(a) Form. – An application for an ABC permit shall be on a form prescribed by the Commission and shall be notarized. Each person required to qualify under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-900(c) shall sign and swear to the application and shall submit a full set of fingerprints with the application.

(b) Investigation. – Before issuing a new permit, the Commission, with the assistance of the ALE Division, shall investigate the applicant and the premises for which the permit is requested. The Commission may request the assistance of local ABC officers in investigating applications. An applicant shall cooperate fully with the investigation.

The Department of Public Safety may provide a criminal record check to the ALE Division for a person who has applied for a permit through the Commission. The ALE Division shall provide to the Department of Public Safety, along with the request, the fingerprints of the applicant, any additional information required by the Department of Public Safety, and a form signed by the applicant consenting to the check of the criminal record and to the use of the fingerprints and other identifying information required by the State or national repositories. The applicant’s fingerprints shall be forwarded to the State Bureau of Investigation for a search of the State’s criminal history record file, and the State Bureau of Investigation shall forward a set of the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history check. The ALE Division and the Commission shall keep all information pursuant to this subsection privileged, in accordance with applicable State law and federal guidelines, and the information shall be confidential and shall not be a public record under Chapter 132 of the N.C. Gen. Stat..

The Department of Public Safety may charge each applicant a fee for conducting the checks of criminal history records authorized by this subsection.

(c) False Information. – Knowingly making a false statement in an application for an ABC permit shall be grounds for denying, suspending, revoking or taking other action against the permit as provided in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-104 and shall also be unlawful.

(d) Fees. – An application for an ABC permit shall be accompanied by payment of the following application fee:

(1) On-premises malt beverage permit – $400.00.

Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 18B-902

  • Alcoholic beverage: means any beverage containing at least one-half of one percent (0. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • ALE Division: means the Alcohol Law Enforcement Division of the Department of Public Safety. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Antique spirituous liquor: means spirituous liquor that has not been in production or bottled in the last 20 years, is in the original manufacturer's unopened container, is not owned by a distillery, and is not otherwise available for purchase by an ABC Board except through the special order process pursuant to N. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Commission: means the North Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission established under N. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
  • Fortified wine: means any wine or alcohol consumable containing more than sixteen percent (16%) and no more than twenty-four percent (24%) alcohol by volume, made by fermentation from grapes, fruits, berries, rice, or honey; or by the addition of pure cane, beet, or dextrose sugar; or by the addition of pure brandy from the same type of grape, fruit, berry, rice, or honey that is contained in the base wine and produced in accordance with the regulations of the United States. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • liquor: means distilled spirits or ethyl alcohol, and any alcohol consumable containing distilled spirits or ethyl alcohol, including spirits of wine, whiskey, rum, brandy, gin and all other distilled spirits and mixtures of cordials, liqueur, and premixed cocktails, in closed containers regardless of their dilution. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Malt beverage: means beer, lager, malt liquor, ale, porter, and any other brewed or fermented beverage or alcohol consumable except unfortified or fortified wine as defined by this Chapter, containing at least one-half of one percent (0. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • permit: means a presently valid permit. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Person: means an individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation, limited liability company, other organization or group, or other combination of individuals acting as a unit. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • Premises: means a fixed permanent establishment, including all areas inside or outside the licensed establishment, where the permittee has control through a lease, deed, or other legal process. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the said district and territories and all dependencies. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
  • Unfortified wine: means any wine or alcohol consumable containing sixteen percent (16%) or less alcohol by volume made by fermentation from grapes, fruits, berries, rice, or honey; or by the addition of pure cane, beet, or dextrose sugar; or by the addition of pure brandy from the same type of grape, fruit, berry, rice, or honey that is contained in the base wine and produced in accordance with the regulations of the United States. See North Carolina General Statutes 18B-101

(2) Off-premises malt beverage permit – $400.00.

(3) On-premises unfortified wine permit – $400.00.

(4) Off-premises unfortified wine permit – $400.00.

(5) On-premises fortified wine permit – $400.00.

(6) Off-premises fortified wine permit – $400.00.

(7) Brown-bagging permit – $400.00, unless the application is for a restaurant seating less than 50, in which case the fee shall be $200.00.

(8) Special occasion permit – $400.00.

(9) Limited special occasion permit – $50.00.

(10) Mixed beverages permit – $1,000.

(11) Culinary permit – $200.00.

(12) Unfortified winery permit – $300.00.

(13) Fortified winery permit – $300.00.

(14) Limited winery permit – $300.00.

(15) Brewery permit – $300.00.

(16) Distillery permit – $300.00.

(17) Fuel alcohol permit – $100.00.

(18) Wine importer permit – $300.00.

(19) Wine wholesaler permit – $300.00.

(20) Malt beverage importer permit – $300.00.

