Check if you need an alcoholic products producer approval (APPA)
Source: gov.uk (2025-03-01)

You'll need approval from HMRC to produce alcoholic products such as beer, cider, spirits, wine, and other fermented products in the UK.

If you were already registered or licensed

If you were already registered or licensed to produce alcoholic products before 1 February 2025, we’ll automatically migrate your separate registrations or licenses across to a single alcoholic products producer approval (APPA). You will not need to apply for a new approval.

We’ll send you a letter to confirm the details of your new approval. If the letter has not arrived by 25 February 2025, contact us by email at: xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx).

The email should include your:
- business name
- registered business address and postcode
- Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR)
Who must apply

You must hold an APPA before you start to produce alcoholic products in the UK.

Production can mean making alcoholic products from raw ingredients. It can also mean carrying out any activities on alcoholic products which:
- change their alcohol by volume (ABV)
- change their product classification
- produce an alternative product
This includes compounding or rectifying spirits using duty-suspended alcoholic products.

If you’re a cidermaker you’ll need to apply for an APPA, even if you:
- were exempt from seeking approval before
- produce less than 5 hectolitres of pure alcohol in cider, and no other alcoholic products
You will not need an APPA if you do not produce alcoholic products, and only:
- hold alcoholic products, leading to a gradual change in strength
- make additions or carry out processes as part of the packaging process
- intend to hold alcoholic products in duty suspension
- import finished alcoholic products
- bottle bulk alcoholic product without altering it
- compound or rectify spirits using duty-paid alcoholic products
- package alcoholic products (putting bulk alcoholic product produced elsewhere into containers)
Read sections 2 and 3 of the alcoholic products technical guide (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/alcoholic-products-technical-guide) for:
- definitions of all alcoholic products
- details about what activities are classified as production
Exemptions

You will not need an APPA to produce alcoholic products for:
- domestic use (this excludes spirits)
- research or experimental purposes
How the APPA works

You will have a single APPA. This will cover all of the:
- categories of alcoholic products you can produce
- types of production-related activities you can carry out, like holding alcoholic products in duty suspension
- premises where you can produce alcoholic products and hold them in duty suspension
You can apply for approval of more than one premises, or category of alcoholic products, at the same time. You can also update your existing approval, to add new premises, or categories of alcoholic products. You can only produce alcoholic products we’ve approved, on premises we’ve approved.

It is an offence to produce alcoholic products without the appropriate approval, or on premises that we have not approved. You may have to pay a penalty if you do. We can also confiscate any alcoholic products, packaging, equipment or substances used in the production of alcoholic products.

How to apply

Apply for an alcoholic products producer approval (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-an-alcoholic-products-producer-approval-appa) from HMRC.

Get more information

For more detailed information about APPA and the approval process, read the alcoholic products technical guide (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/alcoholic-products-technical-guide).