CL-9 Licence in Karnataka (2026): Bar Licence Fees, Rules and Routes

A CL-9 is Karnataka's bar licence. The rules call it a refreshment room (bar) licence, and it lets you serve liquor with food on your premises. In Bengaluru it costs ₹11.25 lakh a year in licence fee, under the gazette in force since 1 July 2025, plus an additional licence fee on top.

The fee is the smaller problem. Karnataka issued no new CL-9 licences from 1992 until 2026, so every bar in the state either holds an old licence, bought or leased one, or bid for one at this year's first auction. This guide covers the fee, the three ways to get a licence, where a bar can and can't be, and the rules once you're open.

Key takeaways

• CL-9 fee from 1 July 2025: ₹11.25 lakh a year in Bengaluru, ₹9 lakh in other city corporations, ₹7.5 lakh in city municipal councils and ₹6 lakh elsewhere.
• There's an additional licence fee on top. In 2019 it was 15 percent of the Bengaluru fee. If that still holds, a Bengaluru bar pays about ₹12.9 lakh a year in total.
• New licences are auctioned. Karnataka's 2026 auction (the licences are called CL-9A) opened bidding for Bengaluru bars at ₹1.5 crore, for five years.
• Buying an existing licence costs a transfer fee of three times the annual fee, which is ₹33.75 lakh in Bengaluru, on top of what you pay the holder.
• A bar can't sit within 100 metres of a place of worship, school, hospital or government office, or within 220 metres of the middle of a state or national highway.

What a CL-9 licence lets you do

Karnataka's excise department describes the CL-9 as a licence "for refreshment room (bar) for sale of Indian liquor combined with the supply of meals or eatables". Food isn't optional: a bar that serves only drinks isn't what the licence covers. It's issued by the Deputy Commissioner of the district.

All stock comes from one place. Wholesale liquor in Karnataka is "a monopoly of Karnataka State Beverages Corporation Ltd. (KSBCL)", so you can't negotiate with a private distributor.

And you can't serve anyone under 21. Both rules are on the district excise page the state publishes.

The CL-9 is one of several licence codes. These are the ones a food business is likely to meet:

The CL-9 fee in 2026

These are the yearly CL-9 fees from the Karnataka Gazette of 23 June 2025, in force from 1 July 2025:

Karnataka's excise year runs from 1 July to 30 June, so the fee falls due every July. Since the same gazette, a licence is valid for five excise years, "subject to annual payment of licence fee and additional licence fee at the prevailing rates".

That additional licence fee is the line most fee tables leave out. The 2026 auction notice names it without giving an amount. The last breakdown we found is from 2019, when the New Indian Express reported a Bengaluru CL-9 at ₹7.5 lakh plus ₹1,12,500 of additional fee, which is 15 percent.

At the same 15 percent, today's Bengaluru bill would be about ₹12.9 lakh. That's our estimate, so ask your district excise office for the actual demand.

The ₹11.25 lakh is itself a compromise. The draft of May 2025 doubled the Bengaluru CL-9 fee from ₹8.62 lakh to ₹17.25 lakh, both figures including cess, and Bengaluru's wine merchants answered with a two-day boycott of stock purchases. The final notification raised the base fee by half, from ₹7.5 lakh to ₹11.25 lakh.

Three ways to get a CL-9

Because Karnataka stopped issuing new bar licences in 1992, there's no counter where you can simply apply for one. You have three routes, and each has a different kind of risk.

The auction

The e-auction notification of 1 July 2026 offered unused bar licences as CL-9A for a five-year block, 2026-27 to 2030-31. The Times of India counted 96 bar licences in that round. Every Bengaluru licence opened at ₹1.5 crore, and most in other city corporations at ₹1 crore to ₹1.1 crore.

The terms that matter for a bar owner:

1. A ₹50,000 application fee per licence, not refunded, and an earnest money deposit of 2 percent of the base price.
2. Bids rise in steps of ₹2 lakh, and the winner pays a 0.42 percent transaction fee plus GST.
3. The yearly licence fee is waived for the first year only. From 2027-28 you pay the normal CL-9 fee and the additional licence fee.
4. You can't transfer an auctioned licence to a buyer. Only a legal heir can take it over.
5. Finding the building is your job, and the notice says no extension, concession or refund will be given if you can't.

So line up the site first, ideally with a lease that depends on the licence. A future round will set its own dates, so watch the excise department's notices. What an auctioned licence does to your break-even is worked through in our bar business plan.

Buying an existing licence

Rule 17-B of the Karnataka Excise (General Conditions of Licences) Rules lets an existing licence be transferred, with the Excise Commissioner's sanction. Since 1 July 2025 the transfer fee is three times the annual licence fee, up from twice. In Bengaluru that's ₹33.75 lakh paid to the state, before you pay the holder anything.

What the holder charges isn't published anywhere official. In 2019 the New Indian Express, quoting unnamed sources, put the price of a Bengaluru CL-9 at ₹2 crore to ₹2.5 crore, paid through brokers. Treat that as a sign of the scale, not a current price. Before you pay, get the licence's fee and dues history from the excise office, because unpaid dues or pending cases against the licence can hold up the transfer.

