Regardless of the type, all alcohol licenses in Florida must be owned/registered by the person or entity operating the business (i.e. - the leasing or renting of alcohol licenses is not allowed to other parties) and all such licenses do require local zoning approval for the specific location where the license would be assigned. Those parties acquiring a Quota liquor license may finance the purchase of the license, but they must be the approved owner-of-record as registered with the Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (AB&T).
In Florida, there are basically three kinds of alcohol licenses available: 1) Beer/Wine Only licenses (further designated by Series as package sales only or package sales plus consumption on premises sales) 2) Special Restaurant/Special Food Service licenses (commonly referred to in the past as SRX licenses, or now SFS licenses) allowing Beer, Wine & Liquor consumption on premises sales – but only at bona fide full-service restaurants (requirements listed below) 3) Full-liquor Quota licenses – which also allow Beer, Wine & Liquor sales (further designated by Series as for package sales only or for package sales plus consumption on premises sales).
Beer/Wine Only licenses and/or SRX/SFS licenses (Special Restaurant/Special Food Service Exemption licenses allowing Beer, Wine & Liquor sales) are relatively inexpensive and obtained directly from the local district office of AB&T for a nominal fee (usually around $300/yr for Beer/Wine and $1820/year for SRX/SFS). No broker is needed for those, and those licenses only carry that annual fee.
Please note that SRX/SFS licenses do have special requirements even beyond the zoning requirement: including square footage, # of seats and serving 51%+ in food sales. Most counties require that an applicant for an SRX/SFS be: a bona fide restaurant consisting of at least 2,500 square feet of floor space under a permanent cover in the main service area for customers, maintain seating and equipment for serving at least 150 patrons at one time and which derives at least 51% of its gross revenue from the sale of food and non-alcoholic beverages. Service of full course meals must be available at all times alcoholic beverages are being served. No package sales of alcoholic beverages are permitted. Many counties and/or cities have special acts governing this issue. You may want to contact the district office handling the county where the license is to be issued for specific information on their regulations for such exemption licenses.
Full-liquor Quota licenses must be acquired directly from an existing license-holder and are much more expensive than Beer/Wine Only licenses or SRX/SFS licenses. Quota licenses allow Beer, Wine and Liquor sales and are required for package/liquor stores, bars, pubs, nightclubs and for restaurants that would not qualify for an SRX/SFS exemption license. Whether you need one for package sales only or for package sales plus consumption on premises sales, it is exactly the same license – the only difference is the Series designation and the annual fee (usually $1365/yr vs. $1820/yr). The important thing is that it is a free & clear and fully transferable QUOTA license and not some other type. You can acquire one of either Series type and designate it as you choose going forward. For example, many buyers think that they have to acquire a 3PS vs. a 4COP license. But in reality, they are one and the same license type, and a buyer of either can re-designate it to the other Series at will upon transfer.
Quota licenses are usually acquired through liquor license brokers like us. They are specific to a particular county only, and the prices can range from a low of $55K or so to over $700K. It all depends on the county of interest, timing and “Supply v. Demand”. While Quota licenses are considered the un-restricted variety of alcohol licenses, please do remember that all alcohol licenses in Florida require local zoning approval for the specific location where the license would be assigned. We hope that you find this information helpful. As brokers, we only work directly with Buyers and Sellers related to the transfer/purchase of Quota licenses.
Please let us know if you want us to check on the pricing and availability for a full-liquor Quota license for a specific Florida county…
Below is a list of AB&T District offices for Beer/Wine Only or SRX/SFS exemption licenses...
AB&T Licensing District Office - Tallahassee 1940 N. Monroe St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1026 Phone: 850-488-4271 / Fax: 850-921-7800 Counties: Bay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Jackson, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Taylor, Wakulla
AB&T Licensing District Office - Pensacola 4900 Bayou Blvd., Suite 210, Bayou Corporate Office Center, Pensacola, FL 32503 Phone: 850-595-0133 / Fax: 850-484-5080 Counties: Escambia, Holmes, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton, Washington
AB&T Licensing District Office - Gainesville 240 N.W. 76th Drive, Suite B, Gainesville, FL 32607 Phone: 352-333-2515 / Fax: 352-333-2514 Counties: Alachua, Bradford, Citrus, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Marion, Sumter, Suwannee, Union
AB&T Licensing District Office - Jacksonville 4161 Carmichael Avenue, 3300 Bldg., Suite 200A, Jacksonville FL 32207 Phone: 904-727-5552 / 904-727-5553 / Fax: 904-727-5598 Counties: Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau, Putnam, St. Johns
AB&T Licensing District Office - Tampa 1313 Tampa St., Park Trammel Bldg., Suite 909, Tampa, FL 33602 Phone: 813-272-2610 / Fax: 813-233-2896 Counties: DeSoto, Hardee, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk
AB&T Licensing District Office - Orlando 400 W. Robinson St., Room 709, N. Tower, Hurston Bldg., Orlando, FL 32801 Phone: 407-245-0785 / Fax: 407-317-7289 Counties: Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Volusia
AB&T Licensing District Office - Fort Myers 2295 Victoria Ave, Suite 145, Fort Myers, FL 33901 Phone: 239-344-0885 / Fax: 239-344-0888 Counties: Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry, Lee, Manatee, Sarasota
AB&T Licensing District Office - Fort Pierce 337 N U.S. Highway #1, Suite 111, Fort Pierce, FL 34950-4255 Phone: 772-468-3927 / Fax: 772-595-1300 Counties: Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, St. Lucie
AB&T Licensing District Office - Miami 8240 N.W. 52nd Terrace, Dawson Bldg, Suite 303, Doral, FL 33166 Phone: 305-470-6787 / Fax: 305-470-5074 Counties: Dade, Monroe
AB&T Licensing District Office - Fort Lauderdale 5080 Coconut Creek Parkway, Suite C, Margate, FL 33063-3942 Phone: 954-917-1350 / Fax: 954-917-1357 Counties: Broward
AB&T Licensing District Office - West Palm Beach 111 S. Sapodilla Ave., Suite #111, West Palm Beach, FL 33401 Phone: 561-650-6872 / 561-650-6873 / Fax: 561-650-6849 Counties: Palm Beach
