What your menu must show in the UK, the US, the EU, the UAE and Singapore, where a QR menu is enough, and how to print your allergen matrix.
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In the UK and the EU you may give allergen information by any means, digital included. Since March 2025 the FSA advises that written allergen information, supported by a conversation, works best. A QR menu with allergens on every dish, plus a printed allergen matrix, gives guests both.
Prices are stricter. The UK (Price Marking Order 2003), Germany, Austria, France and Portugal want prices shown at or near the entrance. French inspectors flagged "prices only via a QR code" in 2024, and Andalucía called a QR-only menu illegal in April 2025. California lets chains use QR for allergens, but only with a non-digital alternative as well.
"Allergen information: scan the QR code, see our allergen matrix or ask a member of staff."
GustoQR prints an allergen matrix straight from your menu data: every dish a row, the 14 allergens as columns, ticks and a legend. Pin one in the kitchen, keep one at the counter. Change a dish and print again: the chart follows the menu, so paper and QR never disagree.
The same data feeds the QR menu, the printed menu and the matrix.
Send a photo or a PDF. AI reads every dish and price, and you check them.
Per dish, or the whole menu in one message with the Pro menu assistant. You check every tick before guests see it.
In the print studio, pick the allergen matrix: landscape, on A4, A3 or Letter. One for the kitchen, one for the counter.
New dish or new recipe? Change it once and print again. The QR menu is already up to date.
Tick: a QR menu covers it. Triangle: it covers it with a condition or a workaround. Cross: you need paper or another tool.
Allergens by any means, with a notice if you give them verbally. Calories only at businesses with 250+ employees, in England. Prices shown at the entrance.
Written or verbal (FIR 2014, reg. 5). If verbal, a notice, menu, ticket or label tells guests they can ask a member of staff.
FSA best practice since 5 March 2025: "written allergen information, supported by a conversation, works best". It is guidance, not law. For takeaway and delivery, give allergen information before purchase and on delivery.
Since 1 October 2021, food prepacked for direct sale needs a full ingredients label with the allergens emphasised. Dishes made to order follow reg. 5 instead.
kcal per portion next to the description or price, the portion size, and "adults need around 2000 kcal a day" on every menu page. QR, online and app menus count. Franchisees count with the franchisor (SI 2021/909).
Items on the menu for fewer than 30 consecutive days and fewer than 30 days a year, drinks over 1.2% ABV and condiments. Children’s menus skip the 2000 kcal sentence. Scotland and Wales: voluntary.
VAT-inclusive prices at or near the entrance, so guests see them before going in. With more than 30 items: at least 30, including 5 soft drinks, plus 5 wines. Extra charges as prominent as the price (Price Marking Order 2003).
The CMA’s DMCC Act guidance (18 Nov 2025) treats a mandatory service charge as part of the headline price. A genuinely optional tip can stay separate.
Local authorities enforce. For allergens: an improvement notice, then a penalty if you do not comply, and prosecution in some cases (FSA). For calories: an improvement notice, then a £2,500 fixed penalty. We did not verify whether allergen fines are unlimited.
The 14 allergens per dish, in the guest’s language, with an avoid filter, and the allergen matrix printed for the kitchen and the counter: written information on the phone and on paper. kcal and portion size per item. The 2000 kcal sentence goes in the note under the menu (free, translated, printed too) or in the announcement bar at the top (Pro). Print the entrance price list from the same menu.
Calories by federal law for chains of 20+. California adds item-level allergens for those chains since July 2026. Some states want a short allergy notice on every menu.
Chains of 20+ under the same name show calories next to each item’s name or price, plus "2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice, but calorie needs vary." and "Additional nutrition information available upon request." Electronic and online menus count (21 CFR 101.11).
Since July 1, 2026, chains of 20+ give written notice of the 9 major allergens in each menu item. A QR code to an allergen chart is allowed, but you must also offer a non-digital method, such as a printed booklet or chart. A violation is a misdemeanor.
Massachusetts wants this on all printed menus and menu boards: "Before placing your order, please inform your server if a person in your party has a food allergy." Rhode Island wants a menu notice to tell the server. Illinois: a notice, or a statement on the menu.
A state allergy notice on menus or a sign, translated where the menu is, and online menus must offer a way to flag an allergy. VDH will not enforce it until its rules take effect. One bill tracker lists the bill as dead; the Code and VDH treat it as law.
Chains of 15+: a salt-shaker icon on items with 2,300 mg of sodium or more, and since Oct 4, 2025 an icon and warning on items with 50 g or more of added sugars.
A mandatory fee may stay out of item prices only if each fee and its purpose show clearly on menus and ads (SB 478 with the SB 1524 restaurant exemption, from July 1, 2024).
