Producer wholesaler - liquor licence

Application fee: Use our Liquor Fee Schedule to calculate your fee including:

• an application fee
• a non-refundable processing fee.

Licence fees

• Pro-rata annual liquor licence fee - A producer/wholesaler licence is subject to a pro-rata annual liquor licence fee depending on the time of year your liquor licence is granted. The fee is calculated on a quarterly basis and reflects the amount of time you use the licence before the next billing cycle (on 15 March the following year). Calculate your pro-rata fee
• Annual liquor licence fee - A producer/wholesaler licence is subject to an annual liquor licence fee, due in May each year. Read more about annual liquor licence fees.

• A producer must produce liquor on the licensed premises. You are not considered a liquor producer if you use someone else’s licensed premises to produce liquor.
• If you produce a key ingredient in beer or spirit production (such as hops or truffles) you are a primary producer.

If you contract production.

• If the liquor product is uniquely your own, even if you contract production to a third party, you are considered to be a producer.
• If you own a vineyard within 500 metres of your licensed premises, you still qualify as a wine producer as you grow the grapes, even if you use a contract winemaker.

Liquor producers, such as winemakers, brewers and distillers, can also:

• conduct tastings
• sell the licensee’s product by retail to the general public, both online or directly from the licensed premises, if permissible under the relevant development consent
• sell the licensee’s product to wholesale customers (those who are authorised to sell liquor)
• sell the licensee’s product by retail at liquor industry shows and farmers' markets or fairs.

Liquor producers can also

• apply for a drink-on premises authorisation to sell alcohol for consumption on the premises.
• apply for a pop-up promotional licence (PDF 845.16KB) to provide tastings of their products at ‘pop-up promotions’ and sell them for take-away. Find out more about pop-up licences here.

Wholesalers don’t qualify as producers and are only permitted to sell liquor by wholesale to those who have a liquor licence, for example restaurants, bottle shops, and pubs.

Producer/wholesale (wholesale only)

Common types of licensed premises for wholesale only liquor applications:

• Business suite: within a commercial office (development approval from council required)
• Warehouse venue/industrial unit: development approval required from council
• Home business: development approval not required provided the venue is the residential address of the proposed individual licensee or proposed approved manager or individual business owner, or it is the registered address of the organisation licensee/business owner.

When applying for an online wholesale only liquor licence

• You should not list an address from which you will not be operating the business (e.g. a relative’s home address or PO Box)
• The proposed licensed premises relates to where administrative duties take place (where sales orders are processed online or by phone)
• You do not need to licence the location where you intend to store liquor such as a storage facility.

See How to apply below on this page for more information.

The Government has introduced a special drink-on-premises authorisation for small-scale producers of beer, wine, cider and spirits.

Some specific rules and requirements related to licensing and brewers and distillers

If the liquor licence is held by a corporation, a related corporation of a licensee means a corporation that is a related body corporate within the meaning of the Commonwealth Corporations Act 2001.

If the liquor licence is held by an individual, a related corporation of a licensee means a corporation that employs the licensee, or in respect of which the licensee occupies a position of authority.

Under the liquor laws, a tasting is a sampling of a small amount of a particular product usually for the first time or when deciding to purchase a larger quantity of the product.

It does not include sampling to the extent that it is no longer ancillary to a proposed take-away purchase.

This form contains a list of standard conditions which the Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority and/or its delegates may impose if the licence is granted.

• FM2043 Licence conditions form - producer/wholesaler (PDF 587.22KB)

The Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority and/or its delegates may impose additional or alternative conditions if warranted. However, the party seeking additional or alternative conditions must demonstrate the need for those conditions.

If you would like to seek alternate conditions, and/or additional conditions, please indicate the relevant condition number, alternative condition text and/or additional condition as well as the reasons in the space provided below the conditions list. You can attach additional information on separate pages if required.

Please attach the completed form to your online liquor licence application at lodgement. See How to apply below.

You can tailor your licence to meet your needs by applying for authorisations and exemptions - fees may apply.

A producer may sell their licensee’s product to other licensees (wholesales) at any time within the council development approval hours.

