In the last few years business culture has been increasing in the market. People are starting their own businesses. One of the most common businesses in the market is businesses related to food. This is the one business which can be started with less investment as well. That’s why people prefer to do this kind of business. These businesses are governed by the FSS Act of 2006 which is a food safety law in India. As per this law every food business whether it is a petty food business or a giant one, FSSAI license registration is mandatory for all.
Food License is a kind of permission from the government authorities to do food business in India. Without obtaining this license one cannot run a food business in India. As food is directly related to the health of the public, the government is strict about giving this food license due to which FSSAI application gets rejected many times. In order to learn what you should do after your FSSAI application gets rejected, keep reading the present blog.
What is the Meaning of the Food Licensing
Food Licensing which is the another name of FSSAI licensing is mandatory for all the food businesses. To operate a food business in India, one must seek approval from the competent authorities, which is granted in the form of food or FSSAI licensing. This is the only permission required for all enterprises that include food, directly or indirectly. This license is known as FSSAI licensing. Follow the steps which are outlined or discussed or mentioned in this present blog to obtain a food license for your food business in India.
Grounds on which FSSAI Application gets Rejected
Some of the key grounds on which FSSAI application gets rejected are:
Incomplete Application
In order to get this license called Food License one needs to file an online application through the official portal of the government. This application needs to be filled correctly and it is also compulsory to provide all the information as well as documents which are asked in the application by the authorities. In case you submit the incomplete application before the competent authorities your application will get rejected.
Mistake in the Application
Generally if you filed an application with some mistakes in it, the department will not reject your application instead raise the query. But in any case you have filed the answer of that query wrongly or while filling the form you have given such information wrongly which cannot be corrected then in that case your FSSAI application gets rejected. Hence while filling the application be conscious and fill all the information carefully.
Non-Compliance
If it is found that the business of the applicant is not complying with the food safety laws then the authorities will reject your application for FSSAI license registration. Hence in order to take this license from the authorities it is mandatory for the applicant to comply with the food safety laws which came in 2006. These laws are applicable on all the food businesses in the market. Therefore in order to take your food license without FSSAI application gets rejected, comply with these requirements of the law.
Incorrect Information
If while filling the form for the application of the FSSAI licensing, you as an applicant provided wrong or incorrect information then your FSSAI application gets rejected by the competent authorities. Hence make sure all the information you are providing is correct. Also check the documents which you are uploading with the application. They must be correct and not forged, because this will also come under the category of incorrect information.
Unsatisfactory Inspection
After the application for the license has been filed by the applicant it will be verified by the competent authorities. After inspection if they are not satisfied then your FSSAI application gets rejected. In this case you cannot do anything except applying for the license again. Therefore it is necessary to make sure that in the very first time you will fill the application form correctly so that there are no chances of rejection of the application from the competent authorities and chance of their satisfaction will increase.
Expired License
As per the general rule you need to file an application for the renewal of the FSSAI license at least before the forty days of the expiry date. Once your license’s expiry date comes and you didn’t file the application on time then you cannot do anything except obtaining the new license. Also if you file an application for the renewal of the license after the expiry period your FSSAI application gets rejected for sure. Hence be conscious about the expiry date of the license and renew accordingly.
Things to be done After FSSAI Application gets Rejected
What to do after the FSSAI application gets rejected? This is one of the most common questions of the food business owners. There are many applicants whose food license application gets rejected due to any of the reasons discussed above. Once your FSSAI application gets rejected do the following things given below:
Revival of Rejected FSSAI Application for Basic Food License
- File a reactivation request before the State Food Safety Commissioner.
- This request must be filed within 3 months from the date of rejection of your FSSAI license.
- Now a designated officer from the department of the competent authorities will review your application for the merit
- Within a month after getting a request from a food operator, send an email to the RC Division summarizing the applicant’s findings.
- On this stage the designated officer will forward the proposal of the reactivation of the application to the IT division of the competent authorities
- Now IT division will look out into the matter and after receiving the request and the applicant they will reactive your application
- This is how you can reactivate your food license application which got rejected
Revival of Rejected FSSAI Application for State Food License
- Submit a reactivation request to the State Food Safety Commissioner.
- This request must be submitted within three months of the rejection of your FSSAI license.
- Now, a selected officer from the department of the competent authorities will assess your merit application.
- Within a month of receiving a request from a food operator, send an email to the RC Division describing the applicant’s findings.
- At this stage, the designated officer will transmit the request for reactivating the application to the IT division of the responsible authorities.
- Now, the IT division will look into the situation, and after receiving the request and the applicant, they will reactivate your application.
Revival of Rejected FSSAI Application for Central Food License
- Applicant needs to apply for the reactivation of the application in the FSSAI regional office within the 6 months of the rejection of the FSSAI application
- After getting the request for the reactivation of the application regional officer will verify your request
- After reviewing the request within 30 days, the regional office director will send the recommendation to the RCD (Regional Compliance Division)
- Now RCD will investigate the case
- Based on the advice, the Executive Director of the RCD would serve as the final adjudicator in such cases.
- Once everything is done from their side they will send the same case to the IT Division and they will revive the application
Revival of Application of Rejected Food License
It is not necessary that every time your FSSAI application gets rejected, your revival of the application will be done. It is also a kind of discretion of the department. It is not provided to the applicant as a right. Applicants after the rejection of the application can request the authorities for the revival, if they are satisfied only in that scenario there are chances that your application will be revived. Sometimes they reject the revival request as well. Hence try to file the application correctly for the very first time. This is possible only if you are going to file the application with the help of an expert or you are the expert.
Is it Mandatory to get FSSAI License in India?
Yes, in order to do tea business in India, you must obtain a food license, as the FSS Act of 2006 prohibits any food business from operating in the market without this license. As a result, in India, a tea shop must also obtain a food license. If a person is detected running a food business without a legitimate FSSAI license from the appropriate authorities, his or her company may face significant fines and penalties. So, in order to protect your tea business from such fines and penalties, you must obtain this license.
Some people believe that they can manage a food business in India without a food license, particularly small business owners. However, this is not the truth. You must obtain this license before operating any type of food company. It is not a directory obtaining this license in India is required to operate any type of food business in the Indian food sector. Tea falls under the category of food, hence in order to establish a tea business in India, you must obtain a food license first.
Conclusion
People panic when their food license application gets rejected, because they are not having knowledge about the revival of the rejected application process. Hence in order to discuss what one can do after his or her FSSAI application gets rejected by the competent authorities we came up with this write up. Here we have discussed all the important aspects of the rejection as well as revival of the FSSAI application, so that food business owners can get the idea about the same and do the needful after their FSSAI application gets rejected.
