If you’re starting a mobile bar, licenses and permits are probably weighing on your mind. It’s no secret that alcohol businesses are heavily regulated, which makes it challenging to determine which permits you need.
We understand the struggle, so we’ve put together this handy guide that answers the most commonly asked questions about mobile bar legal requirements. With it, you can navigate the permitting process with confidence.
What Licenses and Permits Do You Need for a Mobile Bar?
Business License
Suppose you operate under a mobile bar business name and not your own legal name. In that case, you must register your business with your state (usually via the Department of Revenue) to receive a license.
Seller’s Permit
Liquor License
This license allows you to sell alcoholic beverages and is issued by your state’s Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) agency. It is possible to run your mobile bar without a liquor license, but more on that later.
Catering Permit
Public Health Permit
Your local health department issues public health permits upon passing an inspection. The goal is to ensure all food and beverage businesses follow food handling best practices and don’t pose a risk to public health.
Even if you don’t serve food, your local health authority may still require you to carry this permit.
Alcohol Server Permit
Mobile Bar Liability Insurance
Pro Tip: Add copies of your mobile bar permits to your business plan! You need to renew them before they expire, so having them front and center in a document you frequently reference will help you remember.
Do You Need a Mobile Bar Liquor License?
If you provide and serve alcohol as part of your business model, you must obtain a liquor license (or the equivalent permit in your area).
However, not all mobile bars provide alcohol and bartending services to their clients, allowing them to avoid the hassle of getting a liquor license. Let’s examine a few different mobile bar business models to understand why some are exempt from needing a liquor license.
| Mobile Bar Business Model | Needs Liquor License | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Full-Service |
✔️
|
||||
|
Dry Hire
|
❌
|
||||
|
Licensed Partners |
❌ |
||||
Full-Service
Mobile bars that follow this model provide and serve alcohol at events, making a liquor license necessary.
While running a full-service mobile bar means the added step of acquiring a liquor license, you also take the stress and responsibility of purchasing alcohol off your clients’ shoulders. This can be a competitive advantage for you when marketing your mobile bar service.
Dry Hire
If you opt for a dry hire model, you only rent a physical bar to clients. You won’t provide or serve alcohol — instead, the client will either hire a bartending/catering service or do it themselves.
One of the top selling points for dry hire bars is that they’re more affordable than full-service bars if the client wants to provide and serve alcohol themselves. Plus, you have the added benefit of not needing to get and maintain a liquor license.
Licensed Partners
What Kind of Insurance Does a Mobile Bartender Need?
Mobile bartenders that serve and/or provide alcohol need two types of insurance:
- General liability: Protects you from the cost of third-party bodily injury claims, such as a guest tripping over your cooler and injuring themselves, and third-party property damage.
- Liquor liability: Protects you from the cost of third-party liability claims involving alcohol, such as a guest who drives home drunk and causes a car accident
While all businesses need general liability insurance, mobile bars that sell or serve alcoholic beverages need liquor liability coverage because they can be held legally responsible for damages caused by intoxicated guests.
These claims aren’t cheap, often costing tens — if not hundreds — of thousands of dollars in legal fees, medical bills, property repairs, and other associated costs.
Mobile bartender insurance from Insurance Canopy includes both general and liquor liability insurance to protect your business from the most significant risks it faces, all for as low as $35.42 per month. Learn more about what this essential coverage can do for you today!*
*Insurance Canopy does not offer liquor liability coverage in the following states: Alabama, Alaska, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Iowa, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and West Virginia.
How Do You Get a Liquor License if You Need One?
Getting an alcohol license for your mobile bar involves applying with your state’s ABC and submitting documents and information pertaining to your business. These often include:
- Employer identification number (EIN)
- Business license
- Seller’s permit
- Proof of general and liquor liability insurance
- Background check
It can take months to process your application and get approved, so don’t delay — submit yours as soon as possible so you can start booking clients ASAP!
To simplify this, we’ve compiled all of the ABC websites for each state in our directory below. Select your state by region and get more information about obtaining a liquor license where you live.
- Alaska: Alcohol & Marijuana Control Office
- California: Alcoholic Beverage Control
- Hawaii: Liquor Licenses and Permits
- Oregon: Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission
- Washington: State Liquor and Cannabis Board
- Colorado: Liquor Enforcement Division
- Idaho: Alcoholic Beverage Licensing
- Montana: Alcoholic Beverage Control
- Nevada: Nevada State Liquor License Application
- Utah: Licenses & Permits
- Wyoming: Wyoming Liquor Division
- Arizona: Arizona Department of Liquor Licenses and Control
- New Mexico: Alcoholic Beverage Control Division
- Oklahoma: Oklahoma ABLE Commission
- Texas: TABC Licenses and Permits
- Illinois: Illinois Liquor Control Commission
- Indiana: Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission
- Iowa: Department of Revenue Permits & Licensing
- Kansas: Kansas Department of Revenue
- Michigan: Liquor Control Commission
- Minnesota: Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement
- Missouri: Missouri Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control
- Nebraska: Nebraska Liquor Control Commission
- North Dakota: North Dakota Attorney General Retail Alcoholic Beverage License
- Ohio: Department of Commerce Liquor Control
- South Dakota: Department of Revenue: Alcohol
- Wisconsin: Department of Revenue Alcohol Beverage
- Connecticut: Department of Consumer Protection
- Delaware: Delaware Alcoholic Beverage Control
- Maine: Maine Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations
- Maryland: The Maryland Alcohol, Tobacco, Cannabis Commission
- Massachusetts: Alcoholic Beverages State Licenses
- New Hampshire: Liquor Commission, Division of Enforcement
- New Jersey: Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control
- New York: New York State Liquor Authority
- Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board
- Rhode Island: Liquor Enforcement and Compliance
- Vermont: Liquor Control
- Washington D.C.: Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration
- West Virginia: Alcohol Beverage Control Administration
- Alabama: Alabama ABC Board Licensing & Compliance
- Arkansas: Alcoholic Beverage Control
- Florida: Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco
- Georgia: Department of Revenue Alcohol & Tobacco
- Kentucky: Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control
- Louisiana: The Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control
- Mississippi: Alcoholic Beverage Control
- North Carolina: ABC Commission North Carolina
- South Carolina: Alcohol Beverage Licensing
- Tennessee: Alcoholic Beverage Commission
- Virginia: Virginia ABC
FAQs About Mobile Bar Requirements
The cost of this license varies from state to state, but ranges anywhere from a hundred dollars to a few thousand. The type of alcohol you serve can also affect the price, with beer and wine licenses typically costing less than a full liquor license.
If you are caught selling and serving alcoholic beverages without a liquor license, you could face:
- Fines
- Misdemeanor/felony charges
- Business suspension/shutdown
- Damaged reputation
Also, if an alcohol-related incident happens while you operate without a license (or with an expired one), your insurance company can deny coverage for any claims you file.
Kyle Jude | Program Manager
Kyle Jude is the Program Manager for Insurance Canopy. As a dedicated program manager with 10+ years of experience in the insurance industry, Kyle offers insight into different coverages for small business owners who are looking to navigate business liability insurance.
Kyle Jude is the Program Manager for Insurance Canopy. As a dedicated program manager with 10+ years of experience in the insurance industry, Kyle offers insight into different coverages for small business owners who are looking to navigate business liability insurance.
