How to Get a Delaware Liquor License

By StartBusinessByState·Publisher: Robert Smith·Research process

Last updated: October 2, 2026

Delaware cards the server, prices the license by the two-year, and since June 2026 lets 18-year-olds work the floor. Anyone who sells or serves on-premises — and anyone who manages them — needs a Commissioner-approved server-training card. House Bill 195 cut that card from four years to two, and it cut the bartending age from 21 to 18, as long as a 21-year-old is behind the bar whenever an 18-to-20-year-old pours or mixes. The business license is a different check: $1,000 nonrefundable to apply, then $1,000 every two years for a restaurant or taproom.

The Server Card: Mandatory, and Now a Two-Year Clock

Delaware does not issue a bartender permit. It issues a training certificate, and the statute makes the certificate a condition of serving:

• Who must have it: every employee who sells, prepares, dispenses, serves or delivers alcoholic beverages to patrons for on-premises consumption, everyone who manages those employees, and each licensee who participates directly in managing the place. The on-premises application checklist also requires a server-training certificate for every person listed who will serve.
• Two years, not four. Title 4, § 1205 now says certification is valid for 2 years, and recertification is also 2 years. House Bill 195, signed June 10, 2026, made that change effective immediately. Cards already in force stay valid until they expire; the two-year term applies when you renew.
• DATE’s course list is stale on the term. The Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement still advertises approved online courses as expiring in 4 years. The statute controls. DATE lists two approved online courses, at $15 (eTIPS) and $25 (Delaware Restaurant Association).
• Age 18, with a 21-year-old on the stick. 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds may sell and serve at on-premises establishments. They may pour or mix only when directly supervised by someone 21 or older who is also working behind the bar. 18- and 19-year-olds enrolled in secondary school may sell and serve but may not pour or mix. Package stores are outside this age change.

Restaurant or Taproom: Food First, or Drinks First

The Office of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissioner issues on-premises licenses under Title 4. The two licenses most people mean by “liquor license” cost the same and mean different businesses:

• Restaurant — $1,000 biennial. An establishment kept open principally to serve complete meals, with seating for 12 or more persons at tables and a kitchen under a chef or cook. Beer-and-wine only (tavern) is $500 biennial.
• Taproom — $1,000 biennial. Operated primarily to sell drinks by the glass; food is secondary. Beer-and-wine only is $500.
• Application processing fee — $1,000, nonrefundable on a new application that needs OABCC vetting or a public hearing. That is on top of the license fee, not instead of it.
• Hotel $1,000. Caterer $1,000, plus $500 if you cater off-premises. Package store $1,000 biennial. Delaware is not a control state — private stores sell bottles.
• Sunday sales $500 biennial. Patio permit $1,000 biennial. Overservice Investigation Fund $100 a year on top of the license.
• Server-training certificates for everyone listed who will serve, filed with the application.

What It Costs

Item	Cost	Notes
Server-training card	$15 or $25	DATE-listed online courses; 2-year term at renewal under HB 195
Application processing fee	$1,000	Nonrefundable; due with a new on-premises application
Restaurant or taproom license	$1,000	Biennial; spirits, beer and wine
Restaurant or taproom, beer and wine only	$500	Biennial
Package store	$1,000	Biennial; off-premises
Sunday sales	$500	Biennial
Patio permit	$1,000	Biennial
Overservice Investigation Fund	$100/yr	On top of the license; 4 Del. C. § 554
Hotel / caterer	$1,000	Biennial; off-premises catering add $500
Delaware LLC	$110	Certificate of Formation; then $400 annual tax due June 1

Eighteen Behind the Bar, Two Years on the Card

Most states that card the server leave the bartender age at 21 and recertify every three or four years. Delaware moved both numbers on the same day.

House Bill 195, signed June 10, 2026, and effective immediately, does two things that change how you staff a Delaware bar. First, 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds may sell and serve at restaurants, taprooms, beer gardens, clubs and the rest of the on-premises list. They may pour or mix only with a 21-year-old working behind the bar and directly supervising. High-school and vo-tech students who are 18 or 19 may sell and serve but still may not pour. Package stores are out of this change entirely.

Second, the server-training certificate dropped from four years to two. Title 4, § 1205 now says the card is valid for 2 years and recertification is 2 years. Cards already in your drawer keep their printed expiry; the new clock starts when you renew. DATE’s website still lists those same online courses as 4-year cards. Do not staff to the webpage.

The license underneath that is a two-year instrument too. A restaurant and a taproom both cost $1,000 every two years, plus $1,000 to apply. The difference is the food test in the definition, not the fee: a restaurant is meals-first with 12 seats at tables and a kitchen; a taproom is drinks-first. Pick the one that matches how the room actually runs, because the Commissioner will.

How to Get Licensed, In Order

1. Decide restaurant or taproom from how you actually sell food, not from the fee — both are $1,000 biennial.
2. Get every server and manager a Commissioner-approved training card before you file. DATE lists $15 and $25 online courses.
3. Register the LLC ($110 Certificate of Formation) and calendar the $400 annual tax for June 1.
4. File with OABCC with the $1,000 nonrefundable application fee, Form A-2 for each owner, financials, floor plan, lease or deed, and server certificates.
5. Add Sunday sales ($500) and a patio permit ($1,000) if the concept needs them, and budget the $100-a-year overservice fee.
6. Schedule 18-to-20-year-old bartenders only when a 21-year-old is behind the bar if they will pour or mix.

