Production and wholesale of alcoholic beverages
In accordance with the Alcohol Act, the production of alcoholic beverages for commercial purposes and the wholesale of alcoholic beverages are activities subject to a licence. Commercial production and wholesale are allowed only for actors possessing a production licence granted by Valvira for that purpose.
The term ‘production of alcoholic beverages’ refers to the production of ethyl alcohol by fermentation or other means and the concentration of a solution containing ethyl alcohol by distillation or other similar means. The further processing or packaging of an alcoholic beverage produced elsewhere is also considered to be the production of an alcoholic beverage. A production licence also includes the right to wholesale the products.
The term ‘wholesale of alcoholic beverages’ refers to the selling of alcoholic beverages for resale or further processing. A wholesale licence for alcoholic beverages entitles the holder to the import of alcohol.
Valvira grants production or wholesale licences on application. For instructions on how to apply, see the Applying for a production or wholesale licence for alcoholic beverages page. A granted licence is valid until further notice unless the applicant has applied for a fixed-term permit or the activity is of a temporary nature. A licence may also be granted for a fixed term if Valvira has a justified reason to grant a temporary licence to monitor the requirements or effects of an applicant’s activity subject to a licence. A licence valid until further notice remains valid as long as the licence holder is deemed to be compliant with the requirements for the production or a wholesale licence. The licence will expire when the licence holder submits a notification of the termination of the licence/activity.
While the production or wholesale licence is valid, the licence holder is obligated to ensure that they have the prerequisites and the reliability required for the activity. If necessary, Valvira may revoke the production licence either for a set period or permanently without any compensation to the licence holder if the provisions, regulations, restrictions or conditions laid down are not complied with, or the licence holder is deemed to have lost the prerequisites for being granted the licence or their reliability.
Production licence for teaching or research purposes
Valvira may grant a production licence for alcoholic beverages for teaching or research purposes. Alcoholic beverages produced for teaching and research purposes may only be used in the analysis of the product and its quality control.
Home production of alcoholic beverages
Private persons have the right to make mild alcoholic beverages at home, but solely through the process of fermentation. Alcoholic beverages produced in a household are intended for private use only and may not be sold or served in connection with any commercial activities or at events subject to a charge.
Valvira supervises the production of alcoholic beverages through measures such as supervisory inspections, market surveillance, sampling, and document and register reviews. Both planned supervision, based on a risk assessment, and reactive supervision are used. The importance of the self-monitoring of licence holders is emphasised. A company must prepare a self-monitoring plan that describes the measures taken to guarantee the alcoholic beverages’ product safety.
Manufacturers of alcoholic beverages are obligated to report the products they produce in Valvira’s product register. The manufacturers of alcoholic beverages must report the production volumes three times per year and alcohol sales monthly to Valvira.
Wholesalers of alcoholic beverages are obligated to report imported products to Valvira’s product register. Alcohol sales must be reported monthly to Valvira.
Valvira charges a fee for inspections under the Food Act and the Act on Organic Production in accordance with the following price list:
| Inspections under the Food Act and the Act on Organic Production | EUR |
|---|---|
Organic production inspection |
160 |
| Alcoholic beverage storage (< 200 square metres), wholesale | 150 |
| Alcoholic beverage storage (< 200 square metres), wholesale and import | 200 |
| Alcoholic beverage storage (> 200 square metres), wholesale and import | 300 |
| Alcoholic beverage manufacturing site, production under 1 million litres | 200 |
| Alcoholic beverage manufacturing site, production 1–10 million litres | 300 |
| Alcoholic beverage manufacturing site, production over 10 million litres | 400 |
Valvira collects an annual control fee for the supervision of the production and wholesale of alcoholic beverages. The control fee period is from 1 September to 31 August. The fee is determined in accordance with the appendix of the Alcohol Act and comprises a fixed base fee and a surcharge based on the extent of the activity. The base fee is collected from licence holders whose licence is valid during the control fee period in question even if no licence-based activities were carried out. The base fee does not apply to the licence holder’s first billable year of operation (from 1 September to 31 August); the fee is only charged on the basis of actual manufacturing/delivery information. Still, a control fee of less than EUR 10 will not be charged in this case.
Control fee for manufacturing
The base fee per licence holder is EUR 390. If the licence holder has more than one manufacturing site, a base fee of EUR 190 is charged for each additional manufacturing site. The surcharge based on the scope of operations is EUR 2.80 per manufactured 1,000 litres of 100-proof alcohol. However, the maximum fee per licence holder is EUR 18,000.
Control fee for wholesale
The base fee per licence holder is EUR 250. If the licence holder has more than one warehousing site, a fee of EUR 95 is charged for each additional warehousing site. The amount of the surcharge based on the scope of operations is determined on the basis of the number of rows of data reported to Valvira monthly as wholesale delivery information during the control fee period. The data row-based control fee is EUR 0.95 per 10 rows. If the licence holder provides the information necessary for control in a manner approved by the Authority in a file format within the deadline, these fees are reduced by 15%. Still, the charged control fee is at least equal to the base fee. However, the maximum fee per licence holder is EUR 26,500. The annual control fee is not charged from the holder of a wholesale licence that has a limited duration of up to one month.