Bar permits and licenses in Texas

A bar almost always operates through an LLC, which holds the TABC permit and signs the lease. TABC issues the permit to a legal entity, so the LLC has to exist and be in good standing first. A bar trading under any name other than its exact legal name also files the assumed name certificate below.

Issued by

Texas Secretary of State

Fee

$300 one-time to file Form 205. Card payment through SOSDirect adds about a 2.7 percent convenience fee, and expedited service is available for an added fee.

Renewal

One-time to form the entity; the LLC then files a franchise tax report each year (see below).

Processing

A few business days online through SOSDirect, faster with the expedite fee

A bar LLC pouring under any name other than its exact legal name files this certificate, so "Eastside Hospitality LLC" operating as "The Lonesome Dove" needs one. Because a bar is a registered entity, it files only with the Secretary of State, not the county clerk. The filing is public notice of the trade name and grants no trademark or priority rights.

Issued by

Texas Secretary of State (for LLCs and other registered entities)

Fee

$25 to file Form 503 with the Secretary of State. Card payment adds about a 2.7 percent convenience fee.

Renewal

Up to 10 years per filing, then refiled if the trade name is still in use

Processing

A few business days for a standard SOSDirect filing

A bar registers for this permit before its first sale. It covers food and non-alcohol sales at ordinary state and local sales tax, and for a beer-and-wine bar it also covers the alcohol. A full-liquor bar is different: its drink sales fall under the separate mixed beverage taxes below rather than ordinary sales tax, but the permit is still required and the TABC application checks for it.

Issued by

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Fee

$0 (free). The Comptroller may require a security bond in some cases.

Renewal

No expiration while you file the returns you are assigned

Processing

About 2 to 3 weeks when you register online through eSystems

The full-liquor bar license, authorizing spirits, cocktails, wine, and beer for on-premise drinking. The defining bar fact is that Texas does not require a bar to serve food to hold it, so an alcohol-primary bar runs the Mixed Beverage Permit without a Food and Beverage Certificate, the exact reverse of how a restaurant uses the same permit. That one choice drives the conduct surety bond, the two mixed beverage taxes, and the 51 percent sign below.

Issued by

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC)

Fee

$5,300 for the original two-year permit and $2,650 at each renewal, a flat renewal rate. State fees only; the local city or county certification and fees are separate and covered on your city page.

Renewal

Every 2 years

Processing

About 30 to 45 days for a complete AIMS application, plus a 60-day sign posted at a new location before TABC can issue it, so plan on longer

A beer-and-wine bar that pours no spirits can hold this permit instead of the Mixed Beverage Permit at a fraction of the cost. It authorizes beer, ale, malt liquor, and wine for on- and off-premise consumption. The big saving is on tax: a BG bar owes neither mixed beverage tax and simply collects ordinary 8.25 percent sales tax on its drinks. Adding spirits later means moving up to a Mixed Beverage Permit.

Issued by

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC)

Fee

$1,900 for a two-year term in most counties, with higher local fees in Bexar, Dallas, Harris, and Tarrant. Far cheaper than the Mixed Beverage Permit.

Renewal

Every 2 years

Processing

About 30 to 45 days through AIMS, plus the 60-day sign at a new location

A subordinate certificate a food-first establishment adds to its permit, and the one a true bar usually cannot use. To qualify, the business has to be a restaurant or keep alcohol at 60 percent or less of total sales, so an alcohol-primary bar over that line is ineligible. Holding it waives the conduct surety bond and lets a venue skip the red handgun and human trafficking signs, which is exactly why a real bar, unable to hold it, ends up posting both.

Issued by

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC)

Fee

$1,100 for a two-year term, an optional add-on to an MB or BG permit.

Renewal

Every 2 years

Processing

Filed alongside the primary permit

Because a true bar cannot hold a Food and Beverage Certificate, it has to post this bond, which a food-first venue with an FB skips entirely. The school-proximity tier doubles it to $10,000 within 1,000 feet of a public school. This TABC bond is separate from the Comptroller mixed beverage tax bonds described with the taxes below, so a liquor bar can carry two different kinds of bond at once.

Issued by

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC)

Fee

A $5,000 conduct surety bond if the premises is more than 1,000 feet from a public school, or $10,000 within 1,000 feet. A separate $2,000 performance bond also applies to a BG bar without a Food and Beverage Certificate in Bexar, Harris, Dallas, or Tarrant counties.

Renewal

Held continuously while the permit is active, as a bond, letter of credit, or CD

Processing

Submitted with the original license application

A bar holding a Mixed Beverage Permit owes two alcohol taxes that behave differently. The 6.7 percent gross receipts tax is the bar's own cost and never appears on a customer receipt; the 8.25 percent mixed beverage sales tax is charged to the customer and shown on the bill, replacing ordinary sales tax on those drinks. A beer-and-wine bar on a BG permit owes neither and just collects regular sales tax, which is the single biggest tax advantage of pouring only beer and wine.

Issued by

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Fee

A 6.7 percent gross receipts tax the bar pays out of its own receipts and cannot add to the bill, plus an 8.25 percent sales tax charged to the customer, for a combined burden near 14.95 percent on liquor sales. The Comptroller also requires two security bonds, each from $3,750 to $100,000 by tax volume.