Staying Licensed

Licenses run two years. Renew before the Commissioner’s expiration date; a lapsed license is not a paperwork item you catch up on later. Server cards now renew every two years once the current card expires — track them per person. The Overservice Investigation Fund fee is $100 every year, not every two. The LLC tax is $400 by June 1 with no annual report attached to it, which is how it gets missed. If you add a patio, outdoor speakers or a wet bar, those are separate biennial permits, not a floor-plan tweak.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you need a license to bartend in Delaware?

You need a server-training card, not a separate bartender permit. Everyone who sells, prepares, dispenses or serves alcohol on-premises, and anyone who manages those employees, must complete a Commissioner-approved responsible alcoholic beverage server training program. Since June 10, 2026, that certification is valid for two years, not four. Existing cards stay valid until they expire; the two-year term applies at renewal.

How old do you have to be to bartend in Delaware?

Eighteen, with limits. House Bill 195, signed June 10, 2026, lets 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds sell and serve at on-premises places (restaurants, taprooms, beer gardens, clubs, sports facilities, racetracks, caterers). They may pour or mix only when a person 21 or older is working behind the bar and directly supervising. Eighteen- and 19-year-olds still in high school or vo-tech may sell and serve but may not pour or mix. The age change does not apply to package stores.

How much is a liquor license in Delaware?

Budget two state checks. A new on-premises application that needs OABCC vetting or a public hearing carries a $1,000 nonrefundable processing fee. The license itself is biennial: $1,000 for a restaurant, hotel or taproom that sells spirits, $500 for beer-and-wine only (tavern). Sunday sales are another $500 every two years. An additional $100 a year goes to the Overservice Investigation Fund. A package store license is $1,000 biennial.

What is the difference between a Delaware restaurant license and a taproom license?

Food. A restaurant is kept open principally to serve complete meals, with seating for 12 or more at tables and a kitchen under a chef or cook. A taproom is operated primarily to sell drinks by the glass; food is secondary. Both cost $1,000 every two years. The application checklist also asks taprooms, taverns and beer gardens for a distance affidavit that restaurants do not file.

How often is Delaware server training required?

Every two years, as of June 10, 2026. Title 4, section 1205 now says certification is valid for two years, and recertification is also two years. The Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement still lists approved online courses as expiring in four years — that is leftover from the old statute. Keep your current card until it expires, then renew onto the two-year clock. DATE lists two approved online courses, at $15 and $25.

What does a Delaware LLC cost?

The Certificate of Formation filing fee is $110. Delaware LLCs also pay a $400 annual tax, due by June 1 each year after the year of formation. There is no annual report for an LLC, but the tax is not optional.

Forming the company, taxes, insurance, and hiring are covered in our full guide to starting a business in Delaware.

Sources

Source	What It Covers
OABCC — License & Fee Schedule	Application fee $1000 non-refundable; restaurant $1000 biennial; beer and wine only (Tavern) $500; hotel $1000; taproom $1000; caterer $1000; off-premises catering $500; store $1000; Sunday Sales biennial $500; Patio Permit biennial $1000
4 Del. C. § 554 — License fees	Hotel or restaurant biennial $1,000; beer and/or wine only in a restaurant $500; taproom $1,000; additional annual fee of $100 to the Overservice Investigation Fund; patio biennial $1,000; licenses valid for a period of 2 years
4 Del. C. Chapter 12 — Responsible Alcoholic Beverage Server Training Program	On-premises employees who sell, prepare, dispense, serve or deliver alcoholic beverages, and managers, must complete approved training; certification valid for a period of 2 years; recertification also valid for 2 years
OABCC — Legislative Update: Bartender Bill (June 12, 2026)	HB 195 signed June 10, 2026: 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds may sell or serve but may not pour or mix unless directly supervised by someone 21 or older working behind the bar; 18- and 19-year-olds in secondary school may not pour or mix; does not apply to package stores; server training every two years instead of every four; current cards valid until they expire
OABCC — On-Premises Application Checklist	Application processing fee $1000.00 non-refundable; server training certificate for all persons listed who will serve alcohol; distance affidavit for taproom, tavern or beer garden; menu of complete meals for restaurant, hotel or caterer
Delaware Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement — Server Training	Approved online courses: Delaware Restaurant Association $25, eTIPS $15; page still lists 4-year expiry
4 Del. C. § 101 — Definitions	Restaurant: regularly used and kept open principally for serving complete meals, seating for 12 or more persons at tables, kitchen under a chef or cook; Taproom: operated primarily for sale by the glass, food a secondary object as distinguished from a restaurant where food is the primary object
Delaware Division of Corporations — LLC Certificate of Formation	The fee to file the Certificate is $110; annual taxes $400 due by June 1 of each year following the year of formation
Delaware Division of Corporations — LLC/LP/GP Franchise Tax Instructions	LLCs must pay the $400 yearly tax on or before June 1st; no annual report