How to Get a Liquor License for a Bar in Wyoming: Local Application Steps, $300 to $1,500 Fee, Residency and Lease Rules and the 12-Month Open Deadline

October 29, 2026

If you plan to open a bar in Wyoming, the liquor license is the step that takes the most planning, and the state does not issue it. Retail liquor licenses come from the city or town council inside an incorporated place, or from the county commissioners outside one (W.S. 12-4-201). The state Liquor Division sells spirits and wine at wholesale, but it does not license your bar. Your real application goes to the city or county clerk where the premises are located.

This guide covers the local process in order, the qualifications you must meet, the fees, and the deadlines that catch new owners. It is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Liquor law depends on local ordinances and your specific facts, so talk with a Wyoming attorney and a CPA before you sign a lease or buy an existing license.

What You Need Before You Apply

Gather these materials before you contact the clerk. Missing items are the most common reason applications stall.

• A Wyoming entity, usually an LLC, registered with the Secretary of State and qualified to do business in Wyoming. An out-of-state individual cannot hold a retail liquor license, but a Wyoming LLC can.
• Either a building you own or a lease that expressly allows alcohol sales. A general commercial lease that says nothing about alcohol does not meet the test.
• The building location and plans showing the layout of the premises.
• Age and residence information for every owner, plus a complete felony and alcohol-law conviction history.
• Proof that the entity is in good standing with the Secretary of State, which means a current annual report.
• Funds for the local annual license fee, which is set locally and payable in advance. Ask the clerk for the exact amount.
• A written operating plan showing how the bar will stay open 12 months a year, or three months if the licensing authority treats it as seasonal.
• A Department of Revenue sales and use tax license, which any bar making taxable sales needs.

How the System Works in Three Points

Wyoming liquor law is in Title 12 of the statutes. Three rules shape everything else in the process.

• Local authority decides. The city or town council decides applications inside city limits. The county commissioners decide outside them.
• There is a quota. Retail liquor licenses are population-quota licenses. Some commercial sites say Wyoming has no quota, but the statute sets one. Quota caps are maximums, not open slots, so ask the clerk how many licenses are actually available before you commit to a location.
• The license is one year. A liquor license is a one-year personal privilege (W.S. 12-4-106), so it must be renewed every year.

Step-by-Step: Applying for a Retail Liquor License

Step 1: Form your entity and confirm the name

Most bar owners form an LLC through WyoBiz at https://wyobiz.wyo.gov/Business/RegistrationInstr.aspx. The Articles of Organization filing fee is $100, and an online filing is active as soon as it is completed. Before you file, search the name on the WyoBiz business search at https://wyobiz.wyo.gov/Business/FilingSearch.aspx. The name must include 'Limited Liability Company' or an accepted abbreviation such as 'LLC'. Entity names beginning with the letter A must be filed on paper, not online.

If you need to hold a name while you line up a location, an LLC name reservation costs $60 and lasts 120 days. It is paper only, with no online option.

Your entity must also have a registered agent with a physical Wyoming street address, including any suite number. A drop box does not qualify. A PO box is accepted only in addition to a physical address.

Step 2: Secure the premises and the lease

Read the lease before you sign it. It must expressly allow alcohol sales. If the landlord's form is silent, ask for a written amendment that names alcohol sales. Add a clause that makes the lease contingent on your liquor license approval, so you are not paying rent on a space you cannot use.

Confirm zoning and building requirements with the city or county that governs the site. Counties handle land use, building, septic and liquor matters outside city limits. Do this before the clerk's hearing, because a zoning problem can end an application.

Step 3: Confirm the quota and choose the license type

Ask the city clerk two questions: how many retail liquor licenses are open, and what the annual fee is. The clerk's answer, not the maximum in a table, tells you whether you can get a license.

