How to Get a Liquor Licence in British Columbia

A Liquor Primary (LP) licence from British Columbia's Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB) is what lets a business serve liquor on its premises — a bar, pub, restaurant, or lounge, or a business where liquor is an additional service rather than the main trade. The business applies for it, and the application runs through the LCRB's online licensing portal, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. This guide is about the licence for the business, not the certificate individual servers hold: the responsible alcohol service certificate is a separate credential for staff, covered in the related guide linked below. This guide is process information, not legal advice: where a figure or rule was not verified on an official page, this guide states a check instead of a figure.

1. First, check this is the licence you need

The Liquor Primary licence is for offering liquor service as an additional service, or a liquor-focused service area — for example a spa, art gallery, or retail store; licensing a kitchen or, for cooking schools, holding a cooking class inside the dining room — according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. That breadth matters: a restaurant or bar where drinks are the focus and a business where liquor is a secondary service can both hold the same licence. Any business may apply except businesses directed at minors and businesses operating in a motor vehicle, on the same page. A Liquor Primary CLUB licence is a separate form of the same licence: it is for a society, non-profit, club, or organization with at least 50 members who pay annual fees, and its service area is restricted to members and guests only, on the same page.

Do not confuse the Liquor Primary licence with the other licences and permits. A Food Primary licence is a different licence for a business where food is primary; this guide states no Food Primary fee figures, because the official pages state only the Liquor Primary fees. A manufacturer's licence is for making alcohol, not serving it on premises. New applications for a wine store licence, a special wine store licence, and a licensee retail store licence are not being accepted — an open-ended freeze on new wine stores and licensee retail stores, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a liquor licence or permit. A one-off event uses a Special Event Permit instead, which is a different permit from a Liquor Primary licence. Outdoor event venues that previously hosted multiple Special Event Permits can now apply for a Liquor Primary licence and do not need a permanent structure, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence (Bulletin 25-02, January 16, 2025). If you are opening a bar, pub, restaurant, or lounge that serves alcohol on site — or adding liquor service to another business — the Liquor Primary licence is the one to apply for; if you are making the alcohol, opening a retail liquor store, or holding a single event, you need a different licence or permit.

2. What the licence costs

The application fee is $2,200, paid when you submit the application, and the first-year licensing fee is $2,200, paid when the licence is issued, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. Renewal fees are based upon annual liquor sales, on the same page — no renewal dollar figure is stated on the official pages, so none is stated here. Some endorsements may have an application or annual fee, on the same page, but no per-endorsement figure is stated on the official pages, so budget on the two $2,200 figures and check the fee for any endorsement you request before you apply.

Refunds are narrow. Refunds may be available only if the application has not started processing; the Branch has made an error; the application was submitted in error; the applicant has overpaid; or first-year licence fees for a food primary were paid but the application was refused, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. A local government or First Nation rejecting an application is NOT grounds for a refund, on the same page. Treat the $2,200 application fee as spent once processing starts, and do the local sign-off and zoning checks in the next section before you submit.

3. Before you apply: local sign-off, zoning, and a Business BCeID

Three checks come before the application itself. First, check eligibility with your local government or Indigenous Nation: it must sign off on your application BEFORE you submit the completed package to the LCRB, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. Do this before signing a lease or starting a fit-out — a local government or First Nation rejecting an application is not grounds for a refund of the application fee, on the same page. Second, check the local requirements for the site: a development permit, business licensing, and zoning — the business must be zoned for liquor service BEFORE submitting, on the same page. Third, get access to the portal: you must have a Business BCeID to access the online licensing portal, on the same page. Sort the BCeID early, so a login problem does not hold up a finished package.

Your local government may also charge its own fee for its part of the process. The pages state no municipal fee figure, so none is stated here — ask your local government or Indigenous Nation what it charges for its review before you budget.

