Opening a liquor store is brimmed with various intricacies, chief of which is the requirement for a valid liquor license that has to be possessed by the bartender by fulfilling the required criteria. In this article, we look at the procedure for obtaining the Delhi liquor license in detail.

Need for the License

In India, the rules and regulations concerning the sale and consumption of alcohol vary among the states. This is because the subject of alcohol is mentioned in the state list under the Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution. The excise department in Delhi administers the liquor head.

The legal age for consumption of alcohol has been specified in every State. Legal age is also the Consumption Age in this context. Under Section 23 of the Delhi Excise Act, 2010 and Delhi Liquor License Rules, 1976, the legal age for alcohol consumption is 25.

Types of Liquor

Two types of liquor are available in the Indian market:

Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL): This kind of liquor refers to the Hard Liquor manufactured within India.

Imported Foreign Liquor (IFL): This kind of liquor manufactures outside India and later imported to India. These liquors are usually expensive than IMFL.

Liquor Law in India

Article 47 of the Indian Constitution briefly states that “The State shall endeavour to bring about a prohibition of the consumption except for the medicinal purpose of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to health.” It is noteworthy that five states in the country have been banned from the sale, purchase and consumption of alcohol

Types of Liquor Licenses

The Delhi Liquor License Rules, 1976 pronounces the types of licenses that serve liquor in the State. Besides this, the act also ensures to supply safe and quality liquor to its consumers.  The categories of licenses used to sell the different variants of liquor are many. A few of the liquor brands, which requires special trading licenses, are:

• Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL)
  
• Country liquor
  
• Denatured & Special Denatured Spirit
  
• Rectified Spirit
  
• Wholesale licensee for Indian Made Foreign Liquor
  

Granting of License

Licenses in this domain are of various kinds. The granting provisions for few of them are below:

Grant of L-1 License

The L-1 license is for wholesale vending to companies; societies; partnership firms or proprietorship firms subject to the condition that the applicant owns distillery/breweries/manufacturing units/bottling plants. Moreover, he/she has to abide by the terms and conditions ordained by the concerned authorities.

Grant of L-6 License

The L-6 license is for retail sales of foreign liquor/beer. Issuance of this license is to choose undertakings of the Delhi government, namely DTTDC, DSIDC, DSCSC and DCCWS.

Grant of L-9 License

The L-9 license is for the retail sale of various brands of Indian liquor and foreign liquor. This license was previously known as L-52 D. To attain this license, and the applicant requires to abide by the terms and conditions ordained by the concerned authorities.

Grant of L-10 License

The L-10 license is for the retail sale of various brands of Indian liquor and foreign liquor. However, the terms and conditions for an L-9 license do not apply to L-10 licenses.

Grant of P-10 and P-13

These licenses are temporary licenses for serving liquor in parties, functions and conferences. The terms and conditions ordained for these licenses vary for residents, hotels, clubs, restaurants and other premises.

Grant of L-15 and L-16

These licenses are to star hotels that are approved by the Department of Tourism to accommodate the tourists. The hotel management has to abide by the terms and conditions ordained by the authorities.

Grant of L-17 and L-18

These licenses are for the star hotels that are approved by the Department of Tourism. These establishments must be located in a commercial area with adequate space for parking.

Grant of L-28

The L-28 license is for clubs that have been registered with the registrar of firms/ registrar of cooperative societies to provide services of foreign liquor to its club members. All clubs that agree to the specified terms and conditions can apply for this license.

Grant of L-29

The L-29 license is for clubs or mess that provides liquor or beer exclusively for Government Servants; which are not subject to commercial rates and rules. The application procedure and the required documents for an L-29 license are similar to that of L-28 license.

Application Procedure

The Delhi Government has launched an online liquor license program to issue licenses to its citizens.

Step 1: Log on to the website

To start with, the applicant has to visit the official portal.

 Step 2: Log on to the Portal

The licensee has to enter the username and password. Applicants using it for the first time must click on the ‘Register’ option to enter the details.

Step 3: Click on the application form

The licensee has to select the application form and enter all the required details.

Step 4: Submit the Form

After entering the details, the licensee can submit the form by entering the ‘Submit’ option.

Step 5: Issuing the license

Based on the request for the type of license, the officials will conduct proper verification, after which the certificate will be issued.

Renewal of license

Liquor License is renewed annually, and this means that the liquor license renewal price is to be paid at every renewal. Any person who wants to get his license renewed needs to apply for the same before thirty days from the date of expiry along with payment of renewal fees. The application form has to be accompanied with Challan copy, Evidence of the payment of application fee of twenty-five rupees and the liquor license renewal fee fixed by the State Government from time to time.

Cancellation of License

A liquor license can be cancelled if the licensee violates any rules laid by the authority. In addition to this, the cancellation will be enacted on those licensees who sell alcohol on dry days or to minors.

Guidelines Issued by the Excise Department 

These guidelines are issued to ensure that safe and quality liquor is served to the consumers. Further, to keep in control the sale, purchase of the alcohol in India – 

• Buy alcohol only from the authorized liquor shops.
  
• Any person who is not an Income Tax Payer cannot get the liquor license. 
  
• Any liquor bought from any army canteen is meant only for the army personnel’s and not for the general public. 
  
• In case the person is travelling from one state to another, he must know the alcohol possession limit of the travelling state. 
  
• Any person below the age of 21 is not eligible to buy liquor. This limit can vary from state to state. 
  
• Do not but liquor from any illegal source. 
  
• Do not serve alcohol in any unauthorized premises, as it is an illegal act. 
  
• The license holder must display the price of each brand of alcohol served in the liquor shop. Further, the menu rate list showing the price of liquor served is mandatory for the disco, club, restaurants etc. 
  
• Lastly, no person, whether male or female below the age of 21, should be employed without remuneration at any place where the liquor is served. This age limit can vary from state to state.
  

FAQs

Q. Who is eligible to get a liquor License?

Liquor License can be given to any individual who is a suitable vendor and who is eligible to obtain a license for selling country or foreign liquor or both.

Q. Can a Liquor License be cancelled?

A liquor license can be cancelled if there are any violations of the rules laid by the authorities. A license can also be cancelled if the entity sells alcohol on dry days or to minors.

Q. Are Liquor License cost is same for every state?

No, Liquor license cost is not same for every state. It differs from state to state as it comes under State Excise Department.

Q. What is the validity of Liquor License?

The term of liquor license is 1-3 years but it depends on your state and local regulations.

For more information on this visit www.taxaj.com

Posted by Pooja

Team Taxaj