Frequently asked questions
About the registration system
Who must register?
The legislation only applies to persons with a business selling food.
Food Business” is defined in The Food Standard Services (Scotland) Act 2010 to mean “a business involving the sale of food products by retail”. If no part of your business involves retail trade then you do not require to be registered.
What does this mean for retailers?
The legislation establishes a national register maintained by Food Standards Scotland, which requires all retailers in regulated sectors to be registered in order to sell their products. This operates in conjunction with an enforcement framework including penalties for non-compliance.
When can I register?
Registration is required for all businesses operating in regulated sectors under Food Standards Scotland's oversight. You can register at any time through our online system or by completing a paper application form.
If you operate multiple types of regulated business activities, you will need to ensure your registration covers all relevant products and services.
Why do I need to register?
Registration ensures that businesses operating in regulated sectors meet necessary compliance standards and helps Food Standards Scotland maintain oversight of these industries. The registration system provides tools for better enforcement of regulatory requirements whilst keeping administrative burden to a minimum for compliant businesses.
What's the difference between a registration scheme and a licensing scheme?
Whilst a licensing scheme has certain advantages it is also more burdensome on authorities and businesses, as the business has to provide a sufficient level of information to allow the relevant authority to determine whether they should be allowed to operate. A registration scheme merely requires a business to notify Food Standards Scotland that they are operating in a regulated sector and is, therefore, simpler and less costly to administer.
Do I need to pay to register?
No, registration is free.
How do I register?
Registration can be done quickly and easily in one of two ways:
-
Register online: Complete our web-based form
- Register on Paper :
Download the registration form
(in pdf) or request a paper copy of the form from Food Standards Scotland.
Copies of the form can be downloaded online or can be requested by contacting Food Standards Scotland. In addition, printed forms are available from your local council's trading standards team.
Your Registration
How do I update my registration?
- You can update any of your account, contact, company or premises details at any time by logging into your account.
- Please note if you are an existing registrant accessing the new register for the first time you will be required to reset your password.
- Log into your account and you will be taken to your account dashboard. From there you can click the relevant section to update your account, contact or company details.
- You can see an overview of all of your registered premises in the Manage Premises section.
- From here you can update any premises individually by selecting 'Edit'. Please note if you are updating an existing premises to include additional regulated products, you simply need to update the relevant questions under 'Products sold' and press 'Submit'.
- If you wish to remove a premises you can select 'Delete'.
- Please note that if you upload premises using the Upload Tool, then this will overwrite the existing premises.
- You can print your updated certificate at any time from the Manage Premises page.
I own more than one retail premise, do I need to complete individual forms for each property?
Yes, if you are registering manually. However, if you are registering online, the system has the facility to enable you to complete one form and add additional premises by following the instructions.
What if the parent company is outside of Scotland?
It is not an issue if the company applying for the certificate is a parent company outwith Scotland. If there are any Premises within Scotland, they need to be registered by whatever company owns them.
What is the floor definition?
It is the area used for retailing to consumers.
In case of tenants, do I put the tenant's company name or premise license holder details?
Any person who carries on a business involving the sale of regulated products must be on the register. It will be the applicant's name which goes onto the register.
The answer to the question "who should apply?" is that it is the person (individual or corporate) who carries on the retail business. So, who owns the products, retails them to consumers, and takes the profits.
Therefore, the tenant registers as it is they that are carrying out the retail business, not the landlord.
Head office versus outlet?
In the vast majority of cases, the head office will complete the registration on behalf of outlets. We suggest that if in doubt, they should contact their head office to establish if the outlet details are being registered.
What if I am unable to complete an online form?
Simply request a paper copy by contacting Food Standards Scotland, then send the duly completed form to Food Standards Scotland at our registered address.
Do I need to display the registration certificate?
You do not need to display the certificate, but it should be retained and kept ready for inspection purposes.
If your registered premises have been registered by your head office, they will retain the certificate on your behalf. Copies of your registration form can be obtained from the registrant on request.
What if my details change?
To keep the register up-to-date, you are required to notify Food Standards Scotland of any changes in your particulars, such as a change in a person's name or address or the fact that the person is no longer carrying on a business at an address noted in the person's entry in the register.
You can update your registration details online if you have registered online. Please note it is your responsibility to notify Food Standards Scotland that you are no longer selling products that you are required to register for.
How will the fixed penalty notice scheme and banning orders work?
Legislation gives powers to enforcement officers to issue penalty notices for regulatory offences, including selling non-compliant products, failing to meet display requirements, or not being on the register. The legislation covers businesses selling regulated products under Food Standards Scotland's oversight.
For businesses found in breach of the legislation multiple times within a specified period through relevant enforcement action, authorities can apply to the courts to have the business banned from selling regulated products. A court can ban a business from selling regulated products for a period determined by the severity and frequency of violations.
What if I am a dual retailer and I no longer wish to sell one of these products?
If you operate multiple types of regulated businesses and you are no longer selling one category of products, please fill out and submit a change request form which allows you to state the product category that you are no longer selling. This will allow your registration to be amended.
Where can I get a copy of my certificate?
You can print a copy of your certificate at any time by logging into your account and visiting the 'Manage Premises' section and clicking the 'Print Certificate' button. All of your registered premises will be listed on the one certificate. If you update, add, or remove a premises from your account, you can print an updated certificate.
General information
Who can access information on the register?
Key features of the register will include provision for relevant parts of the register to be accessible to the general public on the internet. Local authorities will also be able to access the information contained in the register.
Who will enforce the laws?
Enforcement will be carried out by your local council's trading standards service.
What happens after a person is removed from the register?
A person who is registered with Food Standards Scotland and who commits multiple breaches of regulatory requirements within a specified period will be subject to enforcement action. The period and type of enforcement will be determined by the court based on the severity of violations.
Regulated products cannot be sold from the premises to which the enforcement action relates for the period of time determined by the court. A person must display any required enforcement notices in a prominent position for the period specified.
Where can I get further information?
You can contact Food Standards Scotland for advice on the registration system or any other regulatory requirements.
Contact numbers?
We only require one contact number for the registrant. We only require one contact who will coordinate the response from all the business entities applying for their premises that are relevant.