Leasing

The Hindu reported in December 2025 that, with no fresh licences available, existing ones "are being leased out by licence holders at premium rates".

Here's our view: this is the riskiest route, even though it's the cheapest to start. The rules provide for transfer and for inheritance. We found nothing in them that provides for a lease, so the licence stays in someone else's name. If the holder falls out with you, sells, or misses a fee, your bar can stop trading. If you lease anyway, have a lawyer draft it and make sure fees are paid directly and on time.

Where a bar can be

Location is where many bar plans fail. The state's rule, as its district excise page sets it out, is that no licence shall be granted to premises "within a distance of 100 metres from any religious or educational institution or Hospital or any office of the State Government or Central Government or Local Authorities", or in a residential locality where most residents belong to Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes. Premises also can't be "within a distance of 220 metres from the middle of the State Highway or National Highways".

The rule has exceptions. The Deputy Commissioner can allow a location closer than 100 metres, but not under 50 metres, in some cases. Don't plan around an exception. Measure the distances yourself before you sign anything, and ask the range excise office to confirm.

Pick the site carefully the first time, because moving is now expensive. Since 1 July 2025, shifting a licence to new premises under rule 23 costs the full annual licence fee, up from half of it. In Bengaluru that's ₹11.25 lakh.

The rules once you're open

Hours. Bars in Bengaluru can stay open until 1 am, under a July 2024 government order. Outside Bengaluru, confirm your hours with the district excise office.

Dry days. The state's list includes Gandhi Jayanti, polling day and the day before it, and counting day. Put them in your staff and stock calendar.

Who you can't serve. Under the state's rules, that includes anyone under 21, anyone who appears drunk, and excise officials, police officers and bus drivers who are on duty or in uniform.

Penalties. Section 36 of the Karnataka Excise Act covers a licensee who breaches licence conditions, allows "drunkenness, disorderly conduct or gaming", or serves someone who is drunk. Many breaches can be settled by paying compensation of ₹5,000 to ₹50,000 under section 45. Illegal import, transport or possession of liquor under section 32 carries up to five years in jail and a fine of up to ₹50,000.

Stock records. Every peg you sell came out of KSBCL stock, so an inspector can compare what you bought with what you billed. Track it by the peg, not the bottle; pour cost explains how.

The other licences a bar needs

The CL-9 doesn't replace the licences every food business needs. You'll also need FSSAI registration (fees here), a trade licence from your city (Bengaluru's fees for bars are in our BBMP trade license guide), Shops and Establishments registration with the labour department, GST for the food side of your bill, and often a fire NOC. Playing music needs PPL and IPRS licences, and a bar pays their bar rates, which start at ₹75,000 a year from PPL in a big city; see PPL license for restaurants and bars. Liquor itself is outside GST and carries state excise and VAT, so your bill shows the two separately; see GST on restaurant food.

FAQ

What is a CL-9 licence in Karnataka?

It's Karnataka's refreshment room (bar) licence, issued by the district's Deputy Commissioner under the Karnataka Excise Act. It allows liquor to be sold for drinking on the premises together with meals or snacks. All liquor must be bought through KSBCL, the state's wholesale monopoly, and nobody under 21 can be served.

What is the CL-9 licence fee in Bangalore?

₹11,25,000 a year from 1 July 2025, under the Karnataka Gazette of 23 June 2025, for city corporations with over 20 lakh people. An additional licence fee is charged on top; in 2019 it was 15 percent. Other city corporations pay ₹9 lakh, city municipal councils ₹7.5 lakh and other areas ₹6 lakh.

Can I get a new CL-9 licence in Karnataka?

Only through the state's e-auction. Karnataka stopped granting new bar licences in 1992, and in 2026 it began auctioning unused ones as CL-9A for five-year terms. Bengaluru bidding opened at ₹1.5 crore. Otherwise, you can buy an existing licence by transfer, paying a fee of three times the annual licence fee.

Can a CL-9 licence be transferred?

An existing CL-9 can be transferred under rule 17-B with the Excise Commissioner's sanction. The fee is three times the annual licence fee, which is ₹33.75 lakh in Bengaluru. A licence can also pass to a legal heir. A CL-9A won at the 2026 auction can't be transferred to a buyer, only to a legal heir.

How far must a bar be from a school or temple in Karnataka?

At least 100 metres from any religious or educational institution, hospital or government office, and 220 metres from the middle of a state or national highway. The Deputy Commissioner can relax the 100 metres down to 50 metres in some cases. Measure the distances yourself and have the excise office confirm before you sign a lease.

What to do next

Decide which route you're taking before you look at sites: auction, transfer or lease. Then shortlist premises that clear the 100-metre and highway rules, and get the full yearly demand, licence fee plus additional fee, from your district excise office in writing. Put both numbers into your bar business plan before you bid or pay a premium.

When the bar is open, every extra round helps cover that licence. Book a short dineomAI demo to see guests order their next drink from the table, with each peg tracked against stock.