Standard Additional Liquor Licensing Conditions HK

In this part I’m going to talk about the standard licensing conditions that are imposed on liquor licenses.

In fact, these are ‘additional licensing conditions’ in a way because the general position on any liquor licence is that there should be no conditions attached to it in law.

Once you get a liquor licence you should just have permission to sell liquor. There should be no need for anything additional to be added, but historically, it’s become the case that the Liquor Licensing Board has decided to impose what they call ‘standard licensing conditions’.

It’s an area that’s not talked about very much, but these are actually found on the reverse of a liquor licence; they’re actually printed on the back. 

Most licensees don’t pay much attention to them because when they get their liquor licence they frame it up, and you can’t even see the back. The problem with that is the classic ‘out of sight, out of mind’.

I’m going to run through 14 of them and I’m going to make some short comments on their ‘validity’, what they mean, and perhaps let’s see how far we get on how a licensee can comply or not with them. 

Condition 1. No disorder shall be permitted on the premises.

No disorder shall be permitted on the premises, well in law to permit something you have to allow it to happen. So, if you are allowing people to behave in a disorderly way on your premises, then there’s no doubt about it, you’re permitting disorder. 

I don’t know quite under what circumstances a licensee would want to do that but it seems to be that the condition is targeted at creating some type of positive duty on the licensee to try to stop disorder from happening; in other words not just stand by and let it happen. 

In that case, if an event of disorder starts to take place on the premises and that could be customers yelling at each other, pushing each other around or at worst fighting, it would seem to be the case the condition is targeted at making the licensee somewhat obligated to try and stop it and try and control it, rather than just stand by and let it happen. Which would no doubt be able to be at least asserted to be permitted. 

Of course, jumping in the middle of a fight, yourself, as a liquor licence holder could be the worst possible thing to do, and it could be very dangerous; It is not to say that the duty is to break up every fight personally. 

Condition 2. No person shall be allowed to become drunk on the premises, nor shall liquor be supplied to any person who is drunk. 

It’s essentially two parts; don’t let your customers get drunk, and if customers are drunk, don’t supply any liquor to them.

The first one is simple, obviously, if somebody is incredibly intoxicated, you don’t want them to be on the premises. You shouldn’t have them there in any case, and you shouldn’t be allowing people to get incredibly drunk on your premises. 

But what is drunk? I’ve just used the word incredibly. There is no definition for drunk that I’m aware of and that’s problematic. 

‘Nor shall liquor be supplied to any person who is drunk’  – Well, that’s a little easier. If somebody is obviously heavily intoxicated or incredibly drunk, you should not supply them, you can decline it to sell, and you should decline to sell.

I’m not going to get into what is drunk or not drunk here, it’s far too difficult a concept to cover. I’ll just go so far as saying if somebody has obviously had too much to drink; that might not be a lot in the case of some people, but their behaviour shows you or your staff that they’ve had too much to drink, that’s time. It’s probably time to remove them from the premises, and it’s absolutely time to say ‘No more alcohol for you.’ 

Condition 3. No games of chance shall be played on the premises. 

This is a difficult one because, under the gambling ordinance, there are certain provisions related to games of chance or games of mixed skill and chance. It’s been the subject of a considerable dispute over the years, clearly, people can play mahjong in restaurants and do because that’s the place where they’re allowed to. 

This condition contains some inherent conflict with other legislation in Hong Kong and I’m not so sure if it is one that should be there, or if it’s not appealable or even capable of being asked to be removed. 

The most famous case in Hong Kong concerns a case about a location called the Hong Kong Poker House, and the arguments were whether or not poker is a game of chance. That again was an exceptionally technical argument, and it would suggest that anywhere that has a liquor licence is capable of being acted against if people are playing poker. I have my own views on that, but as I say this section is not designed to give legal advice, it’s just to highlight what you need to pay attention to and be aware of. 

Condition 4. The licensee shall personally supervise the premises.

Now that’s obviously impossible in Hong Kong all the time because employees are entitled to leave days; nobody can be on the premises at all hours that it’s in operation. 

So how do you personally supervise the premises when you’re not there?

Well, technically you put in place a structure of reserve or alternate people, management staff, responsible people, who you’ve trained and briefed in relation to the premises itself and let them supervise it for you and also keep an eye on them every now and then. So for example, on a day when maybe you are not there, occasionally you might drop by to make sure everything’s okay. 

Condition 5. The licensee shall display a warning notice at a conspicuous place inside the premises.

Containing the words “禁止任何十八歲以下人士在處所內進飲酒類飲品 NO LIQUOR FOR PERSON UNDER AGE 18”. In the said notice, the size of each Chinese character shall not be less than 3 cm (height) x 3 cm (width) and the size of each English letter shall not be less than 2 cm (height) x 2 cm (width).

Condition five is a warning notice sign, it’s dimensioned, and the statement that appears on it is written in the condition, simply post one of those on the premises at a conspicuous place inside the premises. So, I’ll leave that up to you. 

Condition 6. The licensee shall exhibit and keep exhibited a notice denoting its licensed status provided by the Board at the main entrance of the premises.

This concerns an exhibition of a notice at the main entrance. This again is normally done by sticking a government notice which is provided to you when you get your liquor licence to the front door or a piece of glass at the entrance to the premises. Pretty normal, and easy to comply with.

Condition 7. The licensee shall not permit any person to occupy or use any portion of the premises for any immoral or illegal purpose. 

Condition seven is to not permit any person to occupy or use any portion of the premises for any immoral, or illegal purpose. 