4. Gather the documents: business type and personal histories

The application asks for documents about the business and about the people behind it. The business-type documents depend on how the business is set up: sole proprietorship, private corporation, partnership, public corporation, society or non-profit corporation, golf courses, vessels, and other applicant types are all listed, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. Identify your business type first, because it decides which documents the portal asks for.

Each person named in the application completes a Personal History Summary form, plus other documents such as a police information check (criminal record check), a Statutory Declaration, and a Driver's Abstract, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. Start the police information check early: it depends on another office's schedule, not yours, and the application is only ready for assignment once the required documents are submitted and the application fee is paid, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a liquor licence or permit.

5. The Letter of Intent and the options you can request

The Letter of Intent is where you set out what you are asking for. Instructions for it are in the Liquor Primary Application Guide PDF that the Liquor Primary page points to, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. The requestable options listed on that page are: a catering endorsement; event driven; hawking at stadiums; allowing minors; minors in a recreation facility; off-premises sales (brew pub) endorsement; off-premises sales endorsement; and a Temporary Use Area (TUA, golf courses and ski hills only), on the same page. Decide which options you need before you write the letter, because they shape the floor plan and the local review that follow.

Some endorsements may have an application or annual fee, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence, but no per-endorsement figure is stated on the official pages. Do not budget a figure for an endorsement until the LCRB or the application guide states one for that endorsement.

6. The floor plan, the sign, and the site map

Three drawings and samples go with the application, and the floor plan is the one applicants most often get wrong. You need a floor plan with labels for each room, washrooms, liquor service bar(s), patio location, dance floor, entrances and stairs, stage, sound or DJ booth, and any partial walls or planters, plus the stamp of occupant load from your local government, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. Submit two copies of the floor plan, on the same page. Draw every area you want licensed, including a patio: the final inspection checks the premises against what you applied for.

You also need a sample sign with the name and logo of the bar, and a site map with the location, all features, parking, and road access, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. Get the occupant-load stamp from your local government before you submit, not after: it is part of the floor plan package, and a missing stamp is a missing document.

7. Apply online and get local sign-off

Complete the online application with the required business documents, Personal History form(s), Letter of Intent, two copies of the floor plan, proposed signage, site map, and payment, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. The application fee of $2,200 is paid when you submit, on the same page. An application is ready for assignment when the required documents are submitted and the application fee is paid, and applications are assigned in the order received once complete and paid, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a liquor licence or permit. As a dated marker, new Liquor Primary applications submitted and paid on October 21, 2026 are now being assigned, and the assignment dates are updated weekly, on the same page — check the current date on that page before you estimate where your application sits in the queue.

Once your portion is submitted online, the local government or Indigenous Nation identified in the application is notified to review it through the liquor and cannabis licensing portal, and you receive an email notification when that review is complete, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. This is the second half of the sign-off that began before you applied: the pre-submission check in section 3, then the portal review after you submit.

8. What happens after you apply: community assessment, Approval in Principle, and final inspection

A site and community assessment may not be required for all applications, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. If the local government or Indigenous Nation provides comment, they arrange consultation with the community; if not, you must post site signs and ads in the newspaper for 30 days to invite community comments, responses are accepted for one week, and the process takes approximately 45 days, on the same page. Budget that 45 days where the applicant-led route applies, and do not assume your application skips this step — the page states only that it may not be required for all.

After the assessment, the LCRB reviews the application and, if everything is in order, offers Approval in Principle, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. When you are ready to open, contact the local liquor inspector to schedule a final inspection; if it goes well, pay a prorated annual licence fee and the Liquor Primary licence is issued, on the same page. The first-year licensing fee is $2,200, paid when the licence is issued, on the same page — the prorated amount you pay at inspection is the portion of that annual fee for the remainder of the licensing year, so confirm the exact prorated figure with the LCRB at that point rather than budgeting the full $2,200.

9. After you are licensed: renewal, patios, and the terms and conditions

Renewal fees are based upon annual liquor sales, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. No renewal dollar figure or sales table is stated on the official pages, so none is stated here — check the renewal figure for your sales band with the LCRB when renewal comes due.

