England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Four positions, one rating you recognise
Food hygiene in the UK: must you display it, and can you change it?
The green sticker looks like one national scheme and it is not. The Food Standards Agency runs the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme in partnership with local authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland runs a separate scheme with a different name and a different output. Displaying the rating is a legal duty in Wales and in Northern Ireland, each under its own Act with its own offences and penalties, and it is voluntary in England. And a rating you disagree with has three separate routes attached to it, with different deadlines and different consequences. Two questions and you will know which of the four positions you are in.
Three nations
where the Food Standards Agency runs the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme in partnership with local authorities: England, Wales and Northern Ireland
A legal duty
in Wales, where section 7 of the Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013 imposes a requirement to display food hygiene rating stickers
Three routes
attached to a rating you disagree with in Wales: a right of appeal, a right to reply, and a re-rating request, each doing a different job
Question 1
Where is the business?
This is the question that decides everything else, because display is a statutory duty in two of the four nations and not in the others.
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Food hygiene rating duties across the four UK nations, 2026
Last updated
The sticker is recognised everywhere and the law behind it is not the same anywhere. This table sets out who runs the scheme, whether display is compulsory, and what a business can do about a rating, nation by nation.
The scheme's coverage is quoted from the Food Standards Agency's own statement that it runs the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme in partnership with local authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, read on 15 August 2026. The Welsh rows are taken from the structure of the Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013 on legislation.gov.uk, naming its sections: section 7 for the requirement to display, section 8 for requests for information, section 5 for the right of appeal, section 11 for the right to reply, section 12 for re-ratings, section 9 for offences, section 20 for penalties and section 21 for fixed penalties. The Northern Ireland row names the Food Hygiene Rating Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 and describes its effect at the level the Act's own structure supports. No penalty amount, appeal deadline or re-rating fee is stated anywhere in this table: those are set in the schedules and in local authority policy, they differ between the two Acts, and quoting a number we had not read at source would be exactly the kind of figure this estate does not publish. Where the table says a nation has no display duty, it means the guidance and legislation read describe none.
| Nation | Who runs the scheme | Is display compulsory? | What you can do about a rating | What catches businesses out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wales | Food Standards Agency with local authorities | Yes. Section 7 of the Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013 imposes a requirement to display food hygiene rating stickers | Appeal (s.5), right to reply (s.11), re-rating (s.12) | Treating display as a formality. Section 9 creates offences, section 20 sets penalties and section 21 provides fixed penalties |
| Wales, requests for information | Food Standards Agency with local authorities | Section 8 covers requests for information about food hygiene ratings | Not applicable | Assuming a hidden sticker ends the question. A customer can ask, and the Act gives that a route |
| Northern Ireland | Food Standards Agency with local authorities | Yes, under the Food Hygiene Rating Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 | Its own appeal, reply and re-rating provisions | Generalising from the Welsh Act. It is separate legislation with its own detail and its own timescales |
| England | Food Standards Agency with local authorities | No. Display is voluntary | Appeal, right to reply and re-rating, on the scheme's terms | Assuming voluntary means invisible. Ratings are published and released as open data, so a customer finds it in seconds |
| Scotland | Food Standards Scotland, outside the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme | A separate scheme with a different output | Its own arrangements, through the local authority | Expecting a comparable 0 to 5 number. A cross-border chain cannot present one consistent rating |
| All nations, appeal | The local authority that issued the rating | Not applicable | For a rating that was wrong when given: criteria misapplied or a fact wrong | Short deadlines running from notification rather than from when the sticker was noticed |
| All nations, right to reply | The local authority | Not applicable | Publishes your statement alongside the rating. It does not change the number | Being used in place of an appeal, which loses the appeal deadline while changing nothing |
| All nations, re-rating | The local authority | Not applicable | A fresh inspection of the business as it is now | Requesting it before improvements are in place and sustained, which buys a second confirmation of the same rating |
- The Food Standards Agency runs the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme in partnership with local authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and not in Scotland.
- Displaying a food hygiene rating is a legal duty in Wales under section 7 of the Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013, and in Northern Ireland under its own 2016 Act.
- In England there is no statutory duty to display the rating, so display is voluntary while the rating itself remains published.
- The Welsh Act creates offences at section 9, penalties at section 20 and fixed penalties at section 21, which makes display an enforcement matter rather than good practice.
- Section 8 of the Welsh Act covers requests for information about ratings, so a customer can ask even where no sticker is visible.
- A rating carries three distinct routes: an appeal for a rating that was wrong when given, a right to reply that publishes a statement without changing the number, and a re-rating that is a fresh inspection.
- A re-rating assesses the business as it is at the new inspection, so improvements must be in place and sustained before it is worth requesting.
- Scotland operates outside the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, so a business trading on both sides of the border has two schemes to satisfy rather than one.
Cite this page
“Food hygiene rating duties across the four UK nations, 2026”, Food Hygiene Alerts, https://foodhygienealerts.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-15). The scheme's coverage is quoted from the Food Standards Agency's own statement that it runs the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme in partnership with local authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, read on 15 August 2026. The Welsh rows are taken from the structure of the Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013 on legislation.gov.uk, naming its sections: section 7 for the requirement to display, section 8 for requests for information, section 5 for the right of appeal, section 11 for the right to reply, section 12 for re-ratings, section 9 for offences, section 20 for penalties and section 21 for fixed penalties. The Northern Ireland row names the Food Hygiene Rating Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 and describes its effect at the level the Act's own structure supports. No penalty amount, appeal deadline or re-rating fee is stated anywhere in this table: those are set in the schedules and in local authority policy, they differ between the two Acts, and quoting a number we had not read at source would be exactly the kind of figure this estate does not publish. Where the table says a nation has no display duty, it means the guidance and legislation read describe none.
