FSSAI License Number Search by Name: How to Check if a Food Licence Is Real or Fake (2026 Guide)

To do an FSSAI license number search by name, open FSSAI's official FoSCoS portal at foscos.fssai.gov.in, click FBO Search on the homepage, and enter the business's registered name along with its state and district. You don't need to log in. The result shows the 14-digit number, the licence type, the address and whether the licence is active, suspended or cancelled. That status line is how you tell a real licence from a fake one.

Yeh page tumhare liye hai if you want to check a sweet shop, restaurant or supplier. It's also for you if you're a founder starting a food product and want to know what distributors will see when they search your name.

TL;DR

• Where: https://foscos.fssai.gov.in/, then FBO Search. Type the address yourself, because lookalike sites exist.
• By name: legal company name + state + district. Then match the result on the premises address.
• By number: exactly 14 digits, no spaces. Any other length means the number is invalid.
• Real or fake: the number has to show up on the portal, belong to the same business and address, have an active status, and cover the products being sold.
• Report a fake: FoSCoS consumer grievance portal or the toll-free helpline 1800-11-2100 (24x7).

Trend monitor: why so many people were checking FSSAI licences in autumn 2026

Google Trends data fetched on 1 November 2026 shows "fssai license number search by name" up +130% over 7 days. "How to check fssai license number real or fake" is up +50% over the same period. A few things happening at once explain it:

• Hyderabad raids (reported 1 November 2026): Telangana's food safety authority inspected 22 eateries in the Golconda and Charminar zones. It suspended the FSSAI licences of 14, including Shah Ghouse Cafe, Hotel Nayaab and Mehfil Restaurant, and sent show-cause notices to 8 others, including Pista House and Taj Falaknuma Palace, according to Hospitality Biz India. Inspectors threw away 544 kg of food.
• The 2026 festive-season drive: in a letter dated 29 September 2026, FSSAI asked states to step up checks on sweets, khoa, paneer, ghee, edible oil and namkeen ahead of Navratri and Diwali 2026 (Business Today, 6 October 2026). Karnataka checked 80 sweet units on 15–17 October 2026 and sent 125 samples to labs. Kolkata had already suspended the licences of 40 eateries on 8 September 2026.
• QR codes at eateries: since FSSAI's August 2025 mandate, food businesses have to display a QR code that opens the Food Safety Connect app, so more customers are checking licences themselves.

FSSAI license number search by name: step-by-step on FoSCoS

1. Type https://foscos.fssai.gov.in/ into your browser yourself. Don't use a link a seller or "agent" sends you on WhatsApp. Fake portals copy FSSAI's look.
2. Click "FBO Search" on the homepage. Some guides call it "Verify License/Registration Certificate". Portal labels change from time to time, so look for the FBO Search option. You don't need to log in or pay anything.
3. Choose the name search option and enter the company or business name.
4. Select the state and district. This narrows the results a lot. A name like "Sri Lakshmi Sweets" can bring up dozens of matches across India.
5. Enter the captcha and click search.
6. Open the matching record and check it against the certificate, bill or label in front of you: name, full address, licence type (Registration, State or Central), product categories and status.

Name search tips (yahin pe log atak jaate hain)

• Use the legal name, not the signboard name. "Bawarchi Biryani" may be registered as "XYZ Hospitality Pvt Ltd" or under the proprietor's own name. If the brand name gives no result, try the company name printed on the GST invoice.
• Match the address, not just the name. A chain can have a separate licence for each outlet, and each one needs to be valid on its own.
• Try shorter versions. Drop "Pvt Ltd", "& Sons" or "Enterprises" if the full name doesn't match.
• Check the other searches. FoSCoS has separate E-Commerce FBO and manufacturer searches. Use these for online sellers and for brands that get their products made by a third-party manufacturer.

Searching by the 14-digit FSSAI number

If you have the number, it's quicker. Since 1 January 2022, food businesses have had to print it on bills, invoices and cash receipts. On packaged food it sits next to the FSSAI logo.

1. Open FBO Search on FoSCoS.
2. Enter the licence or registration number: 14 digits, no spaces, no dashes.
3. Enter the captcha and search.
4. Check that the business name and address on screen match the shop or label you're looking at.

Compliance guides say the 14 digits encode things like licence type, state, year and issuing office. Don't treat that as a test, though. A fraudster can easily make up a number that follows the pattern. The only proof is a matching record on the portal.

