A hospitality business almost always needs more than one permit. If you serve alcohol, you need an alcohol licence from the mayor. In many municipalities you also need an operating licence, and for a terrace often a terrace permit.
The rules on alcohol are national and are set out in the Alcohol Act (Alcoholwet). The rest differs per municipality. With every application the municipality can look into who is behind the business and where the money comes from. This is called a Bibob screening.
In short
- Without an alcohol licence you may not serve alcohol. Managers are at least 21, hold a Social Hygiene diploma and are listed in the annex to the licence. If none of them is on the premises, you may not be open.
- Serving alcohol to someone under 18 costs a business with fewer than 50 employees a fine of € 1,665 (as at 1 January 2026). For a repeat within twelve months, 50% or 100% is added.
- Operating licence, terrace and rules on opening hours differ per municipality. With an application the municipality can carry out a Bibob screening, including into how your business is financed.
In this article
- Which permits do you need for a hospitality business?
- When do you need an alcohol licence, and who can get one?
- Why must a manager from the annex always be on the premises?
- What does it cost if you serve alcohol to someone under 18?
- How often does the age check go wrong?
- What is an operating licence, and why does it differ per municipality?
- Do you need a terrace permit?
- What is a Bibob screening, and what does the municipality want to know?
Which permits do you need for a hospitality business?
That depends on what you do and where your business is. First you check whether your plan fits the omgevingsplan, the municipality's rules on what is allowed where. If you are going to renovate, you may need an environmental permit (Ondernemersplein, step-by-step plan for starting a hospitality business).
For restaurants and cafés the municipality often requires an operating licence. If you serve alcohol, you also need an alcohol licence. An operating licence on its own does not allow you to serve alcohol (Ondernemersplein, step-by-step plan for starting a hospitality business).
If you make or sell food, you register with the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA). If you play music, you need permission from the makers through BumaStemra and Sena. For a gaming machine you apply for a permit from the municipality (Ondernemersplein, step-by-step plan for starting a hospitality business).
When do you need an alcohol licence, and who can get one?
As soon as you serve or sell alcohol in your business. The Alcohol Act prohibits running a hospitality business without a licence from the mayor (Alcohol Act, article 3). You apply for the licence from your municipality, which also sets the fee (Ondernemersplein, selling alcohol).
The law sets requirements for the managers of the business. They are at least 21, of good conduct and not under guardianship. They also have knowledge of social hygiene, meaning responsible serving of alcohol, and are registered in the Social Hygiene Register (Alcohol Act, article 8).
Were you already in that register before 1 July 2023? Then you must reconfirm your registration before 1 July 2028 to be included in the new register (Ondernemersplein, selling alcohol). Put that date in the diary for every manager in your business.
The premises count too. A hospitality business has at least one public room of at least 35 square metres. For a listed national monument the mayor can make an exception (Alcohol Act, article 10). The licence states the location, the rooms and the terraces where you may serve (Alcohol Act, article 29).
Why must a manager from the annex always be on the premises?
Because the law prohibits being open without such a person. The licence comes with an annex, an appendix listing the names of the managers. If no one on that list is on the premises, the business may not be open to the public (Alcohol Act, articles 24 and 29).
If you hire a new manager, you notify the mayor. That notification counts as an application to add the person to the annex (Alcohol Act, article 30a). Once the mayor has confirmed receipt, the new manager may already be in charge while the application is pending (Alcohol Act, article 24).
The mayor refuses to add the person if they do not meet the requirements, or on the basis of the Bibob Act (Alcohol Act, article 30a). If the business no longer matches the licence on another point, for example a different layout of the rooms, you report it within one month (Alcohol Act, article 30).
A forgotten notification is no small matter. The mayor withdraws the licence if the licence holder has failed to make a required notification of a change (Alcohol Act, article 31).
What does it cost if you serve alcohol to someone under 18?
A fine of € 1,665 for a business with fewer than 50 employees, and € 3,345 for a larger business. These are the amounts as at 1 January 2026 (Alcohol Decree, annex I). The mayor imposes the fine (Alcohol Act, article 44a).
The law prohibits giving alcohol to anyone whose age of 18 or over has not been established. A drink for an adult is also prohibited if it is clearly meant for a minor (Alcohol Act, article 20). So when in doubt, ask for proof of identity (Ondernemersplein, selling alcohol).
The fine rises for repeat offences. If you were already fined for the same offence within twelve months, 50% is added. After two or more earlier fines, 100% is added (Alcohol Decree, article 7.3). Being open without a manager costs € 1,250. Serving without having applied for a licence costs € 1,665 (Alcohol Decree, annex I).
Besides a fine, the mayor can suspend the licence for up to 12 weeks, or withdraw it, if you do not comply with the rules (Alcohol Act, articles 31 and 32). Staff under 16 may not work in the room where you serve alcohol while drinks are being served (Alcohol Act, article 24).
How often does the age check go wrong?
For a long time, more often than not. In Dutch research with young test buyers, only 28.2% of sellers refused alcohol to a minor in 2011. In 2013 it was 46.5%. The study covered 2,737 attempts at supermarkets, off-licences, takeaways, bars, sports bars and delivery services, among others (Van Hoof and others, 2015).
Since 2014 an age limit of 18 has applied to all alcohol. In test purchases by 15-year-olds, the share of sellers who refused rose from 46.5% in 2013 to 55.7% in 2014 and 73.9% in 2016. The study covered 1,770 attempts in shops and hospitality venues together (Schelleman-Offermans and others, 2017).