Need the rating fixed rather than explained?
Tell us the current rating and where the business is. Food safety consultants who prepare businesses for re-rating inspections will contact you directly.
Worth knowing
Every figure sourced and dated.
- Food hygiene rating display rules, nation by nation
Compulsory in Wales and Northern Ireland under separate Acts, voluntary in England, and a different scheme in Scotland. What each position means in practice.
- Appealing a food hygiene rating, and the two things that are not appeals
An appeal, a right to reply and a re-rating do three different jobs. Choosing the wrong one is how businesses lose a deadline and change nothing.
- Preparing for a food hygiene re-rating inspection
A re-rating inspects the business as it is now, and can confirm the existing rating. The four things to have genuinely settled before requesting one.
- Checking a food hygiene rating, and what the number does not tell you
Ratings are published and released as open data. What the three elements behind the number are, and why a rating is a snapshot rather than a running score.
- Food hygiene rating meaning: what 0 to 5 actually measures
What each food hygiene rating from 0 to 5 means, the three things an inspector scores, where to look a rating up, and why the number is not a verdict on the food.
What this checks
- Where display of the rating is a legal duty and where it is voluntary
- The Welsh and Northern Irish Acts, each with its own offences and penalties
- Scotland, which runs a different scheme with a different output
- The three routes attached to a rating you disagree with, and what each one is for
- Where the published ratings and the open data live
- Based on Food Standards Agency guidance and the two Acts on legislation.gov.uk, read on 15 August 2026
Food Hygiene Alerts is an independent site operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the Food Standards Agency, Food Standards Scotland, any local authority or any government body, and it is not a food safety consultancy or a law firm. Nothing here is legal advice on an inspection, an appeal or an enforcement matter, and the rating for any particular business is a question for the local authority that issued it. We publish no penalty amount, appeal deadline or re-rating fee anywhere on this site: those are set in the schedules to the two Acts and in local authority policy, they differ between nations, and a figure we had not read at source would be a guess. Every requirement stated here is taken from the source cited beside it and read on the date shown at the top of this page.
Straight answers
Do I have to display my food hygiene rating?
It depends which nation you trade in. In Wales it is a statutory duty: section 7 of the Food Hygiene Rating (Wales) Act 2013 imposes a requirement to display food hygiene rating stickers, with offences at section 9, penalties at section 20 and fixed penalties at section 21. In Northern Ireland it is also a requirement, under the Food Hygiene Rating Act (Northern Ireland) 2016. In England there is no statutory duty and display is voluntary. Scotland runs a separate scheme entirely.
Is the food hygiene rating scheme the same across the UK?
No. The Food Standards Agency runs the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme in partnership with local authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scotland is outside it, with its own arrangements under Food Standards Scotland and a different output, so a Scottish premises does not carry a comparable 0 to 5 rating. Even within the three, the law differs: display is compulsory in Wales and Northern Ireland under separate Acts and voluntary in England.
How do I challenge a food hygiene rating I think is wrong?
Through an appeal, and quickly. The Welsh Act provides a right of appeal at section 5 and the same principle applies across the scheme. An appeal is for a rating that was wrong when it was given, because the criteria were applied incorrectly or a fact was recorded wrongly, and it has a deadline running from notification rather than from when you noticed. It is the only one of the three routes that changes a rating on the basis that it should never have been that number.
What is the difference between an appeal, a right to reply and a re-rating?
They do three different jobs. An appeal says the rating was wrong when given and can change it. A right to reply publishes a short statement alongside the rating and deliberately does not change it, which suits a rating that was technically correct in unusual circumstances. A re-rating is a fresh inspection of the business as it is now, for a rating that was fair at the time and no longer represents the business. Using a right to reply when you meant to appeal can consume the appeal deadline while changing nothing.
How do I get a better food hygiene rating?
Request a re-rating, but only once the improvements are in place and sustained, because it is a fresh inspection that can confirm the existing rating. Close each specific point from the previous report with something to show for it, get the food safety management procedures current and actually followed, and match training records to the people working there now. Expect the structural items to take longest, and expect confidence in management to improve slowest, because it is judged on the record over time rather than on the kitchen today.
Does a customer see my rating if I do not display it?
Yes, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Ratings are published on the Food Standards Agency's ratings service and released as open data, so a customer standing at the door can find the number on a phone in seconds, and delivery platforms and booking services routinely surface it in listings. In Wales the Act also covers requests for information about ratings at section 8, so a customer asking has a route that does not depend on a sticker being visible.
What do the three elements behind the rating mean?
Hygiene practices, the condition of the structure, and confidence in management. One number summarises all three, which is why two businesses with the same rating can be weak in completely different places. Hygiene practices and structure respond to work and money reasonably quickly. Confidence in management is the element that improves slowest, because it rests on records, procedures and a history of compliance rather than on how the premises look on the day of the visit.
Sources
Find your position in two questions
Which nation the business trades in, and whether the problem is the sticker or the number on it.
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