This allows the new owner of a licensed premise to trade on an existing licence until they obtain a new licence in their own name.

This means that under this Authority they can continue to sell alcohol (under the existing licence conditions). A Temporary Authority is normally issued for three months. Note: a Temporary Authority cannot be issued to a club.

Apply for a Temporary Authority

Documents required with your application are:

  1. Proof of your tenure/right to occupy; and
  2. Proof of ownership of the business. 

For this we require:

  • Either a sale and purchase agreement for the property, or a signed copy of the lease, or evidence of right to occupy such as a written deed of assignment or letter of intent from the building owner.

Your Temporary Authority application should be lodged at least 10 working days before the takeover date.  You cannot sell alcohol until the Temporary Authority has been issued. Lodge your application as early as possible before the takeover date. If all relevant information is received and the Inspector and Police have no objection, a Temporary Authority normally can be issued within that 10 day period.

You can apply for a Temporary Authority using this Temporary Authority application form [PDF 65KB].

The fees for processing your application are non-refundable, and must be paid when you apply for your licence.

A sale and purchase agreement, proof of tenure or Certificate of Compliance is also required.

Please read the checklist on the form to make sure you include all the extra documents we need with your application. Incomplete applications will be returned.

Fees

Alcohol licensing fees factsheet [PDF 97KB].

For a Temporary Authority to be issued, the existing licence needs to be kept current, so any annual licence fees that are due must be paid and the licence must not be surrendered by the existing licensee.

Management of Licensed Premises under a Temporary Authority

When alcohol is available for sale to the public, a manager who holds a current Manager’s Certificate must be on duty at all times.  When operating under your Temporary Authority you will need to either:

  • hold a General Manager’s Certificate yourself, or
  • employ someone who holds a certificate.

If you are new to the alcohol industry it can take up to six months for you to undergo the required training, and gain enough experience to obtain a General Manager’s Certificate. You should bear this in mind when considering the staffing of your new business.  A Temporary Authority cannot be issued if you do not have an experienced duty manager for your premises.

How long does a Temporary Authority last?

A Temporary Authority can only be issue for up to three months and during this time you need to obtain your own licence.  You need to apply for your new licence as soon as possible:

  • As soon as you receive your Temporary Authority you should start gathering the supporting information you need for your licence application. 
  • Start this process as early as possible, and have your application lodged within six weeks of the granting of your Temporary Authority.  This means the licence(s) can be processed and granted before your Temporary Authority expires.

  • New licence applications take a minimum of 5-6 weeks to process.  This is dependent on the quality of the application and reporting timelines, so may take longer. 

  • At the same time you apply for a licence you must also apply for a Certificate of Compliance Alcohol.

  • If there is a good reason that you are unable to lodge a new licence application before your Temporary Authority expires you need to let us know as soon as possible so we can work with you.  Temporary Authorities are not renewable so you need to apply for a new one if your current one is due to expire before your new licence has been issued. 

  • Note: There are also special rules about accepting and processing applications between 20 December and 15 January and these may impact on how quickly your aplpciation can be processed. See the licensing information under Timelines.