Lifetime liquor licence fee slashed by 50% to ₹10,000 for home bars

Under the licence for the mini bar, residents can store 108 liquor bottles at home. The excise officials said residents can also apply online for this licence, which was introduced last year.

The fee for lifetime liquor licence (essentially for home mini bars) has been decreased to ₹10,000 from ₹20,000 in the new excise policy that was announced on Tuesday.

The fee for lifetime liquor licence (essentially for home mini bars) has been decreased to ₹10,000 from ₹20,000 in the new excise policy that was announced on Tuesday.(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The step was taken after a dip in demand for the licence, excise officials said. The minimum age to obtain a lifetime liquor licence is 25 years, they said.

The excise department hardly received 20 applications for the lifetime liquor licence last year, lowest in the last five years.

Under the licence for the mini bar, residents can store 108 liquor bottles at home. The excise officials said residents can also apply online for this licence, which was introduced last year.

According to the officials, the licence is called L 50 (mini bar) that was introduced for personal consumption. The licence is granted by the deputy excise and taxation commissioner for the possession and transportation after paying the fee. It can also be obtained for one year after paying a fee of ?1,500.

The officials said the demand for a lifetime liquor licence decreased in the city after the excise department had increased the fees from ₹2,000 to ₹20,000 in 2016. Although the revenue for the same has increased, the number of applicants has gone down since.

The excise officials said it is better to have permission for keeping a large volume of liquor at home or to consume it in parties as no one can be harassed.

“Our idea is not to encourage people to keep the stock or consume liquor at home, but to keep the stock with the permission of the department to ensure it is not illegal,” HC Dahiya, deputy excise and taxation commissioner (west), said.