The ‘morality’ section; well, I’m not the person to tell people what morally right and wrong is, and certainly not in the scope of this short note to cover it. However, generally, these relate to vice control measures, and or conduct, which would be in breach of legislation concerning that type of thing. 

In respect of the illegal purpose, again, that’s pretty clear if something’s illegal, people shouldn’t be doing it on your premises and that would again traditionally have been the subject of things like allowing people in the premises or permitting people in the premises who are dealing drugs, and or engaged in any unlawful activity. 

Again, remember the condition relates to permitting, if it happens, it doesn’t mean it’s been permitted. You need to go further than not knowing something’s taking place in order to be asserted to have permitted it to happen. But again, that’s the question of law, I’m just doing a top-line view. 

Condition 8. The licensee shall not permit any common prostitutes or reputed thieves to assemble or remain on the premises. 

Licensing condition eight is to ‘not permit’, again, we’ve got the word ‘permit’, any common prostitutes or reputed thieves, to assemble or remain on the premises. I think that’s pretty self-explanatory, and I’ll leave it to you to define that.

Condition 9. The licensee shall not permit drunkenness, violence, quarrel or other disorderly conduct on the premises and shall not permit persons of known bad character to assemble and remain on the premises. 

Actually, condition number one is already in relation to disorder, so they’ve actually duplicated ‘disorderly conduct’. The word permit appears again. Drunkenness, that’s a kind of revisiting of the earlier condition as well.

Violence or disorder normally includes violence and quarrel. I think when people are quarrelling they are not behaving in an orderly manner. 

So there’s a huge amount of that condition that’s already been dealt with (in other conditions) and the bit of permitting persons of known bad character to assemble and remain, I don’t know how many licensees know people to be of bad character or can tell by looking at them, just with a simple observation; so it’s a difficult condition to comply with, at best. But make what you will of it.

Condition 10. The name of any liquor for which a standard of quality is prescribed by regulations shall be clearly marked on the container in or from which the liquor is supplied to any customers. 

Condition ten is the naming of liquor, to be clearly marked on containers from which the liquor is supplied to customers now, that one’s barely used at all. 

I’m not aware of marking of standards or quality in relation to liquor that would (normally) be applicable, except perhaps if one sold a whole bottle of vodka or spirits, and that actual bottle had on it, the standard and quality described. 

I’ve never seen liquid containers, such as glasses, which is the way things are normally supplied to customers have any markings on them that relate to the quality standards of what’s inside them. 

Condition 11. No bar business shall be operated on the premises, except with the permission of the Board endorsed herein. 

Condition eleven is in relation to the bar business and this is a very complicated issue. I’ve done a separate podcast on it and there’s a link, about that, where I discuss bars and bar endorsements and the like.

When is a HK bar not a bar?

The condition reads as follows (that) no bar business shall be operated on the premises except with the permission of the Board endorsed herein. 

The general position is the Board requires premises to have a bar endorsement if it is wholly or mainly used for the sale of intoxicating liquor, therein. 

Condition 12. No dancing shall be permitted on the premises, except with the permission of the Board endorsed herein. 

This is an unusual condition; it flows from a historical perspective, where dancing and tea dances were (in Hong Kong) an event which was something considered more in relation to the clause related to morality than anything else. 

It’s still here, it’s been the subject of various prosecution cases from time to time. 

What is dancing is something that’s a matter of definition and argument and it’s been quite a contentious condition (over the decades) sometimes with enforcement authorities asserting that what they’re looking at is dancing and licensees alleging that it was not.

I won’t go into the exact details of that, however, it is worth noting the application for a dancing endorsement is within the application form I’ve covered that elsewhere and I’ve also discussed what may or may not follow in relation to that. 

Link to Application Guide – Page 12 Part F Items 27-29

It can be removed, if it’s been permitted: the Board does allow dancing in licensed premises if it is requested, and the criteria for that to take place are met. 

Condition 13. Toilets shall be maintained in a state of cleanliness and good repair for the use of customers. 

Condition thirteen is a strange one because now with the advent of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, quality hygiene standards and licensing of premises, toilets are something that really has nothing to do with the sale of liquor. 

But this condition makes it a criminal offence on the part of the licensee if a toilet is not clean and in good repair for the use of the customers. My view is that the world has moved on, and the Liquor Licensing Board probably shouldn’t be moving into making it a strict liability condition of a liquor licence to keep a toilet clean. 

Again, it’s there and who wouldn’t want a clean toilet in the first place anyway (so it makes sense) and it should be something that’s paid attention to. I’ve never seen any action taken in respect of this condition. 

Condition 14. Except exempted by the Board, the licensed premises shall be concurrently covered by a valid restaurant licence issued by the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene. 

Condition 14 is a technical one. Basically, the Liquor Licensing Board utilise food licenses that are issued by the Director of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, as general proof that the premises are suitable for licensing. That’s because, generally, drinks and liquor fall within the definition of what is food. If the premises is okay to sell food from a physical safety, building safety, fire escape and health protection sense or standard, then, having a drink, mixed in it or made and served to you shouldn’t represent a health issue, and (it) should be suitable for one of your customers to be in that premises. 

The “except exempted by the Board” consideration is because there are premises that do not have a valid restaurant licence or a valid light refreshment restaurant licence, but they do have liquor licenses. 

In each one of those cases, the burden on the licensee to prove that the premises are suitable is much higher. That is an activation provision to say that if your food licence for any reason expired and your liquor licence was connected to a food licence, in other words for the premises to remain suitable, and the licence lapsed then pretty much automatically, you would be in breach of this standard licensing condition. (I might do a separate note on that matter in due course.)

There’s a final note on the back of the liquor licence that refers to additional licensing conditions as seen fit.