A South African Liquor Licence, when issued, is applied not only to the premises where the liquor will be sold or stored, but also to an individual and or a company who will be responsible for the sale of that liquor.

When a person or company that holds the right to sell liquor decides to sell the business that they are operating, or simply leave the business, the liquor licence will need to be transferred into the name of the new person or company who will be selling the liquor.

In either case, the Regional Liquor Board will need to be made aware of the scenario and approve the transfer of this Liquor Licence into the new person or company’s name.

The criteria required for the granting of a Liquor Licence during a normal application are similar to those required when transferring a licence from one person or company to another. The person or company will have to prove that they are reliable and responsible entities that will do their best to ensure that the abuse of liquor under their watch does not happen.

The transfer of a Liquor Licence in South Africa can take anywhere from a couple of months to almost a year to be granted.

IF YOU ARE BUYING A BUSINESS:
Consider the transfer of a Liquor Licence as just another expense in the process of purchasing your new business from the previous owner. It is necessary because as the new owner, you would prefer to have all documents required for the safe and legal running of your business under your or your company’s name.

IF YOU ARE SELLING A BUSINESS:
It is very important to successfully and properly transfer the Liquor Licence out of your name when you sell your business. The main reason for this is that once you are no longer involved in the business, and thus the sale of alcohol by the business, you no longer have control over the operations of the business and cannot oversee that the sale of alcohol is being done legally. If the business operates in the sale of alcohol illegally, and your name is still on the licence, you will be held responsible.