A personal licence allows you to authorise the sale or supply of alcohol in a venue which has a premises licence. A personal licence alone is not sufficient to authorise the sale of alcohol. A personal licence holder may give consent to become a Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) for a licensed premises.
Personal licences are issued by the local authority where a person lives and since 6 April 2015 has no expiry date. Personal licence holders can authorise up to 50 temporary event notices in each calendar year.
Before applying for a personal licence an accredited personal licence qualification must be achieved. You can find out more about accredited personal licence qualification providers on GOV.UK website (external link).
The aim of the qualification is to ensure that licence holders are aware of licensing law and the wider social responsibilities attached to the sales of alcohol. Your right to work will be checked as part of your licensing application and this could involve us checking your immigration status with the Home Office. We may otherwise share information with the Home Office. Your licence application will not be determined until you have complied with this guidance.
Cost
- new personal licence: £37
- make a change to a personal licence: £10.50
- renew a personal licence: £10.50
Apply
The application should be made to the local authority where the applicant lives, not to the authority where the licensed premises is located. You should check this on the alcohol licensing in your area section of the GOV.UK website (external link) before submitting your application.
New applications
There are two applications to complete. The forms should be submitted on the GOV.UK website.
Part A: apply for a personal licence to sell alcohol
Part B: disclosure of convictions and declaration
As part of the application, you should also submit:
- two photographs of yourself, one of which is endorsed as a true likeness (for example, a passport photo)
- the original or certified copy of your licensing qualification certificate
- the results of a basic criminal convictions check (no older that one month). You can request a basic DBS check on the GOV.UK website (external link)
- fee
Change of name or address or lost badge
If you have lost a badge or wish to change your name or address, please complete the below form.
Make a change to a personal licence
Renewal
To renew a personal licence please complete the below form.
Apply to renew a personal licence
How to pay
You can make payment for a fees relating to personal alcohol licences via our payments webpage.