Bar permits in Los Angeles, California

The city and county permits, taxes, and inspections a bar needs in Los Angeles (Los Angeles County), on top of the statewide California and federal credentials covered on their own pages.

Local feesLocal fees run roughly $30,000 to $45,000 before construction, dominated by the CUB at about $22,000 to $24,000 plus its monitoring fees, with the LADBS build-out, LAFD fire permit, business tax, and (with a kitchen) the county health plan check on top. A bar with dancing adds about $20,000 more, since a first-time dance hall needs its own City Planning entitlement at the CUB fee.CountyLos Angeles County

This page covers only the Los Angeles city and county permits for bars. The statewide California credentials and the federal credentials every bar needs are on their own pages.

All California requirementsBars in California Federal requirementsEvery bar nationwide

What you need to run a bar in Los Angeles

Credential	Level	Fee	Renewal
LA County Public Health Permit (only if your bar serves food)	County	A bar with a kitchen pays the county restaurant fee by seats and risk (FY 2025-2026), from $319 a year (low risk, 0 to 30 seats) up to $1,438 (high risk, 151 or more seats), plus a one-time plan check of $1,044 to $2,723 for a new or remodeled kitchen. A pour-only bar that serves no food generally needs no food facility permit.	Annual
Conditional Use Beverage Permit (the gate before ABC, no RBP shortcut for a bar)	City	A $19,418 filing fee (2026) that with City surcharges runs about $22,000 to $24,000, plus roughly $2,800 in post-approval monitoring and inspection fees. A contested case usually needs a land-use consultant or attorney on top.	A one-time entitlement that runs with the land, subject to compliance inspections at 24 and 60 months
Public Convenience or Necessity Determination (only in an over-concentrated or high-crime tract)	City	No separate published fee; handled as part of the CUB process and City Council review.	One-time, tied to the ABC license application
LADBS Build-Out Permits and Certificate of Occupancy	City	Valuation-based, with no flat amount; use the LADBS permit fee calculator. A bar tenant improvement commonly runs $3,000 to $12,000 across the building permit and plan check, plus a zoning clearance for the alcohol use and a state surcharge. The Certificate of Occupancy issues at final inspection with no separate fee.	One-time per project; the Certificate of Occupancy stands until the use or occupant load changes
City of Los Angeles Business Tax Registration Certificate (BTRC)	City	Free to register. The tax is a gross-receipts tax: a bar is in the Retail Sales class at $1.27 per $1,000, and if entertainment or service activity tops 20 percent of receipts, that portion can fall in the Professions and Occupations class at $4.25 per $1,000. A Small Business Exemption zeroes the tax at $100,000 or less in worldwide receipts if the renewal is filed on time.	Annual; the renewal is filed by the City's early-March deadline
LAPD Police Commission Entertainment Permits (only for live music or dancing)	City	A Cafe Entertainment and Shows permit is about $993 to apply (investigation) plus a few hundred dollars a year to renew; confirm the current amount on the Office of Finance permit schedule. A Dance Hall permit is roughly $308 to start and annually, but a location that has never held one must first get a Conditional Use Entertainment (CUX) entitlement from City Planning, at the same $19,418 filing fee as the CUB.	Annual
LASAN Industrial Wastewater Permit and Grease (FOG) Compliance (only if your bar has a kitchen)	City	A one-time application fee of about $370 at inception (adjusted annually; confirm the current amount with LASAN), plus an annual inspection and control fee of a few hundred dollars by class and a quarterly quality surcharge on high-strength discharge (a $0.96 per pound BOD rate as of January 2026). A kitchen also installs a sized grease control device.	Annual inspection and control fee
Al Fresco Alcohol Authorization (only with outdoor seating)	City	Set through the City Planning fee estimator. Seating in the public right-of-way also needs a Bureau of Engineering or LADOT revocable permit (about $370), plus liability insurance naming the City.	Annual
LAFD A-2 Assembly Fire Permit (only for a bar of 50 or more occupants)	Operational	$764 a year for 50 to 99 occupants, $1,146 for 100 to 499, and $1,528 for 500 or more (effective September 2025).	Annual

A typical bar in Los Angeles, California needs 23 separate credentials to operate legally, and that is for one location. Federal, statewide, and local Los Angeles requirements all stack on the same bar, each with its own renewal date, fee, and issuing agency.

Do you trust a spreadsheet and a calendar reminder for each permit?

