TABC 2021 Changes FAQs

No, TABC will be launching compliance reporting through the Alcohol Industry Management System (AIMS) in September 2022.

The answer is both. You have 30 days before and 30 days after your license expiration date to renew.

You may file renewal applications starting 30 days before the license or permit expires, according to TABC Rule 33.3(d) and Alcoholic Beverage Code Section 6.04.

Code Section 6.04 also says a license holder who hasn’t filed a renewal application by their license’s expiration date may not operate until the holder files their renewal application with all required fees.

We strongly encourage everyone to use AIMS to submit their temporary event approval requests or other forms once they onboard into AIMS at their scheduled time.

Yes. You’ll still need to work with your local jurisdiction to get the necessary approvals for temporary events. You’ll submit these approvals to TABC through AIMS along with other required documentation, such as sponsorship agreements, if applicable.

You can view the updated fee chart here.

Yes, as long as your primary license is still current. On Sept. 1, 2021, all Mixed Beverage Permit (MB) holders, for example, were able to begin conducting an event at a temporary location. The same authority is given to all on-premise retailers and wineries. This authority is given regardless of whether the retailer currently holds a catering permit, temporary permit or winery festival permit. Learn more about temporary event authorizations in Chapter 33, Subchapter E of the TABC Rules. Many events still require TABC approval, at no cost, as spelled out in the new rules.

On Sept. 1, 2021,  hotels with MB permits became allowed to have minibars without needing to submit diagrams.

No. For licenses and permits changing due to consolidation and other statutory changes, you won’t need a bond rider.

In general, there will be nothing you need to do to make sure your license type is up to date. TABC is using the new structure and fees in AIMS. Your new, correct license or permit type will appear when you onboard and claim your business in the system.

In some cases, license holders will need to decide — on their first renewal that occurs on or after Sept. 1, 2021 — whether they still need certain licenses based on their specific business activities.  For example:

• Nonresident sellers who currently hold a Nonresident Brewer’s Permit (U) may no longer need a Nonresident Seller’s Permit (S) when they renew in AIMS the first time. If your business only sells malt beverages — and not wine (including cider) or distilled spirits — you will only need a Nonresident Brewer’s License (BN) going forward to import any malt beverage. The new BN License replaces the current Nonresident Manufacturer’s License (BS) and Nonresident Brewer’s Permit (U)]. 
• Similarly, a business that holds a General Distributor’s License (BB) and Wholesaler’s Permit (W) or a General Class B Wholesaler’s Permit (X) will need to decide if they still need both. If the business only distributes malt beverages, only the BB is required starting Sept. 1. But if the business also sells wine or distilled spirits, they will still need both the BB and the W or X. The business can make this decision the first time they renew in AIMS.

Generally, yes, until the transition process is complete.  The entire onboarding process will take up to 11 months—making dual bookkeeping necessary during that time.  We can’t use current license numbers in AIMS because the new system uses an auto-generated numeric-only format that will be paired with the license or permit moniker (example: MB-12345 or BB-98765).  The numeric-only format means that the current license and permit numbers can’t be used because there would be duplicate numbers. We suggest you maintain your current records of retailers’ existing license or permit number and change over to the new AIMS-generated number once each retailer has onboarded into AIMS.  Because the AIMS onboarding process is slated to run from August 2021 through July 2022, this dual bookkeeping process could last up to 11 months.

Yes. The Alcohol Industry Management System (AIMS) will ask questions similar to those in the current prequalification packet and application. AIMS will use your answers to those questions to pre-fill the certification form. You can download the form from AIMS to provide to the local government contact. Once the form is signed, you’ll upload it into AIMS to continue the application process.

Visit out License and Permit Types page for the most updated information.