Who needs a Class C retail alcohol license (liquor, wine and beer on premises) or special class C (beer and wine) in Iowa?
Issued by Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division, Department of Revenue, with your city council or county board as local authority, at step 5 of 6 in the opening sequence: alcohol permits.
Apply through the Division’s online portal; the city council (or county supervisors outside a city) must approve the application before the Division issues the license, and asks for the certificate of occupancy, the floor plan and the food license. Dram shop liability insurance meeting the Division’s minimums is a condition of every license. Iowa has no license cap, so a new license costs only the fee.
Checked Oct 21, 2026 against the agency’s page.
Step 5 of 6: Alcohol permits
1Set up the business
2Register for tax
3Approve the space
4Get the permits for your kind of business
5Alcohol permits
6Before the first hire
Issued by Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division, Department of Revenue, with your city council or county board as local authority.
Sources and dates
Iowa Code 123.36 (2026) and 123.92; Alcoholic Beverages Division license and permit fee page. Checked against the agency’s page on the date shown; cities add their own fees.
Questions about opening here.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
Yes. Apply through the Division’s online portal; the city council (or county supervisors outside a city) must approve the application before the Division issues the license, and asks for the certificate of occupancy, the floor plan and the food license.
Yes. Apply through the Division’s online portal; the city council (or county supervisors outside a city) must approve the application before the Division issues the license, and asks for the certificate of occupancy, the floor plan and the food license.
Yes. Apply through the Division’s online portal; the city council (or county supervisors outside a city) must approve the application before the Division issues the license, and asks for the certificate of occupancy, the floor plan and the food license.
Yes. Apply through the Division’s online portal; the city council (or county supervisors outside a city) must approve the application before the Division issues the license, and asks for the certificate of occupancy, the floor plan and the food license.
Yes. Apply through the Division’s online portal; the city council (or county supervisors outside a city) must approve the application before the Division issues the license, and asks for the certificate of occupancy, the floor plan and the food license.
Yes. Apply through the Division’s online portal; the city council (or county supervisors outside a city) must approve the application before the Division issues the license, and asks for the certificate of occupancy, the floor plan and the food license.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
No. In Iowa it is listed for restaurants, pizza shops, bars, wine bars, cocktail bars and brewery taprooms.
Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division, Department of Revenue, with your city council or county board as local authority.
Step 5 of 6, alcohol permits. The steps before it: set up the business, register for tax, approve the space and get the permits for your kind of business.
Who needs a Class C retail alcohol license or special class C in Iowa?