Track every renewal automatically

Each bar credential in Los Angeles, explained

Grouped by the level of government that issues it, county then city. Every credential here is specific to operating a bar in Los Angeles, California.

County level

1 credential

LA County Public Health Permit (only if your bar serves food)

The health permit is a separate question from the liquor license, and it turns on food. A bar that runs a kitchen, even for simple bar food, is a food facility that LA County Public Health permits and inspects by risk tier, and a new kitchen clears county plan check before LADBS finalizes the building permit. A pour-only bar with no food prep is generally exempt, though garnish and ice handling can change that, so confirm with the county.

Issued by: Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Division
Fee: A bar with a kitchen pays the county restaurant fee by seats and risk (FY 2025-2026), from $319 a year (low risk, 0 to 30 seats) up to $1,438 (high risk, 151 or more seats), plus a one-time plan check of $1,044 to $2,723 for a new or remodeled kitchen. A pour-only bar that serves no food generally needs no food facility permit.
Renewal: Annual
Processing: 4 to 8 weeks when a kitchen plan check is involved

City level

7 credentials

Conditional Use Beverage Permit (the gate before ABC, no RBP shortcut for a bar)

This is the single biggest local step for a bar, and the one with no shortcut. Under LAMC Section 12.24 W.1 a bar needs a Conditional Use Beverage permit before the state ABC will issue its Type 48 or Type 42, decided after a public hearing with notice to neighbors within 300 feet and the neighborhood council. The faster Restaurant Beverage Program is expressly closed to bars, taverns, and any venue that charges admission, restricts by age, or sets drink minimums, so every bar runs the full CUB. A bar is a conditional use, not a by-right one, in the commercial zones, and being within 1,000 feet of a school, church, or park is a finding factor, so check ZIMAS before you sign a lease.

Issued by: Los Angeles Department of City Planning, Beverage and Entertainment Streamlining (BESt) Unit
Fee: A $19,418 filing fee (2026) that with City surcharges runs about $22,000 to $24,000, plus roughly $2,800 in post-approval monitoring and inspection fees. A contested case usually needs a land-use consultant or attorney on top.
Renewal: A one-time entitlement that runs with the land, subject to compliance inspections at 24 and 60 months
Processing: About 6 to 18 months through a public hearing before the Zoning Administrator

Public Convenience or Necessity Determination (only in an over-concentrated or high-crime tract)

When a bar's census tract is one ABC flags as over-concentrated (too many licenses for the population) or high-crime (more than 120 percent of the county average), state law makes the local government, here the City Council, formally find that the license serves public convenience or necessity before ABC will issue it. You file the PCN with the City Clerk using the approved CUB package, so it adds a City Council step after the CUB rather than replacing it. ABC tells you at application whether your tract needs one.

Issued by: Los Angeles City Council, through the City Clerk
Fee: No separate published fee; handled as part of the CUB process and City Council review.
Renewal: One-time, tied to the ABC license application
Processing: Typically 1 to 4 months after the CUB is approved

LADBS Build-Out Permits and Certificate of Occupancy

A bar open to the public is almost always an Assembly (A-2) occupancy, and the 50-occupant threshold is the one to watch: at 50 or more, the building code requires full assembly standards, rated egress, sprinklers in new or heavily remodeled space, occupant-load placards, and an LAFD plan check. LADBS issues a clearance worksheet listing every sign-off needed before construction, including the CUB, LAFD, and LASAN, and the final Certificate of Occupancy has to be in hand before you open and before ABC will finalize the license.

Issued by: Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS)
Fee: Valuation-based, with no flat amount; use the LADBS permit fee calculator. A bar tenant improvement commonly runs $3,000 to $12,000 across the building permit and plan check, plus a zoning clearance for the alcohol use and a state surcharge. The Certificate of Occupancy issues at final inspection with no separate fee.
Renewal: One-time per project; the Certificate of Occupancy stands until the use or occupant load changes
Processing: 2 to 6 months of plan check, plus construction

City of Los Angeles Business Tax Registration Certificate (BTRC)

Anyone doing business in the City of Los Angeles registers for a BTRC and posts it. A bar is taxed under Retail Sales, so a place grossing $800,000 owes about $1,016 a year, and a bar with significant cover or entertainment revenue may report part under the higher service class. Most genuinely small bars still owe nothing under the small-business exemption, as long as they file the yearly renewal on time. The BTRC is separate from the LAPD entertainment permits below.

