Information on dates when waiting lists will become available in the  future will be posted here and available by calling 311. 

8 Steps to Get a Green Cart Permit

1. Get a Mobile Food Vending License if you do not already have one. Read the Steps to Apply for a Mobile Food Vending License [Español] [中文] [عربي] [اردو] [বাংলা] and the Mobile Food Vending License Application or call 311 and ask for "Mobile Food Vending License".
2. Get a Green Cart Waiting List Application Form. You can get an application form in one of three ways:
   • Pick up the form at the Citywide Licensing Center located at 42 Broadway, 5th Floor, Manhattan, or
   • Call 311 and ask for "Green Cart Waiting List Application form" to receive an application form by mail, or
   • Print out the Green Carts Waiting List Application form

   Before you begin the application, read: Green Carts Waiting List Application Instructions (PDF)
   Other languages: [Español] [中文] [عربي] [اردو] [বাংলা]
   

3. Fill out the Green Cart Waiting List Application Form (PDF)
    Other languages: [Español] and mail it to:
   

   Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
   125 Worth Street, C.N. EHS 1000,
   NY, NY 10013
   
   

   There is no fee to apply for the waiting lists. You can only apply by mail.
   

   Please see the application form for the deadline and available boroughs.

4. The Health Department will mail you a postcard with your waiting list number(s) and will send you a Green Cart Permit Application when you are selected from one of the borough waiting lists.
   
5. When you are selected from a waiting list, you will have 30 days to complete the Green Cart Permit Application and bring it to the Citywide Licensing Center. The fee for the permit is $75 by certified check or money order. There is no fee for a permit if you are an honorably discharged veteran of the United States Armed Services and present a New York State Peddler's Certificate or if you are the surviving spouse or domestic partner of a veteran with this certificate
   
6. You will receive a receipt when your Green Cart Permit Application is accepted at the licensing center. Purchase your mobile food cart. You will have
   6 months from the date of your receipt to make an appointment and bring your cart to a Health Department site and pass inspection.
   
7. When your cart passes the inspection, the Health Department inspector will
   attach a permit decal to your cart and will give you a Green Cart umbrella for your cart.
   
8. You will receive your permit document in the mail within 4 weeks.

Congratulations! You are now a Green Cart vendor.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens after I submit the waiting list application form?
After the application period ends, the Health Department will set up a waiting list of applicants for each available borough based on a lottery system. The Health Department will mail you a postcard with a waiting list number for each waiting list you applied for and will send you a Green Cart Permit Application when you are selected from one of the borough waiting lists.

Who will be given priority on the waiting list?
Priority on the Green Cart waiting lists will be given to applicants already on other non-Green Cart Health Department mobile food permit waiting lists, disabled United States Veterans, disabled persons who are not veterans, and non-disabled United States Veterans. Anyone interested in operating a Green Cart is encouraged to apply, even if you do not fit into one of these priority groups.

How do I improve my chances of getting a Green Cart permit application?
Your chance of being selected to apply for a permit depends on how many applicants there are for the borough, and what your priority group is. List all boroughs where you are willing to operate a Green Cart. If you are only willing to operate in one borough, you should list just one.

What happens if I am waiting for another mobile food permit?
Green Cart waiting lists are separate from other mobile food permit waiting lists. If you are already on another mobile food permit waiting list, you will not lose your waiting list position when you also apply for the Green Cart waiting lists. However, you cannot hold more than one permit at a time. If you are selected for a Green Cart permit and you already hold another mobile food vending permit, you will have to forfeit one of the permits.

> More Frequently Asked Questions (PDF)
Other languages: [Español] [中文] [عربي] [اردو] [বাংলা]

Additional information

Steps to Get a Mobile Food Vending License (PDF)
Other languages: [Español] [中文] [عربي] [اردو] [বাংলা]

Steps to Get a Green Cart Permit (PDF)
Other languages: [Español] [中文] [عربي] [اردو] [বাংলা]

Financial Assistance for Green Cart vendors

Green Cart Financing Flyer (PDF)
Other languages: [En Español]

Green Cart Business Assistance workshop schedule (PDF)