Safe to Trade audits are conducted on an unannounced basis. Unannounced means that the FBO will not be made aware when the audit is scheduled, in terms of specific date and/or time. Unannounced means to either or both, the primary contact for a multi-location business, or individuals, such as location managers.
Audits may be conducted between 6am and 10pm, 7-days a week, subject to the food business operating hours.
Audit duration depends on the size and complexity of the FBO. The durations below include time for audit report write-up.
| FBO | Duration |
| Kiosks or small concessions | 2 hours |
| Standard restaurant/catering operation (1 kitchen) | ½ day |
| Standard hotel (1 kitchen) | 1 day |
| Large hotel (2 kitchens) | 2 days |
| Complex hotel (3+ kitchens) | 3+ days |
Safe to Trade audits are purchased in a contract, and the location will receive an audit yearly for the duration of the contract. The yearly audit will occur within a three-month window of the initial audit anniversary. The earliest the audit will be scheduled is two calendar months before the audit anniversary.
In the event that a physical audit cannot be conducted due to circumstances such as restriction of travel and where this results in the business not being able to be re-audited prior to expiry of the current Approval, a remote audit will be conducted. This will comprise of online review of documentation and use of live stream technology so that the auditor can witness standards remotely.