Renewal

Both returns are filed monthly, due the 20th

Processing

Ongoing tax obligation

State law does not strictly require every bartender to be certified, but TABC's safe-harbor rule shields the bar from liability for an employee's illegal sale only if that employee was certified at the time, so for a bar this is effectively universal. The course covers Texas alcohol law, spotting intoxication, and checking IDs. TABC approves the private schools that deliver the training rather than teaching it itself.

Issued by

TABC-approved seller training schools; TABC approves and oversees the program

Fee

Set by the TABC-approved provider, commonly $10 to $30 per person online. No flat state fee.

Renewal

Every 2 years

Processing

Usually same day; the course runs a few hours online

This is the credential that marks a venue as a bar in the eyes of the state. An MB or BG holder without a Food and Beverage Certificate that draws 51 percent or more of its gross receipts from on-premise alcohol must post the red handgun warning sign at every entrance, telling licensed handgun carriers they cannot bring a weapon inside, and must also post the human trafficking sign. Misrepresenting the 51 percent status carries a $1,000 administrative penalty for a first offense and revocation risk on repeats. The designation governs the signs and FB eligibility; it does not by itself change whether minors may enter.

Issued by

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC)

Fee

No charge; the sign is provided by TABC or printed to spec.

Renewal

Posted as long as alcohol stays at 51 percent or more of on-premise receipts

Processing

Posted once the establishment meets the criteria

The state authorization to sell and serve alcohol between midnight and 2 a.m. It only does anything if the city or county where the bar sits has locally authorized extended hours, and that local authorization is a separate city or county step covered on your city page. Without the local option in place, the state certificate alone does not let you pour past midnight.

Issued by

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC)

Fee

$1,100 for a two-year term, added to the primary permit.

Renewal

Every 2 years with the primary permit

Processing

Filed with or added to the MB or BG application

Texas does not make a bar carry liquor liability insurance as a condition of its TABC permit, but the exposure is real. Under the Texas Dram Shop Act, a bar can be sued when it serves an obviously intoxicated person who then injures someone, and certified seller-server training that meets the statutory standard supports a safe-harbor defense. Because that liability stands regardless of the insurance question, insurers and industry groups strongly recommend carrying coverage anyway.

Issued by

Not required by TABC; liability arises under the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code Dram Shop provisions. Coverage is bought from a private insurer.

Fee

TABC does not require liquor liability insurance to hold the license. Premiums are set by the insurer if you carry it, and some landlords or cities require it.

Renewal

Annual policy renewal if carried

Processing

Obtained from a private insurer if you choose to carry it

Every Texas LLC owes the franchise tax, so a bar entity files each year even when it owes nothing. A bar under the threshold still files a Public Information Report or Ownership Information Report, since Texas dropped the standalone No Tax Due Report in 2024. With no state income tax in Texas, this is the main ongoing business tax, and not filing because nothing is owed can forfeit the LLC's right to do business.

Issued by

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Fee

$0 to file when annualized revenue is at or below the no-tax-due threshold, which is $2,650,000 for the 2026 and 2027 report years. Above it the rate on taxable margin is 0.375 percent for a bar at the retail rate or 0.75 percent otherwise. A late report draws a $50 penalty even at zero tax.

Renewal

Annual, due May 15

Processing

Immediate when filed online through Webfile

A bar runs on staff, bartenders, barbacks, and security, so it becomes a liable employer fast: once it pays $1,500 or more in wages in a calendar quarter or has an employee in 20 different weeks of a year, it registers with TWC. The employer pays the unemployment tax, not the worker. Texas has no state income tax, so there is no separate state withholding account to open.

Issued by

Texas Workforce Commission (TWC)

Fee

No registration fee. The 2026 new-employer rate is 2.7 percent on the first $9,000 of each worker's wages, until TWC assigns an experience rate.

Renewal

One-time registration; quarterly wage reports and payments follow, including in zero-wage quarters

Processing

Register within 10 days of becoming liable; the account number issues almost immediately

Texas is the only state where a private employer can legally carry no workers' compensation, so a bar may run as a nonsubscriber. The tradeoff is real: a nonsubscriber gives up the contributory negligence, assumption of risk, and fellow-servant defenses in an injured worker's lawsuit, exposure that matters around broken glass, kegs, and late-night crowds. A nonsubscriber still files the annual notice, tells new hires in writing, and reports serious injuries to DWC if it has five or more employees.

Issued by

Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers' Compensation (DWC); coverage is bought from a licensed carrier

Fee

No state fee to elect nonsubscriber status or file the DWC Form-005 notice. If you buy coverage instead, the carrier sets the premium from your payroll and job classes.

Renewal

A nonsubscriber refiles DWC Form-005 each year between February 1 and April 30; a covered employer keeps the policy active and posts the required notice.

Processing

File the nonsubscriber notice within 30 days of hiring your first employee, or within 10 days of canceling existing coverage

Conditional, and only if the bar actually prepares or serves food. A pour-only bar needs neither. Once a bar runs a kitchen or serves food, each food employee needs a food handler card and at least one certified food manager covers the operation under the Texas Food Establishment Rules, and the bar also picks up a local food establishment permit, which is a city or county matter on your city page.

Issued by

Accredited training providers licensed by Texas DSHS; the local health department issues any food establishment permit

Fee

The state charges nothing for the rule; accredited providers set the fees, commonly $7 to $15 for a food handler card and $35 to $100 for a manager certificate. Any local food establishment permit is priced locally.

Renewal

Food handler card every 2 years; certified food manager every 5 years

Processing

Same day for most online courses