Rules for liquor permit holders

Liquor permits were set up to help communities deal with violence and alcohol-related crime.

You must follow the conditions of your permit.

Breaches of your permit

Your permit could be revoked if you breach any of it's conditions, including being given an alcohol ban that places you on the Banned Drinker Register (BDR).

If your permit is suspended or revoked

If your liquor permit has been suspended you can legally challenge the decision.

Once your permit is taken away you will be sent a show cause notice in the mail from the permit committee.

You will have 7 days from receiving the notice to write a letter explaining why your permit should be reinstated.

To reapply for a permit after a ban has finished, you will need to show the permit committee all of the following in writing:

• you are a fit and proper person responsible enough to have your permit reinstated
• you haven't committed any further alcohol-related offences during the suspension period
• you are sorry for what happened and accept responsibility.

Apply for a review

If your permit has been revoked you have 28 days from receiving your Show Cause notice to apply for a review.

To apply follow these steps:

Step 1. Fill in the application for review of delegate decision.

Application for review of delegate decision DOCX (694.2 KB)
Application for review of delegate decision PDF (558.9 KB).

Step 2. Submit the form to your local Territory Business Centre.

Step 3. Your application will be reviewed by the director-general of licensing.

Get your permit voluntarily revoked

You can have your liquor permit voluntarily revoked by contacting your local permit office or police station.

If you want your permit reinstated you will need to write to the permit committee to have the ban lifted.

Special circumstances

You can also have your liquor permit taken away or changed if one of the following applies:

• you have health problems related to drinking alcohol
• your or other people's safety is at risk by drinking alcohol
• you have a written letter from a doctor asking that your drink less.

Temporary bans

Permits can be temporarily suspended when there is community unrest or distress.

Your permit can also be temporarily revoked when there is a natural disaster like a cyclone. You must not drink alcohol during these periods.