Christmas and New Year trading hours and conditions guide
Christmas Eve
On Christmas Eve, the sale and supply of alcohol must finish at 12 midnight regardless of whether you have approved extended trading hours. Patrons must finish drinks and leave the premises by 12.30am.
All gaming machine trade must stop at 12 midnight on Christmas Eve and may not start again before 10am on Boxing Day.
Christmas Day
On-premises
On Christmas Day, you are permitted to sell and supply liquor between 10am and midnight in conjunction with a meal in a part of the premises that is ordinarily set aside for dining, if the meal is also prepared, served and intended to be eaten on the premises. (Note: A ‘meal’ is defined as food eaten by a person at a fixed structure used as a table, with cutlery provided for the purpose of eating the food and is of a sufficient substance to be ordinarily accepted as a meal.)
Patrons can buy alcohol for 1 hour before eating their meal, while they are eating their meal, and for 1 hour after finishing their meal.
Off-premises
You are not permitted to sell takeaway alcohol on Christmas Day.
Serving alcohol to accommodation guests on Christmas Day
Accommodation premises must follow the same rules as other licensees on Christmas Day. However, in-house guests can consume alcohol in their rooms (from pre-stocked mini-bars) throughout Christmas Day. Licensees are not allowed to re-stock mini-bars or deliver alcohol by room service on Christmas Day.
Boxing Day
Usual trading hours and conditions resume for Boxing Day.
New Year’s Eve
On New Year’s Eve, all licensees are permitted to sell or supply liquor until 2am on New Year’s Day. This applies regardless of your regular approved trading hours and is an automatic entitlement for all venues. There is no need to apply for this 2am trading entitlement.
This means that the bar must finish serving at 2am, unless the premises is currently approved to trade beyond 2am. Without approved post-2am trading, patrons must finish drinks and leave the premises by 2.30am.
