New York City Street Vending: Veteran Licenses Without the Waiting List
A New York-resident veteran, or a surviving spouse or domestic partner, can get a City General Vendor license without joining the closed waiting list and without the license fee. A veteran disabled by service can apply for the Citywide and Midtown specialized licenses, which open block faces closed to other vendors.
Also called: General Vendor license, specialized vending license, disabled veteran vendor, DCWP, peddler, General Business Law 35-a, Midtown Core, street vending, New York City, NYC, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, Staten Island.
Street vending of goods in the City needs a General Vendor license from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection. The number issued to non-veterans is capped at 853 and their waiting list is closed. Veterans are outside the cap.
Who can apply directly. An honorably discharged veteran; a veteran with a discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable who shows a qualifying condition, such as PTSD, TBI or military sexual trauma, or who was discharged for sexual orientation or gender identity, on the State Division of Veterans' Services' form; or the surviving spouse or domestic partner of any of them. The veteran or survivor must live in New York State. Prove the discharge with a DD-214, a VA statement of service or another official record.
The fee. Eligible veterans and surviving spouses or partners who live in New York State pay no license fee. Others pay up to $200 for the two-year term, which ends September 30 of odd years.
Specialized licenses for disabled veterans. General Business Law 35-a has the City issue specialized vending licenses, in priority order by date of application, to an honorably discharged veteran "physically disabled as a result of injuries received while in the service". The Citywide license (yellow) lets the holder vend on block faces closed to general vendors, two to a block face, on a sidewalk with a ten-foot clear path. The Midtown Core license (blue) covers the area from Second Avenue to Ninth and Columbus Avenues between 30th and 65th Streets, one to a block face and 105 in all, and still bars the avenues and the main crosstown streets. Apply with an original signed VA letter confirming the service-connected disability and DCWP's Specialized Vending License/Midtown Core Waiting List Application. DCWP describes the requirement as a "service-related disability"; the statute's words are a physical disability from injuries in service, so a rating for a mental health condition alone may not be enough.
The County Clerk's licence. Separately, the County Clerk in any borough issues the State's free veteran's peddler licence under General Business Law 32 to a resident of six months whose discharge shows war or overseas service, and in New York City it is good in all five boroughs. See the New York entry on the veteran's peddler licence. The Bronx and Queens County Clerks issue it at no fee in person, with the DD-214, proof of residence and two passport photos.
Food is different. Selling food needs a permit from the Health Department, not this license.
Thresholds
Thresholds for New York City Street Vending: Veteran Licenses Without the Waiting List
Gate
Rule
Honorable or qualifying discharge, and New York State residence
The General Vendor license needs no rating. The specialized licenses need a physical disability from injuries in service, which the rating filter cannot test.
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Disclaimer
VetTOC is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense. Information is for reference only and is not an eligibility determination. Verify with VA, the relevant state or territory, or an accredited VSO.