If you hold a temporary expanded service area, it is not permanent by default. Temporary expanded service area (TESA) authorizations expired December 31, 2024, according to Province of British Columbia, Temporary expanded service area (TESA) authorization. To make a TESA a permanent service area, a Liquor Primary or Food Primary licensee applies via the portal — a New Outdoor Patio application for an outdoor TESA, or a Structural Change Application for an indoor TESA — on the same page. The Liquor Primary and Food Primary application fee for that change is $440, on the same page.

Read the terms that govern the licence once it is issued. The Liquor Primary page points licensees to review the Liquor Primary Licence Terms and Conditions PDF and the guidelines for liquor advertising and promotion, according to Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence. Read your own licence conditions before you set your operating routine, because a condition on your licence overrides the general rules.

Figures this guide does not state

This guide states no hours of service. No page states the hours a Liquor Primary licence holder may serve alcohol, so none are stated here — check the terms and conditions on your own licence once issued.

This guide states no total processing time in weeks or months. The only dated markers are the October 21, 2026 assignment date, updated weekly, and the approximately 45-day community-assessment figure where the applicant runs that step. Do not budget on a total timeline until the LCRB states one.

This guide states no renewal dollar figures. Renewal fees are based upon annual liquor sales, but no sales table or renewal fee was stated on the official pages — check the figure for your sales band with the LCRB when renewal comes due.

This guide states no Food Primary fee figures. Only the Liquor Primary figures — a $2,200 application fee and a $2,200 first-year licensing fee — were stated on the official pages.

This guide states no per-endorsement fee figures. Some endorsements may have an application or annual fee, but no figure per endorsement was stated on the official pages — check the fee for the endorsement you request before you apply.

This guide states no municipal fee figures. No municipal fee figure was stated on the official pages — a local government may charge its own fee for its review, so ask your local government or Indigenous Nation what it charges before you budget.

This guide states no eligibility rule beyond the two exclusions and the club rule. Any business may apply except businesses directed at minors and businesses operating in a motor vehicle, and a Liquor Primary CLUB licence requires at least 50 members who pay annual fees. No other age, residency, or prior-experience requirement was stated on the official pages, so none is stated here.

This guide states no Serving It Right requirement as a condition of the licence. The certificate is a separate credential for individual servers, covered in the related guide linked below — do not treat it as a licence condition on the basis of this guide.

Related guides

• How to Get a Liquor Licence in Ontario — the Ontario companion: AGCO process, iAGCO portal, different fees and municipal form.
• How to Get a Responsible Alcohol Service Certificate in Canada — the certificate individual servers hold, distinct from the licence for the business.
• How to Register a Business in British Columbia — the BC business registration that comes before the licence application.
• How to Start a Restaurant Business in Canada — the wider restaurant opening plan, and where the liquor licence fits.

Sources

• Province of British Columbia, Apply for a Liquor Primary licence — eligibility and the two exclusions, the Liquor Primary and Liquor Primary CLUB licences, the $2,200 application fee and $2,200 first-year licensing fee, sales-based renewals, the refund rules, local government and Indigenous Nation sign-off, Business BCeID, zoning, business-type and personal-history documents, the Letter of Intent and requestable options, the floor plan, sample sign and site map, the online application, the site and community assessment, Approval in Principle, the final inspection and prorated fee, and the terms and conditions and advertising guidelines
• Province of British Columbia, Apply for a liquor licence or permit — the October 21, 2026 assignment date for new Liquor Primary applications, weekly updates, assignment in order received once complete and paid, and the open-ended freeze on new wine store, special wine store, and licensee retail store licences
• Province of British Columbia, Temporary expanded service area (TESA) authorization — TESA authorizations expiring December 31, 2024, making a TESA permanent via a New Outdoor Patio or Structural Change Application, and the $440 Liquor Primary and Food Primary application fee