If you are planning a restaurant or bar anywhere in Florida and intend to serve alcoholic beverages, you have to get a liquor license first. This is a legal requirement, and many business owners often don’t know the process, which is lengthy but must be completed with due care. In case you are wondering how to get a liquor license in Florida, we have a quick guide below about the basics.
Knowing different liquor licenses in Florida
Before you can consider the liquor licensing requirements, the first step is to determine the kind of business you want to start. Licenses in Florida allow businesses to either sell on-premise or for off-premise consumption. Also, it is important to decide what will be served – Will your bar just serve beer? Or beer and wine? Or beer, wine and all other spirits? That will determine the kind of license you must get and the price for the same. In general, getting beer and wine licenses is easier in Florida. Liquor licenses are expensive and require more documentation, especially when it comes to selling and serving alcohol on premise. There are also quota alcoholic beverage licenses, for which you need to enquire in your county.
If you are intending to start a restaurant, you can apply for a license with the state of Florida directly. For that you have to meet the standard statutory requirements for SFS, or special food service license. Such licenses are available for businesses that make more than 51% of their income from the sale of food and other drinks than alcohol.
Other things to know
Applications for liquor licenses must be submitted to Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco Bureau of Licensing. If you are interested in quota liquor license, you can get one by buying it from an existing license owner. Once that’s done, you can apply for the due process, which involves transferring the ownership. So, how much does a quota liquor license cost in the market? It largely depends on the demand for such licenses in the concerned county.
Get help
There are companies can help you get liquor licenses in Florida, and their experts will ensure that every aspect of the application and all other related documentation are completed as required. In return, they charge a fee for their services. If you don’t wish to deal with all the complicated aspects of applying for a liquor license in the state, get help.