Issued by: City of Los Angeles, Office of Finance
Fee: Free to register. The tax is a gross-receipts tax: a bar is in the Retail Sales class at $1.27 per $1,000, and if entertainment or service activity tops 20 percent of receipts, that portion can fall in the Professions and Occupations class at $4.25 per $1,000. A Small Business Exemption zeroes the tax at $100,000 or less in worldwide receipts if the renewal is filed on time.
Renewal: Annual; the renewal is filed by the City's early-March deadline
Processing: Immediate online; the certificate is mailed in a few days

LAPD Police Commission Entertainment Permits (only for live music or dancing)

A standard bar serving only drinks needs neither permit. The moment you add live music, a DJ, or karaoke, you need a Cafe Entertainment and Shows permit from the LAPD Police Commission, and if you let patrons dance you need a Dance Hall permit instead. The sting is the dance-hall path: a first-time dance hall has to clear a separate City Planning entitlement (the CUX) before the Police Commission will act, which means a second discretionary planning case at the same fee as your CUB, something operators routinely discover only after the CUB is already filed.

Issued by: Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners, Commission Investigation Division
Fee: A Cafe Entertainment and Shows permit is about $993 to apply (investigation) plus a few hundred dollars a year to renew; confirm the current amount on the Office of Finance permit schedule. A Dance Hall permit is roughly $308 to start and annually, but a location that has never held one must first get a Conditional Use Entertainment (CUX) entitlement from City Planning, at the same $19,418 filing fee as the CUB.
Renewal: Annual
Processing: 60 to 120 days, with Live Scan fingerprinting and a zoning clearance

LASAN Industrial Wastewater Permit and Grease (FOG) Compliance (only if your bar has a kitchen)

Only a bar with a kitchen that can send grease to the sewer hits this. LASAN requires food service establishments to install and maintain a grease interceptor or trap sized to their discharge and to keep cleaning records, with the clearance feeding into the LADBS worksheet. A pour-only bar with no cooking equipment generates no grease and is generally exempt.

Issued by: City of Los Angeles, LA Sanitation and Environment (LASAN), Industrial Waste Management Division
Fee: A one-time application fee of about $370 at inception (adjusted annually; confirm the current amount with LASAN), plus an annual inspection and control fee of a few hundred dollars by class and a quarterly quality surcharge on high-strength discharge (a $0.96 per pound BOD rate as of January 2026). A kitchen also installs a sized grease control device.
Renewal: Annual inspection and control fee
Processing: Concurrent with the LADBS plan check; appears on the clearance worksheet

Al Fresco Alcohol Authorization (only with outdoor seating)

A bar that wants to serve alcohol in an outdoor area, a patio, a parking lot, or the sidewalk, gets an Al Fresco alcohol authorization from City Planning on top of its CUB, and a right-of-way area adds a revocable permit from the Bureau of Engineering or LADOT. The Al Fresco program is permanent, and downtown sites use the separate Alcohol Sales Program instead. Seating on your own private patio that was already covered by the CUB premises does not need a new authorization.

Issued by: Los Angeles Department of City Planning, BESt Unit, with the Bureau of Engineering or LADOT for the public right-of-way
Fee: Set through the City Planning fee estimator. Seating in the public right-of-way also needs a Bureau of Engineering or LADOT revocable permit (about $370), plus liability insurance naming the City.
Renewal: Annual
Processing: About 2 to 6 weeks to extend alcohol to an outdoor area of an existing licensed bar

Operational level

1 credential

LAFD A-2 Assembly Fire Permit (only for a bar of 50 or more occupants)

A bar open to the public at 50 or more occupants is an A-2 assembly under the LAFD Public Assemblage Unit, which sets and enforces the occupant-load placard, inspects exits and life safety, and bills the annual operational fire permit. A bar under 50 occupants still answers to fire-code compliance but falls below the permit-fee tier. Tents, open flame, and special effects each need their own LAFD permit.

Issued by: Los Angeles Fire Department, Public Assemblage Unit; fees collected by the City Office of Finance
Fee: $764 a year for 50 to 99 occupants, $1,146 for 100 to 499, and $1,528 for 500 or more (effective September 2025).
Renewal: Annual
Processing: LAFD plan check during the building permit; the operational permit issues before opening

See how other bars in Los Angeles are managing every permit, license, and renewal in one place with CredentiAlert.

