Apply for a personal alcohol licence

About personal alcohol licences

You need a personal alcohol licence if you: 

• want to sell alcohol at a premises that holds a premises licence
• want to get more than 5 temporary event notices in a year
• are a designated premises supervisor at a premises that holds a premises licence 

You do not need a personal licence for every person at an establishment that supplies alcohol. But you must make sure that someone who does hold a personal alcohol licence authorises every sale of alcohol. 

You should keep a written list on the premises of people who are authorised to sell alcohol on behalf of the licence-holder. This list should be made available for inspection if requested by an authorised licensing officer or police officer. 

Licence fees 

The application fee for a personal alcohol licence is £37. 

The administration fee for changes to a licence or for a copy of a licence is £10.50. 

You can pay by cash or by cheque made payable to Royal Borough of Greenwich. 

Before you apply 

You must apply to us if you live in Royal Greenwich, even if the place where you sell alcohol is not in the borough. 

If you live outside Royal Greenwich, apply to your local council there. 

Before you apply, you need to: 

• read our guidance on personal alcohol licences

• get training from an accredited personal licence qualification provider
• have endorsed passport photos ready (details in the guidance)
• request a Disclosure and Barring (DBS) check to get a copy of your criminal record
• apply for your licence within 1 month of receiving your DBS certificate

Apply for a licence 

Apply online 

You can apply online using our licensing system. You’ll need to register an account if you’re not already registered on the system. 

Apply for a personal alcohol licence 

Apply by post 

To apply by post, download the application form, complete and return it to us at Licensing, The Woolwich Centre, London SE18 6HQ.

After you’ve applied 

We'll usually notify you about the outcome of your application within 20 working. 

 If your application is successful, you can collect the licence from us at The Woolwich Centre or we can post it to you. 

Renewing your licence 

You do not need to renew your personal alcohol licences. It’s valid until you surrender it or we revoke it. 

Make a change to your licence 

If your address or personal details changed, you must inform us. 

Now that licences have no expiry date, you can also request a copy of the licence with the expiry date removed. 

We can only deal with change requests for licences that we've issued. 

Submit your request online 

You’ll need to register an account if you’re not already registered on the system.

Request a licence change or replacement 

Submit your request by email or post 

Email us at licensing@royalgreenwich.gov.uk or post your request to us at The Woolwich Centre. 

You need to include: 

• your current full name and your previous full name - you need to provide proof, for example a passport or driving licence
• your current full address and your previous full address
• 2 endorsed passport photos if you want to change your photo
• your old personal licence, both the card part and paper part
• the administration fee
• your daytime contact details

We may need more information, and the police may contact you for more information. 

If your licence is lost or stolen 

We can replace a licence that we issued if it's:

• lost
• stolen
• damaged or destroyed

Email us at licensing@royalgreenwich.gov.uk or post your request to us at The Woolwich Centre.

You need to include:

• your full name and address
• the licence number (if known)
• an explanation of what happened to your licence
• the administration fee