Wyoming offers several license types, and the choice affects your business model:

• Retail liquor license for a bar, tavern or package store. The annual fee is set locally between $300 and $1,500, payable in advance (W.S. 12-4-201(e)).
• Bar and grill license (W.S. 12-4-413). It costs $1,500 to $10,500, requires a food service permit, and has its own population-based quota. It cannot be sold, transferred or assigned, so it has no resale value.
• County malt-only permit. Outside incorporated places, county malt-only permits cost $100 to $1,500 (W.S. 12-4-201(f) and (h)).

Step 4: File the sworn application with the clerk

The applicant files under oath with the clerk (W.S. 12-4-102). The application asks for the building location or plans, the ages and residence of the applicants, and any felony or alcohol-law conviction history. Answer every question completely. An omitted conviction can cause more trouble than the conviction itself, and the clerk can verify it.

Each owner's information must be accurate. Ask the clerk whether the authority needs a separate form for each member or officer of the entity.

Step 5: Publish notice and prepare for any protest

The clerk publishes notice once a week for two consecutive weeks (W.S. 12-4-104). Neighbors, competitors and others can protest the application. Protests are heard at a meeting of the licensing authority, so you should plan to attend in person. Ask the clerk whether any publication or processing charges apply to your application, because the answer is set locally.

Expect the timeline to depend on the clerk's publication schedule and the council or commission's meeting calendar. Ask for the expected hearing date at your first meeting.

Step 6: Attend the hearing and pay the annual fee

The licensing authority considers your application at a public meeting. If it approves the application, pay the annual fee, which the city or county sets between $300 and $1,500 for a retail liquor license. Fees are payable in advance. Keep the receipt and the license document, and calendar the renewal date.

Step 7: Obtain the other licenses that sit beside it

Your liquor license is one permit among several. Wyoming has no general statewide business license, so the rest come from the state agencies and the city.

• Sales and use tax license. A bar makes taxable sales, so it needs one from the Department of Revenue, Excise Tax Division. The application carries a $60 non-refundable fee. Register at https://excise-tax-div.wyo.gov/salesuselodging-tax/salesuselodging-registration.
• City business license. Ask the city clerk whether your city requires a separate business license in addition to the liquor license. Counties issue no business licenses.
• Food service permit. A bar and grill must hold one. Confirm the agency, fee and inspection process with the Department of Agriculture's Consumer Health Services before you plan your kitchen.
• Fire and electrical inspections. Confirm inspection requirements with the Department of Fire Prevention and Electrical Safety and your local fire authority. The state licenses electrical trades, and contractors are licensed city by city. Wyoming has no state contractor, plumber or HVAC license.
• Workers' compensation. Accommodation and food services is a compulsory industry. Coverage comes from the state fund run by the Department of Workforce Services. Sole proprietors, partners, officers and LLC members are excluded unless they elect coverage.
• Trade name registration. If the bar will operate under a name other than the LLC's name, register it with the Secretary of State, not the county clerk. The fee is $100 for a 10-year term. Trade name applications are mail-only and notarized. Form: https://sos.wyo.gov/forms/business/tn/tn-registrationapplication.pdf.

Wyoming has no state income tax and no corporate income tax, so there is no state income tax withholding to set up. Federal withholding still applies to your employees.

Step 8: Open within one year and stay open

The business must open within one year of licensing, with one more year allowed for good cause. Once open, it must stay operational 12 months a year, or three months if the authority treats it as seasonal. Missing these requirements can put the license at risk, so write the opening schedule into your build-out timeline from day one.

Buying an Existing License or Moving a Bar

Licenses can change hands, but each change requires local action. A move of premises requires a public hearing and an extra fee of up to $100. A sale to another qualified person requires local approval after a hearing and a transfer fee of up to $100 (W.S. 12-4-601 and 12-2-306). The transfer is blocked if the seller is 60 or more days delinquent on sales tax.

Asking prices for licenses vary widely from town to town. Check local listings and ask the clerk about recent transfers in your area. Do not rely on a single published price, and treat any license purchase as a transaction that needs an attorney's review.

