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You would like to serve alcoholic beverages commercially? For this you need a liquor license. You can find out more here.

You would like to serve alcoholic beverages? A liquor license is required for this.

Only the serving of non-alcoholic beverages is exempt from this requirement. You also need a liquor license if alcoholic beverages are not offered within a purely gastronomic business, but as an ancillary service to another business (e.g. serving alcoholic beverages as part of a sales transaction - refreshment bar in a department store; tasting to increase sales of alcoholic beverages).

If you intend from the outset to limit the serving of alcoholic beverages to a certain period of time (e.g. summer season, Christmas period, etc.), you can apply for a temporary liquor license.

The permit to serve alcoholic beverages is always granted for a specific type of operation (e.g. pub, discotheque, etc.) and for specific premises.

If you wish to serve alcoholic beverages for specific occasions (e.g. city festivals, shooting festivals, fairs and music events), you need a special permit, which you can obtain under simplified conditions. For this purpose, you must submit an "Application for Temporary Permission to Operate a Restaurant".

• Copy of identity card or passport with certificate of registration, or presentation on site. Documents relating to the building in which the restaurant is located: Site plan, floor plan to scale and sectional drawing of the establishment (seating plan). If necessary, in duplicate
• Certificate in tax matters from the tax office of the place in which you have lived or operated a business in the last three years.
• Application for a certificate of good conduct for submission to an authority in accordance with § 30 Paragraph 5 of the Federal Central Register Act (Bundeszentralregistergesetz)
• Application for an extract from the Central Trade Register for submission to an authority in accordance with Section 150 (5) of the Trade, Commerce and Industry Regulation Act (Gewerbeordnung)
• Negative certificate from the insolvency court of those local courts in whose district you have had a residence or a commercial establishment in the last three years
• Extract from the debtor file via the enforcement portal of the federal states pursuant to section 882b of the German Code of Civil Procedure (ZPO)
• Proof of instruction from the Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) on the basic principles of food law in accordance with § 4 Para. 1 Sentence 1 No. 4 GastG.
• For legal entities: Current excerpt from the commercial register or register of associations or a copy of the shareholders' agreement or articles of association.
• If the application is submitted by a representative: Power of attorney
• Residence permit, if applicable.

In order for you to be granted a liquor license, you must

• prove your personal reliability

This is checked on the basis of extracts from the Federal Central Register and the Central Trade Register.

• Prove your professional suitability. This is done by submitting proof of instruction in accordance with § 4 Para. 1 Sentence 1 No. 4 GastG from the Chamber of Industry and Commerce or an exemption in accordance with No. 3.4 of the General Administrative Regulation on Proof of Instruction in conjunction with its Appendix 3 to prove your professional suitability.
• Prove that the property-related requirements are met. For example, the premises must meet the requirements of the building regulations set up to protect the health and life of guests and employees, as well as the requirements for toilets. In addition, no harmful environmental effects may emanate from the operation. Accessibility requirements are also checked.

The amount of the fee depends on the administrative effort and the respective administrative fee regulations of the respective country.

Once you have submitted the application and all the documents are complete, the competent body will check whether you meet all the requirements for the granting of the requested liquor license.

If you meet all the requirements, you will receive the permit.

Only when you have received the permit, you may start the commercial activity. At the same time as the start of the activity, the trade must be notified to the authority responsible for trade notifications in accordance with § 14 GewO.

If the documents are complete, the application will be processed promptly.

Before you start operating, you must have a restaurant license. A timely application is therefore required.

If the authority has not made a decision on an application for permission to operate a trade within a period of three months after receipt of the complete documents (§ 42 Abs. 2 Satz 2 Verwaltungsverfahrensgesetz), the permission is deemed to have been granted (§ 6 a Abs. 1 GewO).

This also applies to procedures under the Catering Act, as long as there are no regulations under Land law (§6a Para.2 GewO).

You must notify the authority responsible for trade notifications according to § 14 GewO of the start of the permitted activity.

You may not serve alcoholic beverages on your premises without a permit.

• opposition
• administrative claim

• Licence
• The serving of alcoholic beverages requires a liquor license.
• Permission is also required if the serving of alcoholic beverages is only offered as an ancillary service to another trade (e.g. serving alcoholic beverages in the refreshment room of a department store).
• Only the serving of non-alcoholic beverages is exempt from licensing.
• Entitlement to the granting of a permit if there are no grounds for refusal according to § 4 Para. 1 Sentence 1 No. 1 to 4 GastG.
• Permission is type of business (in the case of pure serving: public house) and room-related.
• If, in addition to the serving of alcoholic beverages, prepared meals are also offered, a restaurant permit for a different type of operation must be applied for.
• A liquor license can be limited in time (e.g. for the summer season) or linked to ancillary provisions (e.g. for compliance with immission control regulations).
• If alcoholic beverages are served for a specific occasion (e.g. as part of a particular event), a permit must be applied for.

Responsibility and procedure are regulated by the respective country responsible.

• Written form required: no
• Online procedure possible: yes
• Personal appearance necessary: no