Accessibility Skip to main content

Apply for a new premises licence

You will need to apply for a premises licence if you want to:

If you want to sell alcohol on your premises, you must nominate a Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS). This person must hold a personal licence.

Who can apply

You must be: 

  • 18 or over 
  • have the right to work in the UK 

Restrictions

You will be expected to uphold the following objectives from our licensing statement of principles: 

  • the prevention of crime and disorder 
  • public safety 
  • the prevention of public nuisance 
  • the protection of children from harm 

Fees

Fees need to be paid every year, on the date your licence was granted. The amount you pay is set nationally and based on the rateable value of the premises.

  1. Check the rateable value of your premises
  2. View licensing fees on GOV.UK
  3. Pay your annual fee

If you do not pay the annual fee, we will suspend the premises licence.

How to apply

You will need to include:

If there are 2 or more applicants: signature confirmation

You only need to submit this if 2 or more people make the application.

All individuals need to sign this document to confirm they understand the licensing application.

Operating Schedule

This should explain how you intend to promote the licensing objectives.

How to write an operating schedule.

Premises plan

A clear and legible plan of your premises.

How to create a premises plan.

Right to work documents

You must include proof of your right to work in the UK. You do not need to provide this if you are applying as a limited company.

View the right to work guidance on GOV.UK.

Signed consent from the Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS)

If you will be selling alcohol on your premises.

Download a consent form template from GOV.UK.

Once you have gathered this information, you will need to register or log in to our customer portal to apply online. 

Advertise your application

You need to advertise your application. We will let you know when to advertise it after we have checked your application. You don’t need to submit your advertisement with the form.

How to advertise your application.

Apply online

Once you have gathered this information, you will need to register or log in to our customer portal to apply online.  

Apply for a premises licence

If you have already started an application and need to complete it, log in to My Torbay and choose ‘pending forms’ from the menu. 

What happens next

We will send a copy of the application to the police and environmental health for their comments.

Objections

Interested parties will have 28 days to comment in support or against the application. This is called ‘making a representation.’ Any representations must relate to one of the four licensing objectives. We can ignore or reject comments or objections if we think those comments are:

  • meant to cause trouble
  • silly or trivial
  • just repeating the same thing again and again

If no objections are received, we will grant the premises licence as requested. This will usually be within 7 days of the end of the 28-day consultation period.

If any objections are received, the application will have to go to a committee hearing. A small group of Torbay councillors will then hear all the facts and make a decision.

We will notify you of any objections and give you the opportunity to attend the hearing in person. We will send you a ‘notice’ telling you the time and place. You must complete the notice and return it to us. At the hearing, the committee will either approve, add conditions or reject the notice.

Appeals

If you disagree with the licensing committee’s decision, you can appeal to your local magistrates’ court. You must do this within 21 days of the decision.