(21) Malt beverage wholesaler permit – $300.00.

(22) Bottler permit – $300.00.

(23) Salesman permit – $100.00.

(24) Vendor representative permit – $50.00.

(25) Nonresident malt beverage vendor permit – $100.00.

(26) Nonresident wine vendor permit – $100.00.

(27) Any special one-time permit under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-1002 – $50.00.

(28) Winery special event permit – $200.00.

(29) Mixed beverages catering permit – $200.00.

(30) Guest room cabinet permit – $1,000.

(31) Liquor importer/bottler permit – $500.00.

(32) Cider and vinegar manufacturer permit – $200.00.

(33) Brew on premises permit – $400.00.

(34) Wine producer permit – $300.00.

(35) Wine tasting permit – $100.00.

(36) Repealed by Session Laws 2005-380, s. 1, effective September 8, 2005, and applicable to wine shipper permit applications submitted on or after that date.

(37) Wine shop permit – $100.00.

(38) Winemaking on premises permit – $400.00.

(39) Wine shipper packager permit – $100.00.

(40) Malt beverage special event permit – $200.00.

(41) Malt beverage tasting permit – $100.00.

(42) Spirituous liquor tasting permit – $100.00.

(43) Antique spirituous liquor permit – $100.00.

(44) Spirituous liquor special event permit – $200.00.

(45) Special auction permit – $750.00.

(46) Common area entertainment permit – $750.00.

(47) Delivery service permit – $400.00.

(48) Nonresident spirituous liquor vendor permit – $100.00.

(49) Airport central storage permit – $400.00.

(50) Common carrier vehicle permit – $1,000.

(51) Packaging and logistics permit – $300.00.

(e) Repealed by Session Laws 1998-95, s. 29, effective May 1, 1999.

(f) Fee Not Refundable. – The fee required by subsection (d) shall not be refunded.

(g) Fees to Treasurer. – All fees collected by the Commission under this or any other section of this Chapter shall be remitted to the State Treasurer for the General Fund.

(h) Recycling Plan Required. – Each applicant for an on-premises malt beverage permit, on-premises unfortified wine permit, on-premises fortified wine permit, or a mixed beverages permit shall prepare and submit with the application a plan for the collection and recycling of all recyclable beverage containers of all beverages to be sold at retail on the premises. A permittee who is not able to find a recycler for its beverage containers may apply to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission for a one-year stay of the requirement to implement a recycling program in compliance with N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-1006.1 The application shall be made in a form specified by the Commission, shall detail the efforts made by the permittee to provide for the collection and recycling of beverage containers, and shall specify the impediments to implementation of a recycling plan. The Commission shall submit all such applications to the Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach of the Department of Environmental Quality for review and certification. The Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach shall investigate each application and prepare a summary of its investigation and shall submit the summary to the Commission along with a notation indicating certification or denial of the application. A permittee whose application for a stay is certified by the Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach shall not be required to comply with the recycling requirement of the alcoholic beverage laws and regulations during the one-year stay period so certified. (1949, c. 974, ss. 1, 2; 1963, c. 119; c. 426, s. 12; 1965, c. 326; 1971, c. 872, s. 1; 1973, c. 758, s. 2; c. 1012; 1975, c. 19, s. 5; 1977, c. 70, s. 19.1; c. 668, s. 3; c. 977, ss. 1, 2; 1979, c. 286, s. 4; 1981, c. 412, s. 2; c. 747, ss. 55, 56; 1983, c. 713, s. 105; 1989, c. 737, s. 3; c. 800, s. 7; 1991, c. 267, s. 2; c. 565, ss. 2, 7; c. 669, s. 2; c. 689, ss. 307, 308; 1991 (Reg. Sess., 1992), c. 920, s. 5; 1993, c. 415, s. 11; 1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 745, s. 28; 1995, c. 404, s. 2; c. 466, s. 7; 1997-134, s. 3; 1997-467, s. 2; 1998-95, s. 29; 2001-262, s. 6; 2001-487, s. 49(f); 2002-147, s. 1; 2003-402, s. 1; 2005-350, s. 2(b); 2005-380, s. 1; 2006-222, s. 2.3; 2006-227, s. 3; 2007-402, s. 2(b); 2008-187, s. 6; 2009-105, s. 1; 2009-377, s. 1; 2010-31, ss. 13.1(b), 14.12(b); 2011-145, s. 19.1(q); 2014-100, s. 17.1(o), (xxx); 2015-98, s. 1(c); 2015-241, s. 14.30(u); 2017-87, s. 2(b); 2019-182, ss. 19(c), 20(b); 2019-203, s. 9(a); 2021-150, ss. 6.2(b), 19.2, 28.2; 2022-44, s. 2(a).)

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