environment of 18.12.2024 (Journal of Laws (Dz.U.) 2024, item 1901), § 1(2) |
| Power of attorney filed with an office | PLN 17 for each power of attorney relationship | Part IV of the annex to the Stamp Duty Act |
| Notification of a change of use | we found no item in the schedule of stamp duties | schedule of fees in the Stamp Duty Act |
| Entry in the register of establishments (PSSE, the poviat sanitary-epidemiological station) | we found no fee | Art. 63-64 of the Act on Food and Nutrition Safety |
Alcohol permits: the cost depends on what you sell
The fee is paid to the municipality's account before the permit is issued (Art. 111(2)). In the year the permit is obtained, the fee is calculated in proportion to the validity period (para. 8), so starting mid-year means roughly half the rate. Permits are not subject to stamp duty (para. 10). In following years the fee depends on the value of sales: with sales above PLN 37,500 for drinks up to 18% and beer you pay 1.4% of the value of sales, and with sales above PLN 77,000 for drinks above 18% you pay 2.7% (para. 5). Below these thresholds you pay the basic rates (para. 6). A full description of the procedure, deadlines and the risk of losing the permit is in the article on the permit to sell alcohol in a venue.
The Act of 11 June 2026 (Dz.U. 2026, item 875, published on 30 June 2026) enters into force on 1 January 2027 (Art. 22) and adds para. 3aa to Art. 18 of the Act on Upbringing in Sobriety: the municipal commission has 30 days to give its opinion, and a missing opinion within that period is deemed a positive opinion. This concerns the procedure deadline, not the amount of the fees.
BDO: only if you actually place products in packaging on the market
The registration fee follows from Art. 57 of the Waste Act, which also states that the annual fee is not paid in the year in which the registration fee was paid (para. 4), and that the annual fee is due at the end of February (para. 3). The rates are set by a regulation of the Minister of Climate, in force since 1 January 2025. Whether and when a venue must be in BDO is explained in the article on BDO in foodservice.
Sanepid and change of use: deadlines, not fees
Art. 64(1) of the Act on Food and Nutrition Safety requires you to file the application for entry in the register of establishments at least 14 days before the planned start of operations. In practice this is a time limit that affects the budget, because every week of delay in opening is rent without revenue. What the application itself looks like is described in the article on notifying Sanepid of the opening, and the building procedure in the article on change of use of a premises.
Expenses whose amounts we do not give
The items below account for most of the budget, but their amounts depend on the premises and the local market. We have no primary source that would let us give an honest range, so we do not enter figures. Collect quotes and enter your own.
- Rent and lease deposit and rent for the preparation period before opening. We discuss the lease clauses in the article on the lease of a foodservice premises.
- Fitting out the premises: installations, ventilation and extraction hood, sanitary facilities, floors and walls suitable for washing.
- Designs and opinions: the technological design, fire safety requirements, and any building documentation.
- Kitchen and dining room equipment, including refrigeration, a fiscal cash register and a card terminal.
- HACCP, GHP (Good Hygiene Practice) and GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) documentation. A comparison of the options (doing it yourself, templates, a consultant) is in the article how much HACCP implementation costs.
- Staff examinations and training: sanitary-epidemiological examinations of employees, and hygiene and allergen training.
- Insurance. Third-party liability insurance is not mandatory for an ordinary venue, but a lease may require it. Details are in the article on liability insurance in foodservice.
- A cash reserve for the start: first purchases of stock, wages and fixed charges during the period in which the venue is not yet earning.
Costs that appear if you skip something
These items are not opening costs, but they are the easiest to cause at the preparation stage. For a missing entry in the BDO register, where one is required, an administrative fine imposed by the WIOŚ (the Voivodeship Inspectorate for Environmental Protection) is possible, as we write in the article on BDO. Missing HACCP documentation costs in a different way, which we cover in the article what missing HACCP documentation costs. The full order of actions before opening is in the guide how to open a restaurant step by step.
How to build a budget so you do not run out of funds
- Separate one-off and monthly costs. The official fees in the table are one-off costs (except the annual BDO fee and the alcohol fees).
- Enter the items you have verified. You can enter the fees from the table above without estimates.
- For the rest, collect at least two quotes. Prices depend on the premises, not on the category, so averages from the internet will help little.
- Count the preparation period. You pay rent from signing the lease or from the date stated in it. Include time for fitting out, inspections and official deadlines, such as the 14 days in Art. 64(1).
- Leave a reserve. Refurbishments and inspections rarely finish on the planned date, and every week of delay means fixed costs without revenue.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to register a foodservice business?
The application for entry in CEIDG is free of charge (Art. 13 of the CEIDG Act). Entry in the Sanepid register of establishments has no fee that we could point to in the Act, but you must file it at least 14 days before starting operations.
How much does an alcohol permit cost?
In the first year PLN 525 for a permit for drinks up to 4.5% and beer, PLN 525 for drinks from 4.5% to 18%, and PLN 2,100 for drinks above 18%, that is PLN 3,150 for the full set over a full calendar year. In the year the permit is obtained, the fee is proportionate to its validity period.
Do I have to pay for BDO registration?
If the registration obligation applies to you, yes: a registration fee of PLN 200 for a micro-entrepreneur or PLN 800 for others. In following years you pay an annual fee of the same amount by the end of February, but not in the year in which you paid the registration fee.
Is a power of attorney for an architect or an accountant subject to a fee?
Filing a power of attorney document with an office is subject to stamp duty of PLN 17 for each power of attorney relationship. The Act provides for exemptions, so check whether they apply to your case.
What is the budget for opening a venue?
We do not give a single figure, because we have no source that would let us state one honestly. The official fees in the table are a small part of the budget. Its size is decided by rent, fitting out and equipment, which you have to price for a specific premises.
Legal status as of: 4 October 2026
Legal basis: Act of 6 March 2018 on the Central Register and Information on Business Activity and the Information Point for Entrepreneurs (consolidated text, Journal of Laws (Dz.U.) 2026, item 30, Art. 13); Act of 26 October 1982 on Upbringing in Sobriety and Counteracting Alcoholism (consolidated text, Dz.U. 2023, item 2151, Art. 111; amendment in Dz.U. 2026, item 875, in force from 1 January 2027); Act of 14 December 2012 on Waste (Art. 57) and the Regulation of the Minister of Climate and Environment of 18 December 2024 (Dz.U. 2024, item 1901); Act on Food and Nutrition Safety of 25 August 2006 (Art. 63-64); Act of 16 November 2006 on Stamp Duty (consolidated text, Dz.U. 2025, item 1154, Part IV of the annex). We did not check local fees (e.g. for occupying a road lane or for advertising), which are set by municipalities, or market prices.
Last review: 4 October 2026
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