ie.bev-cuvee.org · AS OF 2026-11-10
Ireland
The business-to-business (B2B) hub for beverage alcohol: the trade rulebook for beverage alcohol, country by country, each section with its official sources.
As of 2026-11-10
Market status
Licensed. Wholesale dealers require the relevant excise licence for the product category.
Sources
Who can trade
Wholesale and distribution: Separate wholesale dealer licences cover beer, wine, spirits, spirits of wine and sweets; licences may be combined as applicable. A beer wholesale licence requires the specified court certificate.
Import permissions, excise movement authorisations and additional food-business registration: Not yet sourced.
Business-to-business (B2B) online sale: Not yet sourced.
Sources
Customs and duty
Tariff headings: 2203 covers beer made from malt; 2204 covers wine of fresh grapes and certain grape must; 2206 covers other fermented beverages, including cider, and qualifying mixtures; 2208 covers spirits, liqueurs and other spirituous beverages.
Import duty: The European Union common customs tariff applies. Detailed classification, origin, preferences and other tariff measures determine the duty. A four-digit heading alone does not establish the payable duty.
Excise: Alcohol Products Tax distinguishes beer, wine, cider and perry, intermediate products and spirits. Beer treatment depends on volume and strength; spirits use pure alcohol. Wine and cider schedules distinguish strength bands and still or sparkling products.
Territorial treatment and special exceptions: Not yet sourced.
Sources
- https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32016R1872
- https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/customs/common-customs-tariff-cct/calculation-customs-duties_en
- https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/online-services/online-services-and-databases-customs/eu-customs-tariff-taric_en
- https://www.revenue.ie/en/companies-and-charities/excise-and-licences/excise-duty-rates/alcohol-products-tax.aspx
Labelling
Required language(s): English. Irish and other languages may appear additionally.
Mandatory alcohol warnings: The national alcohol health-labelling measures are deferred to 3 September 2028. They are future requirements at the as-of date, not current label requirements.
Alcohol strength: Beverages above 1.2% alcohol by volume declare their actual strength; wine follows sector-specific rules.
Allergens: Relevant allergens require declaration, using “contains” if there is no ingredient list. Sulphites above 10 milligrams per litre require declaration.
Origin: Wine requires provenance. Other foods require origin where omission misleads; stated origin may trigger primary-ingredient origin disclosure.
Wine particulars: Ingredient and nutrition declarations apply, subject to transition for wine produced before 8 December 2023. Electronic disclosure is conditional; allergens and energy remain on the physical label.
Ingredient-dependent warnings: Sweetener and aspartame statements apply where relevant.
Sources
- https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=DOUE-L-2011-82311
- https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/media/news/new-rules-wine-labelling-enter-application-2023-12-07_en
- https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/C/2023/1190/oj/eng
- https://www.fsai.ie/business-advice/labelling/labelling-general-labelling
- https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2025/si/422/made/en/print
- https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2025/si/423/made/en/print
Age and sale limits
Legal purchase age: 18.
Sale-hour and channel limits: Off-premises retail sales are generally limited to 10:30–22:00 Monday to Saturday and 12:30–22:00 on Sundays and Saint Patrick’s Day. Wholesale-specific application and exceptions: Not yet sourced.
Sources
Protected names
Protection framework: The European Commission maintains the legal registration database for protected food, wine and spirit names, alongside a register of protected traditional wine terms. Registration status and product specifications determine the applicable protection.
Verified examples: Rioja and Champagne are protected designations of origin for wine. These examples are not an exhaustive list.
Additional named spirit, beer and cider protections: Not yet sourced.
Sources
GTIN authority
Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) member organisation: GS1 Ireland.
Sources
Not yet sourced
Import and excise movement permissions; food-business registration; online trade; territorial treatment; wholesale-specific sale-hour application and exceptions: Not yet sourced.
Additional named spirit, beer and cider protections: Not yet sourced.
Library catalogue: bev-cuvee.org · this page as data: mcp.bev-cuvee.org/mcp (get_rulebook, code ie)