Taxes on Alcohol and Sales

The state sales tax is 4%, with county option taxes and resort district taxes on top. There is no city sales tax. County rates change quarterly, so check the Department of Revenue rate chart at https://excise-tax-div.wyo.gov/ and date any rate you record. As of October 29, 2026, use the chart as your source for current county rates.

Alcohol is taxable, and so are meals and prepared food. State excise taxes apply to alcohol under W.S. 12-3-101: $0.0075 per 100 ml for wine, $0.025 per 100 ml for spirits and $0.005 per liter for malt. Confirm with the Liquor Division how excise is collected and remitted for your purchases. Wyoming issues no resale certificate. When you buy inventory for resale, you give your supplier a signed certificate.

Special Permits and Skill Games

If you host events outside your regular service, a 24-hour malt permit or catering permit may fit. These cost $10 to $50 per 24 hours, and they require no public notice or hearing. Each premises may receive at most 12 malt permits and 36 catering permits a year. Catering permits go only to retail or resort retail license holders (W.S. 12-4-502).

A premises licensed for on-premises alcohol sales is an eligible establishment for skill games. Confirm the current rules before you plan machines.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Assuming there is no quota. The statute sets one. Ask the clerk about open slots before you sign anything.
• Naming an out-of-state individual as the applicant. Use a Wyoming entity qualified to do business in Wyoming.
• Signing a lease that does not expressly allow alcohol. Silence in the lease is not permission.
• Missing the opening deadline. The business must open within one year, with one more year on good cause.
• Letting the annual report lapse. The annual report costs $60 minimum and is due the first day of the anniversary month. Nonpayment within 60 days of the due date leads to administrative dissolution.
• Using a PO box as the registered agent address. You need a physical Wyoming street address.
• Looking for a county business license. Counties issue none. Cities and towns may.
• Buying a license from a seller who is delinquent on sales tax. A seller 60 or more days delinquent blocks the transfer.
• Forgetting workers' compensation. Accommodation and food services is compulsory.
• Assuming a state permit covers everything. Wyoming has no general business license, and your city clerk is the next stop.

Practical Tips Before You Begin

• Call the city clerk first. Ask about open slots, the annual fee, publication charges, the hearing calendar and any local ordinance that sets hours or distance requirements.
• Make the lease contingent on license approval, and do not start a build-out before the hearing.
• Choose the license type with the resale question in mind. A retail license can be sold with local approval, but a bar and grill license cannot be transferred.
• Gather complete conviction histories for every owner before you file, and check them against the clerk's form.
• Keep your annual report, sales tax account and liquor license renewal dates on one calendar.

Expected Results

A complete, accurate application may move through the process more smoothly, and it often reduces back-and-forth with the clerk. Protests, publication schedules and quota availability can add time, so you may not be able to open on the date in your business plan. If the application is approved, the license typically lets you sell alcohol only at the premises and for the term it covers, subject to annual renewal and any local conditions. Results depend on your city or county and your facts, so treat any timeline you read online, including this one, as an estimate.

Official Resources

• Wyoming Secretary of State, Business Division: https://sos.wyo.gov/
• WyoBiz filing portal: https://wyobiz.wyo.gov/Business/RegistrationInstr.aspx
• WyoBiz business search: https://wyobiz.wyo.gov/Business/FilingSearch.aspx
• Wyoming Department of Revenue, Excise Tax Division: https://excise-tax-div.wyo.gov/
• Wyoming SBDC Network: https://www.wyomingsbdc.org/
• SBA resources for Wyoming: https://www.sba.gov/district/wyoming

Disclaimer: This article is informational content only. It is not legal, tax or financial advice, and it does not create an attorney-client or accountant-client relationship. Wyoming liquor law, tax rates and fees change, and local ordinances control many details. Confirm every figure with the agency or clerk named above, and consult a qualified Wyoming attorney and CPA for your situation before you apply.