A one day liquor license in California is a temporary permit the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) issues to qualifying nonprofits for a single fundraising event. It costs $50 per day for beer and wine (Type 34) or $75 per day for beer, wine, and distilled spirits (Type 37), and your application has to reach the local ABC district office at least ten days before the event, but no more than thirty days in advance.1Alcoholic Beverage Control. Daily Licenses Private individuals and for-profit businesses cannot get one of these licenses at all.
Which License You Need
Both daily licenses are on-sale only, meaning guests consume on-site and cannot take bottles home.2Alcoholic Beverage Control. License Types The difference is what you can pour and who can apply.
The Type 34 (Daily Beer and Wine) costs $50 per day and is open to any existing nonprofit: charitable, civic, cultural, fraternal, patriotic, political, religious, social, or amateur sports.1Alcoholic Beverage Control. Daily Licenses
The Type 37 (Daily General) costs $75 per day and adds distilled spirits, but the eligibility list is shorter. Your organization has to be one of four things: a group formed for a specific charitable or civic purpose, a fraternal organization that has existed for more than five years, a religious organization, or a political organization.1Alcoholic Beverage Control. Daily Licenses A social club or amateur sports league fits under the Type 34 but not the Type 37.
If You’re Not a Nonprofit
Weddings, corporate parties, and other private or commercial events don’t qualify for a daily license. For those, you hire a licensed caterer that holds a Type 58 Caterer’s Liquor Permit; the catering company obtains a separate ABC Catering Authorization, buys from a licensed wholesaler, and handles the service. You don’t file with the ABC yourself.
What to Submit
The paperwork is short, but every piece has to be there. A missing document is the usual reason an application stalls.
Form ABC-221
The application itself is Form ABC-221. It captures your organization’s information, the event date and location, the license type, and the required signatures.3Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Daily License Application Fill in every applicable field. Blanks invite follow-up questions you don’t have time for.
Property Owner Authorization
The owner of the venue has to authorize alcohol service at the location. They can sign Form ABC-221 directly or provide a separate signed letter that lists the event date, time, place, and type of alcoholic beverages.4Alcoholic Beverage Control. ABC-221 Instructions If your own organization owns the venue, you still need an authorized representative’s signature.
Premises Diagram for Outdoor Events
Outdoor events may require a detailed diagram on Form ABC-253.4Alcoholic Beverage Control. ABC-221 Instructions Mark the boundary of the area where alcohol will be stored, served, and consumed, and show whatever physically separates that area from the rest of the event: fencing, rope lines, wristband checkpoints. A precise diagram clears review faster than a rough sketch.
Proof of Nonprofit Status
Include documentation of your qualifying status. An IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter works, and so does a Franchise Tax Board exemption letter. Fraternal organizations applying for the Type 37 also need to show at least five years of continuous existence.
When You Need Police Sign-Off
The ABC may require local law enforcement approval before it processes your application. Common triggers:4Alcoholic Beverage Control. ABC-221 Instructions
- Large expected attendance
- Events on public property such as a street, parking lot, or park
- Venues that haven’t hosted a licensed alcohol event before
- Casino nights, which always require approval
- Any other circumstance the ABC decides warrants it
Getting this sign-off is your job, not the ABC’s. The local agency can either send a letter of approval or have an official sign Form ABC-221. Start early. Police departments don’t move on your schedule, and chasing a signature in the final week is how events end up without alcohol service.
Filing, Fees, and Timing
Deliver or mail the completed Form ABC-221, the supporting documents, and payment to the ABC district office that covers the event location. Payment has to be a cashier’s check or money order payable to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Once the license is issued, the fee is not refundable.3Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Daily License Application
- Type 34 (Beer and Wine): $50 per day
- Type 37 (General): $75 per day
The submission window is narrow. Your application has to arrive at least ten days before the event and no more than thirty days in advance.1Alcoholic Beverage Control. Daily Licenses That’s about twenty usable days. File toward the early end. An application that lands at the ten-day cutoff leaves no room for the ABC to ask for corrections, and if they do, the event may go dry.
Running the Event Legally
Getting the license is the easy part. A handful of operational rules the ABC enforces without exception can sink an event that cleared the paperwork.
RBS Certification Is Required Before the Event
At least one person at the event must be certified under the Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) program. That person has to be physically present for the entire duration of alcohol service, actively overseeing it, and must create and implement written responsible-service policies.5Alcoholic Beverage Control. RBS Frequently Asked Questions The 60-day grace period that newly hired bar and restaurant servers get does not apply to daily licenses. Your person must be certified before the event.
Certification runs through the ABC’s RBS Portal: register, complete training with an authorized provider, then pass the ABC Alcohol Server Certification exam within 30 days of finishing training.6Alcoholic Beverage Control. RBS Training Program If nobody in your organization is currently certified, start this well before you file the application.
Hours and Service Rules
California law makes it a misdemeanor to sell, give, or deliver any alcoholic beverage between 2:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m.7California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 25631 Most fundraisers finish well before that, but late-night galas need a hard cutoff built into the schedule. All alcohol sales and consumption must stay inside the licensed area shown on your approved diagram, and serving minors or visibly intoxicated guests is prohibited.
Insurance You Should Carry Anyway
The ABC does not require proof of liability insurance to issue a daily license. Don’t take that as permission to skip it. The moment your nonprofit sells drinks, the “host liquor liability” that may be bundled into a standard general liability policy, which protects organizations that allow alcohol but don’t sell it, likely stops being enough.
A separate event liquor liability policy fills the gap. These temporary policies are widely available and commonly offer up to $1 million per occurrence with a $2 million aggregate. California’s exposure for alcohol service is narrower than many states’ because there is no broad dram shop law for the acts of intoxicated adults, with liability generally focused on service to minors. Even so, defending a lawsuit is expensive long before anyone reaches a verdict, and the policy pays for the defense. Treat it as part of the event budget.
Watch for Unrelated Business Income Tax
Alcohol sales at a fundraiser can trip the IRS’s Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT) analysis, which asks whether the activity is a trade or business, whether it is regularly carried on, and whether it is substantially unrelated to your exempt purpose.
The usual shelter is the volunteer exception under Section 513(a)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code. If substantially all the work of running the event is done by unpaid volunteers, the income generally avoids UBIT regardless of whether the activity relates to your exempt purpose. IRS guidance treats 85 percent or more volunteer involvement as meeting that standard. Most small nonprofit fundraisers staffed by volunteers qualify. If you’re paying bartenders, security, and event staff, talk to a tax advisor before the event rather than after a letter from the IRS.