California SB 68: a misdemeanor, enforced by local health agencies. NYC: $200 summonses for the added-sugar icon from January 2026; most reports give $200 for the sodium icon, one says up to $600. California fees: private lawsuits under the CLRA. 2026 bills in Illinois, Maryland, Michigan and Missouri copy the California model; their outcome is unknown.
GustoQR’s EU 14 include all 9 US major allergens: wheat sits under gluten, crustacean shellfish under crustaceans. The allergen matrix can be the printed chart SB 68 names as a non-digital method. If your health department wants the word "wheat", add it to the dish description. State notices and the two FDA sentences go in the note under the menu. Covered chains write the calories into the item name, so they sit next to it at the same size.
Only the 14 allergens are mandatory for dishes and drinks. Each country picks the means, and digital is allowed in principle. Price display is national, and often on paper.
Mandatory for food sold without packaging, restaurant dishes and drinks included (Reg. 1169/2011, Art. 44 and Annex II).
The Commission says "all means of communication" are allowed in principle, including "modern technology tools". Where a country has no rule of its own, the information must be in writing, not only on request.
Germany: additive notices such as "mit Farbstoff", in the same medium as the allergens (since 2021). France: origin of beef, pork, sheep and poultry, permanent since 19 Feb 2025. Spain: allergens at least in Castilian. Switzerland, outside the EU: meat and fish origin in writing.
Germany (PAngV §13(2)), Austria (where warm food is served), France (outside and inside) and Portugal (at the entrance and inside, in Portuguese) want a physical price list. Andalucía: a QR-only carta is illegal.
The food and feed safety omnibus tabled on 16 Dec 2025 adds room for digital labelling of non-safety information. As far as we read it, it does not change restaurant allergen duties.
Fines are national. Statutory maximums: Germany €50,000 for allergens or additives and €25,000 for prices; Austria €35,000 (€70,000 for a repeat) in the current text; France €1,500 per offence, €7,500 for a company; Spain up to €600,000 for very serious food-safety breaches; Portugal up to €44,890 for companies in the 2016 text, possibly outdated since 2021.
The 14 allergen fields match Annex II one to one. German additive notices and French meat origin go in the dish description: they show next to the dish, translate and print with the menu. Print the door price list and the allergen matrix from the same menu.
Allergens are the firmer rule. Menu calories are voluntary as far as we found. Prices must be final and include VAT.
The Dubai Food Code asks for allergens "on the label or the menu". Food Code 2.0 is reported to name 14 allergens to label clearly; we have not seen its text or its start date.
Dubai made its 2019 calorie rule optional, and a 2023 report says menu calories in the UAE are not yet compulsory. One software vendor claims they are.
Consumer prices include VAT (FTA), and the displayed price must be the final price (Cabinet Decision 66/2023, in force 14 Oct 2023).
Consumer protection penalties run from AED 50,000 to AED 1 million. For VAT display, a 2018 report gives AED 15,000 and a later one AED 5,000.
The 14 allergens per dish, shown in Arabic, English and 18+ languages, with the matrix for the kitchen. Enter prices with VAT included and add "All prices include VAT." to the note under the menu.
No allergen-menu rule found. Nutri-Grade marks for Grade C and D freshly prepared drinks, and GST-inclusive prices unless you levy a service charge.
Since 30 Dec 2023, a Nutri-Grade mark next to every Grade C or D drink, on physical and online menus. Toppings carry a sugar mark, and Grade D ads are banned. Smaller businesses are exempt by order.
GST-registered businesses show prices with GST. "Prices stated are subject to GST" alone is not acceptable.
Outlets that levy a genuine service charge may show prices before GST and service, with a prominent statement that prices are subject to GST and service charge. Takeaway and delivery items show GST-inclusive prices.
We found no allergen-menu requirement. SFA guidance seems to be voluntary, which we did not verify.
Nutri-Grade: up to S$1,000, or S$2,000 for a repeat conviction. GST display: up to S$5,000.
Enter prices with GST in SGD. If you levy a service charge, the "subject to GST and service charge" statement goes in the note under the menu, translated and printed with it. For Nutri-Grade, check the exemption order for smaller businesses first.
In GustoQR each is a tick per dish, plus "contains alcohol" and "contains pork" notices. The US major 9 are inside this list.
The QR code for the details, paper where the law asks for it. One menu feeds both.
Any means is allowed, digital included. Add a notice that tells guests to scan or ask staff.
In England and under the FDA rule, QR and online menus are menus. If you are covered, they show calories too.
The UK, Germany, Austria, France and Portugal want prices at or near the entrance. France flagged QR-only prices in 2024 and Andalucía called a QR-only menu illegal in 2025. Print the door list from the same menu.
Chains of 20+ may give allergens by QR with a printed booklet or chart as well. The allergen matrix is that chart.
A printed allergen matrix or trained staff covers them. A pending Missouri bill asks for a chart, grid or booklet too.
