Haryana craft beer and microbrewery rules, as of October 2026

The policy in force

Haryana sets its beer rules in a multi-year excise policy. The current one is the Excise Policy 2025-27, which runs from 12 June 2025 to 31 March 2027. Every rate and fee below comes from that document. Haryana does amend its policy between cycles, so check for notifications issued after this guide before you commit money.

There is no state corporation sitting between brewery and bar. Brewers market through their own wholesale licence and bars buy from licensed wholesalers or, for draught beer, from the brewery depot.

The microbrewery licence is L-10C

Clause 9.10 of the policy grants a licence in form L-10C for retail sale of beer made by a microbrewery. It is granted only to holders of an L-4/L-5 bar licence, so the brewhouse sits inside a licensed hotel or restaurant. The annual licence fee depends on the district:

• Gurugram: ₹30 lakh.
• Faridabad, Panchkula and Sonepat: ₹20 lakh.
• Other districts: ₹10 lakh.

A security of ₹2 lakh sits on top. Beer may not exceed 8% ABV. A qualified chemist has to certify each batch fit for consumption before it is sold. The district excise office also draws a sample every month for the government laboratory.

The limit that shapes the business is clause 9.10(v): the licensee shall issue beer for on-site consumption only. Under L-10C there are no growlers and no kegs to the bar down the road. A Haryana brewpub sells what it brews across its own counter.

Duty on your tanks, not your sales

L-10C duty is not charged on the beer you sell. It is charged on the annual installed capacity of your fermenting tanks at ₹40 per bulk litre, paid in equal quarterly instalments in advance. Annual capacity is calculated on the actual production cycle or 21 days, whichever is less.

Work it through. Four 10 hl fermenters hold 4,000 litres. On a 21-day cycle that is about 17.4 turns a year, so roughly 69,500 litres of annual capacity and close to ₹27.8 lakh of duty, whether the tanks are full or not. A Helles that sits five weeks in tank still counts at 21 days. The rule rewards a brewpub that keeps every vessel working and charges you for idle steel, so size the cellar to the beer you will actually sell.

Excise on packaged and draught beer

Beer from a regular brewery pays duty per bulk litre by strength, plus a permit fee of ₹12 per bulk litre (₹10 for draught):

• Super mild, up to 3.5% ABV: ₹30.
• Mild, above 3.5% and up to 5.5%: ₹52.
• Strong, above 5.5%: ₹62.
• Canned beer: ₹40, ₹60 and ₹70 across the same three bands.
• Draught beer: ₹50.

Two things matter for craft. Haryana's mild band runs to 5.5%, so most pale ales and wheat beers land in it. Draught also pays less than canned strong beer, which suits a keg-led brand. The L-1B1 wholesale licensee pays the duty when it takes out permits.

How a bar without a brewery pours craft beer

A hotel or restaurant that wants to serve beer needs an L-4/L-5 bar licence. A district committee of excise and tax officers inspects the premises before a new one is granted. In towns with a municipal body there is also the L-10E pub licence, for restaurants of repute, at ₹8 lakh a year in Gurugram, Faridabad, Panchkula and Sonepat and ₹3 lakh elsewhere.

The kegs come from the brewery. Clause 9.2.3 lets brewers sell draught beer in kegs of different sizes through their L-1B1 depots directly to bar licensees, without routing it through an L-1 or L-2 wholesaler. L-1B1 is the licence a brewer needs to market beer in Haryana at all. A new one costs ₹73 lakh. For a small brand that fee is the real gate. The keg route is open, but only through a brewery that already holds or can justify that licence.

Contract brewing

The policy does not set out a tolling route for beer. It covers full brewery licences (form B-1, starting at ₹55 lakh plus ₹35 lakh per lakh hectolitres of capacity below 50,000 HLPA), a letter of intent before you build (₹20 lakh for a brewery below 50,000 HLPA) and brand label approval by the Excise and Taxation Commissioner. Its capacity utilisation fee for using someone else's plant applies to IMFL, not beer.

What does exist is form L-1AB1, a wholesale licence for non-brewers who hold exclusive rights to sell a beer or wine brand in Haryana. In practice a brand owner without a brewery has two options. One is to have a licensed brewery make and register the beer, then sell it through the brewery's L-1B1. The other is to hold the brand rights and take an L-1AB1. Ask the excise office which applies to your arrangement and get the answer in writing. Our guide to contract brewing in India covers the commercial side.

Before you sign a lease

Confirm the L-4/L-5 is grantable at your address before anything else, because L-10C depends on it. Price the duty on your fermenter capacity, not your sales forecast. Budget the licence fee for your district. Then read our microbrewery licence guide for the clearances that sit outside excise, such as pollution control and fire. Fees and rates here are from the 2025-27 policy as published. Check the current notification with the department or a licensing adviser. This guide is a working summary, not legal advice.

Common questions

Which licence does a microbrewery need in Haryana?

Form L-10C, granted only to holders of an L-4/L-5 bar licence. The 2025-27 policy sets the fee at ₹30 lakh in Gurugram, ₹20 lakh in Faridabad, Panchkula and Sonepat and ₹10 lakh elsewhere.

Can a Haryana microbrewery sell kegs or growlers?

Not under L-10C. The policy says the licensee shall issue beer for on-site consumption only.

How is microbrewery duty calculated in Haryana?

At ₹40 per bulk litre on the annual installed capacity of the fermenting tanks, with capacity worked out on the actual cycle or 21 days, whichever is less. It is paid quarterly in advance.

Where does a Haryana bar get its draught beer?

Brewers may sell draught beer in kegs through their L-1B1 depots directly to bar licensees, without going through L-1 or L-2 wholesalers.