9 items, in order: certificate of formation (llc) or an assumed name certificate, employer identification number (ein), sales and use tax permit, certificate of occupancy, retail food establishment permit and certified food manager, and 3 more.
How to open, Texas
How to open an ice cream shop in Texas
9 licenses, permits and registrations, in the order to get them, each with the agency, the fee and the official page, and what the Census counts of ice cream shops in Texas say.
9 licenses, permits and registrations, in the order to get them
Every row checked against its agency’s page; the latest on Oct 15, 2026.
Set up the business
Certificate of formation (LLC) or an assumed name certificate
Forming an entity is a choice, not a license. Most owners form an LLC for the liability shield; a sole proprietor only needs the county filing when trading under a name other than their own.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas Secretary of State; county clerk for sole proprietors
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Employer Identification Number (EIN)
Needed to hire, to open a business bank account under an entity, and for most state applications below.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Internal Revenue Service
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Register for tax
Sales and use tax permit
Required for anyone selling goods or taxable services in Texas. Prepared food, drinks, retail goods, gym memberships and most salon products are taxable; apply online, allow two to three weeks.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Approve the space
Certificate of occupancy
The certificate confirms the space is approved for your use under zoning and building code, after inspections. Get it before you open and before build-out money is committed; a space with a prior use like yours is faster.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Your city building or development services department
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Get the permits for your kind of business
Retail food establishment permit
Apply after the certificate of occupancy and before opening; an inspection comes first. A 2025 Dallas memo moves city permits to the state income-based structure.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas DSHS where there is no local health department; otherwise the city or county health department (Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Antonio run their own)
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Certified food manager
At least one person with management authority over food preparation must hold the certificate, posted where customers can see it. Local health departments may ask for more.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas DSHS (exam from an accredited or ANSI-certified provider)
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Food handler certificate for every food employee
Every food employee completes an accredited course within 30 days of hire; keep each certificate on the premises.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas DSHS accredited course
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Food manufacturer license (only if you sell wholesale)
A bakery or ice cream shop selling only at its own counter needs the retail food permit, not this. Supplying other stores, cafes or online orders shipped out makes you a manufacturer. Frozen desserts: retail shops are exempt from the frozen dessert manufacturer license (Health and Safety Code chapter 440).
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas DSHS
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Before the first hire
Unemployment tax account
Register within ten days of paying your first wages. Report each new hire within 20 days of their start date.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas Workforce Commission
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Ice cream shops already in Texas
- Establishments, County Business Patterns 2023
- 30
- Per 10,000 residents
- 0.0
- Change since 2018
- +26 (+650%)
Metro areas with the most
| Metro area | Ice cream shops | Per 10,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | 2,302 | 2.8 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands | 1,848 | 2.4 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | 737 | 2.9 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | 592 | 2.1 |
| El Paso | 190 | 2.2 |
| McAllen-Edinburg-Mission | 131 | 1.4 |
How they fare in Texas
- Closed in 2023, accommodation and food services
- 9.0%
- Opened in 2023
- 12.1%
Then pick the place
- The free location checkWho lives and works around an address, the ice cream shops already there and the traffic on its road, from public records.
- The full reportWhether the rules allow an ice cream shop at that address, the rent it supports, what has opened and closed nearby, and the questions to settle before signing.
Have an address in mind?
Check the address freeNo account. The ice cream shop check reads public records at the address itself.
Sources and dates
Texas Secretary of State Form 205 and Form 503 instructions; Dallas County Clerk assumed names page; IRS EIN page; Texas Comptroller sales tax permit FAQ; City of Dallas certificate of occupancy page and DSD fee schedule; Texas DSHS retail food establishment permits page; City of Dallas retail food fee schedule 2025 (on the DSHS local ordinance registry); Texas DSHS food manager licensing page; Texas Food Establishment Rules 25 TAC 228; Texas DSHS food handler program FAQ; 25 TAC 228.31; Texas DSHS food manufacturer application EF23-10853 and FY2025 fee resource manual; Texas Workforce Commission new employer page; U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023; U.S. Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics. Fees are as published by each agency on the date checked; cities add their own.