How to check FSSAI license number real or fake: 7 red flags

1. The number isn't 14 digits. 13 or 15 digits means it's fake. No exceptions.
2. The portal finds nothing. A valid number always shows a record.
3. The number is real but belongs to someone else. This is the most common trick: copy a genuine licence from another business and print it on your own label. Always match the name and the address.
4. The status is suspended or cancelled. The 14 Hyderabad eateries above still have real numbers, but their licences are suspended.
5. The products fall outside the licensed categories. A licence for a bakery doesn't cover packaged ghee or edible oil.
6. The seller won't share the number, or says "process mein hai" for months.
7. All you've seen is a PDF or a number on the menu. A PDF can be edited in two minutes. Only the portal record counts.

What changed in 2026: check status, not expiry

Most older guides tell you to check the expiry date. That advice is now partly out of date.

• Perpetual validity: FSSAI's order of 27 March 2026 says: "Any License/Registration issued on or after 01.04.2026 will have perpetual validity." These licences don't need renewing. They stay valid until they're suspended, cancelled or surrendered.
• Older licences: compliance blogs disagree on whether licences issued before 1 April 2026 get perpetual validity automatically. If you hold one, check your own record on FoSCoS or ask the FSSAI helpdesk.
• The annual fee and annual return (Form D-1, due 31 May) still apply. Several sources say that missing them can lead to deemed suspension. So "no expiry" doesn't mean "no compliance".

When you search a business now, the field that matters most is status: active, suspended or cancelled.

New turnover limits from 1 April 2026

Businesses that moved category because of these limits were switched over automatically and kept the same number. So if a supplier's record now says "Registration" where it used to say "State Licence", that's normal and doesn't mean the licence is fake. Street vendors already registered under the Street Vendors Act 2014 also count as FSSAI-registered.

For founders: why buyers and distributors check you before stocking

If you're starting a district food product (pickles, jaggery, makhana, spice powders), sab se pehle your licence record has to be clean. A modern trade buyer, a distributor or a marketplace onboarding team will run the same FoSCoS search on you. Here's what they look at:

• Name match: the legal name on your label, invoice and FoSCoS record should be the same. If your brand is "Konaseema Kitchen" but the company is "Ramesh Foods", put both on the label ("Marketed by...").
• Category match: if you plan to add mango jelly to your pickle range, add that category to your licence before you launch it. Our East Godavari fruit products guide and Vizianagaram mango jelly guide list the product categories these units usually need.
• Licence type vs turnover: under ₹1.5 crore turnover, basic registration is enough under the 2026 limits. A distributor planning big orders may still ask what happens once you cross that.
• Number on every invoice: it has been mandatory since 1 January 2022. A missing number makes buyers nervous right away.
• Manufacturer licence if you outsource: if a contract packer makes your Saharsa makhana or Gaya tilkut, buyers will check the packer's licence as well as yours.

Paise ka hisaab: operating without a licence is punishable under Section 63 of the FSS Act with up to 6 months in jail and a fine of up to ₹5 lakh. For a founder with ₹5–10 lakh invested, one rejected listing or a festive-season seizure costs far more than getting compliant early. About 74.33 lakh licences and registrations were active as of 30 June 2026 (according to Petpooja), so buyers have a lot of options and will drop a supplier who doesn't check out.

More district-wise food business ideas, with setup costs and margins, are on the Kidhar Milega homepage.

Found a fake or suspended licence? How to report it

1. Take screenshots of the FoSCoS search result, the bill or label, and the shop's name and address.
2. File a complaint on the FoSCoS consumer grievance portal. Other channels are listed on FSSAI's grievance redressal page.
3. Call 1800-11-2100, FSSAI's toll-free helpline, available 24x7.
4. Use the Food Safety Connect app (Android, also on iOS) by scanning the eatery's QR code. A July 2026 Hitavada report found that app complaints often get little follow-up, so file on the portal as well.
5. Tag your state food safety commissioner on X. For example, Telangana's is @cfs_telangana, and FSSAI's own account is @fssaiindia.

Who this guide is for, and who can skip it

Use it if you buy from food suppliers, plan to distribute or retail packaged food, are a founder preparing for a buyer's due diligence, or just want to check a mithai shop before Diwali.

Skip the manual search if you have to check hundreds of suppliers every month. Paid APIs from vendors like Surepass, HyperVerge, Gridlines and AuthBridge do bulk checks. For a handful of checks, the free FoSCoS search is all you need.