Los Angeles-specific things to watch for

1The CUB is the gate, and there is no Restaurant Beverage Program shortcut for a bar. The faster administrative path that lets qualifying restaurants skip the public hearing is expressly closed to bars, taverns, nightclubs, and any venue that charges admission, restricts by age, or sets drink minimums. Every bar in the City of Los Angeles runs the full Conditional Use Beverage permit, about $22,000 to $24,000 in City fees and 6 to 18 months, before ABC will issue its license.

2A Public Convenience or Necessity finding in an over-concentrated or high-crime tract is a City Council step, not just an ABC letter. If ABC flags your census tract, the City Council itself has to make the PCN finding before the license issues, filed with the City Clerk after the CUB is already approved. It adds a council agenda item to an already long timeline, and you only learn whether your tract needs one at the ABC application stage.

3Sensitive-use proximity is a CUB finding that can turn a routine hearing contested. Being within 1,000 feet of a school, church, or park does not automatically block a bar, but the Zoning Administrator has to make affirmative findings, and neighbors within 300 feet get mailed notice. An organized neighborhood council or community group can push a straightforward case to a contested 18-month hearing with appeals.

4Entertainment means LAPD permits, and dancing means a second planning case. Live music, a DJ, or karaoke needs a Cafe Entertainment and Shows permit from the Police Commission. Letting patrons dance needs a Dance Hall permit, and a first-time dance hall has to clear its own City Planning entitlement, the CUX, at the same $19,418 fee as the CUB. Operators routinely discover the dancing requirement only after the CUB is already in motion.

5The 50-occupant A-2 threshold triggers full assembly standards. At 50 or more occupants a bar is an A-2 assembly, which pulls in LAFD plan check, sprinklers in new or heavily remodeled space, rated egress, occupant-load placards, and the annual LAFD fire permit. Designing under 50 occupants avoids some of it but caps your capacity, and exceeding the posted load without a corrected Certificate of Occupancy is a code violation.

How long does it take?

Plan on 12 to 24 months from lease to opening, with the CUB public hearing the long pole: filing to a Zoning Administrator decision runs 6 to 12 months, and a contested case can reach 18. After approval, condition clearance and ABC licensing add another 3 to 6 months, and the LADBS build-out runs alongside at 6 to 12 months. There is no Restaurant Beverage Program shortcut for a bar, so the full hearing is unavoidable, and entertainment or dance-hall entitlements can stretch it further.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a conditional use permit to open a bar in Los Angeles?

Yes, always. Every on-sale alcohol venue whose primary business is serving alcohol needs a Conditional Use Beverage permit from City Planning under LAMC Section 12.24 W.1, decided after a Zoning Administrator public hearing. The faster Restaurant Beverage Program that lets some restaurants skip the hearing does not apply to bars, taverns, nightclubs, or any place that charges admission or restricts entry by age, so a bar always runs the full CUB.

How long does it take to open a bar in Los Angeles?

Plan on 12 to 24 months from lease to opening. The CUB public hearing is the long pole, 6 to 12 months from filing to a Zoning Administrator decision, and a contested case can reach 18. After approval, condition clearance and ABC licensing add another 3 to 6 months, with the LADBS build-out running alongside. There is no fast-track for a bar equivalent to the restaurant program, so the hearing is unavoidable.

Do I need a permit for live music at my Los Angeles bar?

Yes. Live music, a DJ, or karaoke needs a Cafe Entertainment and Shows permit from the LAPD Board of Police Commissioners, about $993 to apply. If you also let patrons dance, you need a Dance Hall permit instead, and a location that has never held one must first obtain a Conditional Use Entertainment (CUX) entitlement from City Planning at the same fee as the CUB. These are City permits, separate from the ABC license.

Does a pour-only bar in Los Angeles need a county health permit?

Generally no. A bar that serves no food and does no food preparation is not required to hold an LA County food facility permit, which is triggered by food service. A bar with a kitchen, even for simple bar food, does need it, priced by seats and risk. Either way the bar still answers to LAFD fire inspections, LADBS occupancy rules, and the City Planning and LAPD requirements.

What is a PCN and when does my bar need one?

PCN is a Public Convenience or Necessity finding. The state ABC requires one when a bar seeks a Type 42 or Type 48 license in a census tract that is over-concentrated with licenses or high-crime (above 120 percent of the county average). In the City of Los Angeles the finding comes from the City Council, filed with the City Clerk after the CUB is approved. Not every tract needs one, and ABC tells you at application whether yours does.

Official sources

Last verified 2026-06-14. Requirements change. Always confirm with the issuing department before applying.