The Drinks Association’s National Liquor Licence Database is comprehensive, easy-to-use and offers a consolidated national view of all liquor licence activity. Available to all Category One Members of the Drinks Association, the database can also be accessed on an individual subscription basis.
Constant movement
“Since 1 February, 2025, 1807 new liquor licences have been added across Australia,” explains Matt Mesite, Member Services Manager at the Drinks Association. “For an individual business, it’s a mammoth task to stay across those new additions in a timely manner. That’s not even to mention licences that are transferred, surrendered or suspended.”
“We have a team at the Drinks Association dedicated to tracking all liquor license activity across the country. The database is updated daily so users always have access to the most up-to-date license information.”
Database subscribers can access the database in a range of ways, including via the LicenseDetailSummary.csv file. There is also a user-friendly search page with extensive filters for efficient data extraction or subscribers can access the database through an API.
“It’s really straightforward to access the data,” adds Matt. “We have a range of recurring reports available that accompany the database, such as the weekly license movement report and monthly licence count, as well as the monthly banner movement report and banner count. There’s also a user guide with definitions for each database field, descriptions for licence statuses and various appendices. Our team is also available for technical support as required.”
Data at your fingertips
“We know from feedback from our Category One Members and National Liquor Licence Database subscribers that this is a really valuable service,” adds Kylie Le Lievre, Marketing & Membership Manager at the Drinks Association.
“The feedback also tells us that our users all utilise the data in different ways and integrate it into their businesses to varying degrees. That’s the beauty of the database – you’ve got all the data you need at your fingertips and can use it in the way that makes most sense for your business.”
Some of the ways we know users put the National Liquor Licence Database to work include:
- matching liquor licence numbers with retail banner groups to reconcile wholesaler claims and rebates
- integrating into customer master data systems to streamline operations and ensure accuracy
- supporting daily tasks such as managing deals, processing claims and store reporting
- identifying and resolving duplicate records in ERP systems.
- enabling real-time licence verification during customer onboarding and order processing
- enriching reporting platforms (e.g. Tableau) with accurate customer and licence data
- monitoring active licence status and tracking name or ownership changes for compliance
- maintaining a single source of truth for store ID, name, location and licence details
- analysing location data to support retail expansion and e-commerce setup
- keeping banner membership records up to date for accurate internal and external reporting
If you're interested in gaining access to the National Liquor Licence and Retail Banner databases or subscribing individually to services, please reach out to Kylie Le Lievre, kyliel@drinks.asn.au.