Change a dish once: the QR menu updates at once, and the printed menu and the matrix print from the same data.
Caps written in law, not typical amounts.
| Where | Rule | Maximum or fixed penalty | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | Calorie labelling, 250+ employees | £2,500 fixed penalty after an ignored improvement notice | SI 2021/909 |
| England, Wales, NI | Allergen information | Improvement notice, then a penalty; prosecution in some cases | FSA guidance |
| California | SB 68 allergens, 20+ locations | Misdemeanor | SB 68 (2025) |
| New York City | Added-sugar icon, 15+ locations | $200 per summons from January 2026 | NYC DOHMH |
| Germany | Allergens and additives; prices | €50,000; €25,000 | LFGB §60(5); WiStG §3 |
| France | Allergens and meat origin; price display | €1,500 (€7,500 for a company); €15,000 for a company | Code de la consommation R451-1; L131-5 |
| Spain | Food safety; consumer law | €600,000; €1,000,000 (very serious) | Ley 17/2011; TRLGDCU |
| Switzerland | Labelling; price display | CHF 40,000; CHF 20,000 (intentional) | LMG Art. 64; UWG Art. 24 |
| UAE | Consumer protection | AED 50,000 to AED 1 million | Cabinet Decision 66/2023 |
| Singapore | Nutri-Grade; GST display | S$1,000 (S$2,000 repeat); S$5,000 | MOH; IRAS |
As of 6 November 2026. Mexico, Colombia, Argentina and Chile are on our Spanish page.
All on the free plan unless marked Pro. Pro is $49 a year (about £36), charged in USD.
Free plan. In the guest’s language, with an "avoid allergens" filter. An optional notice lists all 14 at the bottom of the menu, with a cross-contact line.
Every dish a row, the 14 allergens as columns, ticks and a legend, from the same data as the menu. For the kitchen, the counter or an inspector.
Per-dish notices, filterable like the allergens.
kcal per item, portion size as free text ("250 g", "330 ml"), protein, fat, carbs and caffeine. On the guest menu and in print.
The same menu on paper, up to A2, with prices, descriptions and the note under the menu. Auto-translated into 18+ languages, and the guest picks.
Fills allergens and calories across the menu from one message. Calories come from you: if you ask it to estimate, it says they are estimates to check.
"Adults need around 2000 kcal a day", the two FDA sentences and state allergy notices go in the note under the menu (free, translated, printed) or the announcement bar at the top (Pro).
A covered US chain writes the calories into the item name ("Cheeseburger 650 cal"), so they sit next to the name, as large as the name.
Write German additive notices, French meat origin or "wheat" for US menus in the dish description. It shows next to the dish, translates and prints with the menu.
This page sums up public rules as we read them on 6 November 2026; check with your local authority or a lawyer before you rely on it.
An allergen matrix is a chart of your dishes against the 14 allergens. The law does not name it: UK law asks for allergen information by any means. The FSA advises written information plus a conversation and offers a free matrix template, and a printed matrix is a simple way to give that information in writing.
Not always on the menu itself. In the UK you may give the 14 allergens by any means, verbally included, if a notice tells guests to ask staff (FIR 2014, reg. 5). In the US, California chains of 20+ locations must disclose the 9 major allergens per item since July 1, 2026.
It applies to food prepacked for direct sale, which since 1 October 2021 needs a full ingredients label with the allergens emphasised. Dishes made to order are not prepacked, so regulation 5 of FIR 2014 applies to them instead.
For allergens, yes: any means is allowed. If you have 250+ employees and trade in England, the QR menu needs calories too. Prices must be shown at or near the entrance under the Price Marking Order 2003, so the QR code sits next to a printed list.
Businesses with 250 or more employees on the first day of their financial year, with franchisees counted as part of the franchisor. They show kcal per portion, the portion size and "adults need around 2000 kcal a day". Scotland and Wales have no mandatory rule.
For chains with 20 or more locations under the same name: calories next to each standard item’s name or price, plus "2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice, but calorie needs vary." and "Additional nutrition information available upon request." Electronic and online menus count (21 CFR 101.11).
SB 68, the ADDE Act, applies since July 1, 2026 to chains of 20+ locations. They give written notice of the 9 major allergens in each menu item, on the menu or digitally, for example by QR code. A digital option needs a non-digital one too, such as a printed chart. Independents are not covered.
The Pro menu assistant fills allergens and calories for many dishes from one message. Calories should come from you; if you ask it to estimate, it says they are estimates to check. You review every value before guests see it, and you stay responsible for it.
Paste any menu link, add your venue name and print four A6 QR table cards on one A4 sheet. Fits standard acrylic stands. PNG and SVG too. Free, no sign-up.
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Best QR code menu 2026: GustoQR is free forever with AI import, 18+ languages and WhatsApp orders. Pro is $49 a year. See Square, Toast and more.