Tastings and take-away sales (cellar door hours) - retail sales

• Tastings of their licensee’s product can be conducted at any time, except where a 6-hour closure period applies.
• An application can be made to the Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority (ILGA) for an extended trading authorisation to allow take-away trading of the licensee’s product to the public.
• Also see table below regarding standard and extended trading hours.

Consumption on premises trading hours (drink on premises authorisation) - retail sales

• Subject to your development approval, your venue might be permitted to sell liquor for consumption on site, through a drink on premises authorisation.
• Also see following table regarding standard and extended trading hours.

Standard and extended trading hours table - tastings, take away sales, consumption on premises

A 6-hour closure period applies to all liquor licences, including those with extended trading hours. It usually starts at 4.00am and ends at 10.00am each day.

You can apply to change the 6-hour closure period:

• temporarily
• permanently
• to different times on different days of the week.

In your application, you need to provide detail on:

• the current and proposed hours of closure, and why the closing period should be changed
• the demonstrated or likely needs of patrons
• the interests of the local community
• the opinion of local police on the proposal, if any
• ways you will minimise harm associated with misuse and abuse of alcohol - including harm arising from violence and other anti-social behaviour
• ways you will promote, sell and supply alcohol safely and responsibly
• ways the proposal will not detract from the amenity of community life.

Resources

• Liquor Fee Schedule details the application fee
• More information on changing the 6-hour closure period
• Application form to change your closure period (PDF 685.47KB)

The licensee and all staff involved in selling, serving or supplying alcohol need to have completed an approved Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) course and hold a valid NSW competency card.

This requirement also applies to security staff and promotional staff conducting tastings on premises.

The Liquor Regulation 2018 introduced an additional two courses for licensees and managers:

1. Licensee training
2. Advanced licensee training

Only licensees and managers of producer/wholesaler liquor licences that also have a drink on premises authorisation (DOPA) are required to complete a Licensee Training or Advanced Licensee Training course. Also see our what type of training do I need page.

Your application can take longer to review if we don’t have all the details we need to assess it. We will come back to you to obtain the missing information to progress your application. You can help us speed up the process by:

• Providing all the correct information at the time you apply.
• Responding to our request for missing information as soon as possible after we contact you.

All applicants need to submit

• a floor plan (PDF 2MB) clearly showing the proposed boundaries for the licensed area
• if applicable, a copy of your local council development approval or consent
• details of the premises owner
• requested liquor trading hours
• contact details for you or a person authorised to submit your application
• if applicable, a completed applicant declaration (TDEC5) (PDF 237.41KB)
• payment.

Conditions form

The form contains a list of standard conditions which the Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority and/or its delegates may impose if the licence is granted.

Attach the completed form to your online liquor licence application at lodgement. Lodging this form with your liquor licence application will reduce the processing time.

• FM2043 Licence conditions form - producer/wholesaler (PDF 587.22KB)

If you would like to seek alternate conditions, and/or additional conditions, please indicate the relevant condition number, alternative condition text and/or additional condition as well as the reasons in the space provided below the conditions list. You can attach additional information on separate pages if required.

Once your application is lodged, you will be provided with a Public Site Notice which you will need to affix to your premises until the application is granted. Council and Police will be automatically notified of your application.

A paper form version of the site notices can be downloaded below if you wish to complete them manually at your convenience prior to lodgement of your application.

• APP800 producer wholesaler liquor application site notice (PDF 159.88KB)

If applying as an individual you'll also need:

• evidence of your Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) qualifications
• a current National Police Certificate issued within the last three months
• the three identity documents you used when applying for the National Police Certificate.

If you're applying as an organisation you'll also need:

• ABN or ACN
• the names and birthdates of all directors and officeholders (if it is a proprietary company
• a current Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) company extract
• inclusion of the appointment of manager notice (PDF 636.18KB).

Download: Forms for this licence

We will advertise your application on the Liquor and Gaming Application Noticeboard for 30 days during which the community can comment on your application.

• We'll assess your application
• We'll notify you, and publish the outcome.

For details on this, and what happens if your application is approved or rejected, see What to expect at Apply for a liquor licence in NSW