These figures cover all types of outlets together, not just hospitality. They show that age checks in the Netherlands often went wrong, and that they improved within a few years. Even in 2016, more than a quarter of the 15-year-old test buyers were still sold alcohol.
What is an operating licence, and why does it differ per municipality?
An operating licence is a permit from the municipality to run a hospitality business. In many municipalities you need one when you start a café or restaurant, take over a hospitality business or expand your premises. Each municipality decides which conditions you must meet (Ondernemersplein, operating licence for a hospitality business).
If something changes in your business, such as the legal form, a terrace or gaming machines, you usually have to amend the licence or apply again (Ondernemersplein, operating licence for a hospitality business). If you move from a sole proprietorship to a private limited company, check your permits as well.
Municipalities may also set their own rules on alcohol. They can restrict serving by type of business, by area or by time. They can also keep out visitors below a certain age, with 21 as the highest limit (Alcohol Act, articles 25a and 25b). So read your own municipality's bye-law.
Closing times are not a detail. Norwegian research in 18 cities found that each hour that bars were allowed to stay open later was associated with about 16% more police-recorded assaults in the city centre on weekend nights. Closing an hour earlier was associated with a decrease of the same size (Rossow and Norström, 2012). It is an association in Norwegian cities between 2000 and 2010, not a forecast for your street.
Do you need a terrace permit?
That differs per municipality. Sometimes a notification is enough, sometimes you need a permit. If the terrace is on municipal land, you pay precariobelasting, a municipal tax for using public land (Ondernemersplein, terrace permit).
A new or larger terrace can also affect your other permits. The alcohol licence states the terraces where you may serve (Alcohol Act, article 29). If the terrace no longer matches the licence, you report it within one month (Alcohol Act, article 30).
Some municipalities work with a terrace season. Without a season the terrace may stay all year. Your guests may smoke on an outdoor terrace if it meets the conditions, such as being completely open on one side (Ondernemersplein, terrace permit).
What is a Bibob screening, and what does the municipality want to know?
A Bibob screening is an investigation into your integrity. The municipality checks whether there is a serious risk that the licence will be used to benefit from criminal money or to commit offences. If so, the municipality can refuse or withdraw the licence (Bibob Act, article 3).
With the application you then fill in a questionnaire. This is mandatory (Ondernemersplein, Bibob integrity screening). The municipality may ask, among other things, how your business is financed (Bibob Act, article 7a). So record in advance where the money for the takeover, the fittings or the renovation comes from, for example your own funds, a bank loan or a loan from family.
The municipality can also request information from the justice system, the police and the Tax Administration, about you and your business relations (Ondernemersplein, Bibob integrity screening). If the municipality has doubts, it can ask the National Bibob Office for advice. That advice comes within eight weeks, with an extension of at most four weeks (Bibob Act, article 15).
You cannot object to the advice of the office. You can object to the decision of the municipality, within 6 weeks (Ondernemersplein, Bibob integrity screening). Allow for that time in your planning for a takeover or opening.
Sources
- Alcohol Act (Alcoholwet), articles 3, 8, 10, 20, 24, 25a, 25b, 29, 30, 30a, 31, 32 and 44a, text in force from 12 February 2025, accessed 29 October 2026. wetten.overheid.nl
- Alcohol Decree (Alcoholbesluit), article 7.3 and annex I (amounts as at 1 January 2026), text in force from 1 January 2026, accessed 29 October 2026. wetten.overheid.nl
- Public Administration Probity Screening Act (Wet Bibob), articles 3, 7a and 15, text in force from 16 July 2025, accessed 29 October 2026. wetten.overheid.nl
- Ondernemersplein (RVO), Step-by-step plan for starting a hospitality business (Stappenplan horecabedrijf starten), accessed 29 October 2026. ondernemersplein.overheid.nl
- Ondernemersplein (RVO), Selling alcohol (Alcohol verkopen), checked 1 August 2025, accessed 29 October 2026. ondernemersplein.overheid.nl
- Ondernemersplein (RVO), Applying for an operating licence for a hospitality business (Exploitatievergunning horecabedrijf aanvragen), checked 10 July 2026, accessed 29 October 2026. ondernemersplein.overheid.nl
- Ondernemersplein (RVO), Applying for a terrace permit (Terrasvergunning aanvragen), checked 8 June 2026, accessed 29 October 2026. ondernemersplein.overheid.nl
- Ondernemersplein (RVO), Bibob integrity screening (Integriteitsscreening Wet Bibob), checked 10 July 2025, accessed 29 October 2026. ondernemersplein.overheid.nl
- Van Hoof, J.J., Roodbeen, R.T.J., Krokké, J., Gosselt, J.F. and Schelleman-Offermans, K. (2015). Alcohol sales to underage buyers in the Netherlands in 2011 and 2013. Journal of Adolescent Health, 56(4), 468-470. doi.org
- Schelleman-Offermans, K., Roodbeen, R.T.J. and Lemmens, P.H.H.M. (2017). Increased minimum legal age for the sale of alcohol in the Netherlands as of 2014: The effect on alcohol sellers' compliance after one and two years. International Journal of Drug Policy, 49, 8-14. doi.org
- Rossow, I. and Norström, T. (2012). The impact of small changes in bar closing hours on violence. The Norwegian experience from 18 cities. Addiction, 107(3), 530-537. doi.org