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Selling beer, wine, cider and spirits in New Zealand

In New Zealand, alcoholic drinks are labelled under Standard 2.7.1 of the joint Food Standards Code: alcohol content, the number of standard drinks and, above 1.15% alcohol, a pregnancy warning label. Health claims are not permitted. Making or storing alcohol duty-unpaid needs a Customs-controlled area licence, and excise or excise-equivalent duty applies.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Labelling
Standard 2.7.1 of the Food Standards Code
Standard drinks
Stated on drinks above 0.5% ABV
Pregnancy warning
Required above 1.15% ABV
Health claims
Not permitted above 1.15% ABV
Excise
Collected by the New Zealand Customs Service
Licensing law
Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012

Before a product goes on sale

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1What alcohol content and standard drinks statement does the label need? Read more
  2. 2Does it carry the pregnancy warning label in the required form? Read more
  3. 3Which nutrition content claims, if any, can it make? Read more
  4. 4Is it grape wine that needs its country of origin? Read more
  5. 5Where is it made or stored, and does that place need a Customs licence? Read more
  6. 6Who sells it, and under which licensing law? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

Alcohol labelling

What a label on an alcoholic drink shows.

  • Beverages with 0.5% or more alcohol by volume state their alcohol content; above 1.15% ABV as a percentage or mL/100 mL, and at 1.15% or less as 'contains not more than X% alcohol by volume'.
  • Beverages with more than 0.5% ABV state the number of standard drinks, legibly under the general rules.
  • Beverages with more than 1.15% ABV carry a pregnancy warning label, as a pictogram or a pictogram with words, with set form and design elements; the transition period ended on 31 July 2023.
  • Optional alternative pregnancy warning labels were gazetted for corrugated cardboard outer packaging on 4 May 2023, with compliance by 1 February 2024.
  • On 13 August 2025, changes were gazetted to require energy labelling on packaged alcoholic beverages.
  • In New Zealand, grape wine must be labelled with its country or countries of origin.
  • The general food rules also apply: a supplier name and address in New Zealand or Australia, English, and allergen declarations.

How we help: Compliant Always reads your label against Standard 2.7.1 and the general particulars, including the pregnancy warning's form and the standard drinks figure. Ask about this

Nutrition and health claims

What an alcoholic drink may claim.

  • A nutrition information panel is not required on alcoholic beverages unless a claim requiring nutrition information is made; one may be included voluntarily.
  • Beverages above 1.15% ABV may make nutrition content claims only about energy, carbohydrate, sugar or gluten content.
  • Claims about individual sugars, such as fructose, or other components of carbohydrate are prohibited.
  • Beverages above 1.15% ABV are not permitted to make health claims and must not be represented as low alcohol.

How we help: Compliant Always checks each claim on the pack against the claims an alcoholic drink is allowed to make. Ask about this

Excise and Customs-controlled areas

How alcohol is taxed and where it may be made and stored.

  • Alcohol made and consumed in New Zealand is subject to excise duty; imported alcohol attracts an excise-equivalent duty, and exported excise goods are not charged duty.
  • A Customs-controlled area licence is required for premises where excise goods are manufactured, stored before removal for home consumption, or otherwise handled under Customs control.
  • A Licensed Manufacturing Area licence covers fermentation, brewing, blending, distillation, ageing and bottling; other licences cover off-site storage, export warehouses and duty-free shops.
  • Licensees lodge entries and pay every month unless Customs approves six- or twelve-monthly lodging, and keep records for duty liability.
  • Customs' Excise Duty Estimator estimates excise duty, the alcohol levy and the GST on the levy.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps your licence details, volume-of-alcohol records and duty paperwork with each product and batch. Ask about this

Licensing to sell

The law that governs who may sell alcohol.

  • The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 governs the sale and supply of alcohol.
  • The Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority was established under that Act and hears appeals against District Licensing Committee decisions.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the licences your retailers and distributors hold with the products they sell, and shows when they expire. Ask about this

Net quantity and fair trading

Volume marking and honest labels.

  • Prepackaged drinks are labelled with net volume in metric units, at least 2 mm high and close to the name.
  • Labels must not mislead about origin, quality or other characteristics; the Commerce Commission enforces the Fair Trading Act.

How we help: Compliant Always checks the volume statement and origin wording on your artwork. Ask about this

Who answers for what

WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
BrandThe label, its warnings and any claims.The label checked against Standard 2.7.1, with the evidence behind each statement.
ProducerMaking the drink in a licensed manufacturing area, its alcohol content and excise.Alcohol strength records and licence details kept by batch.
ImporterExcise-equivalent duty and bringing food in through a registered food importer.Suppliers' documents and labels read before the goods arrive.
RetailerSelling within the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 and its licensing system.Product documents ready when a retailer asks.

Questions businesses ask

Do alcohol labels in New Zealand need a pregnancy warning?
Yes, for beverages above 1.15% alcohol by volume: a pictogram, or a pictogram with words, in the form set by Standard 2.7.1. The transition period ended on 31 July 2023.
Do I have to show standard drinks on a label in New Zealand?
Yes. Beverages with more than 0.5% alcohol by volume must state the number of standard drinks, legibly.
How must alcohol content be shown?
Above 1.15% ABV, as a percentage or in mL per 100 mL. At 1.15% or less, in words to the effect 'contains not more than X% alcohol by volume'.
Can beer or wine make a 'low sugar' claim in New Zealand?
Beverages above 1.15% ABV may make nutrition content claims only about energy, carbohydrate, sugar or gluten. Claims about individual sugars such as fructose are prohibited.
Can alcoholic drinks make health claims?
No. Beverages above 1.15% ABV are not permitted to make health claims and must not be represented as low alcohol beverages.
Does alcohol need a nutrition panel in New Zealand?
Not unless a claim requiring nutrition information is made, although one may be included voluntarily. Changes gazetted on 13 August 2025 require energy labelling on packaged alcoholic beverages.
Does wine need country of origin labelling in New Zealand?
Yes. In New Zealand, grape wine must be labelled with its country or countries of origin.
Do I need a licence to make alcohol in New Zealand?
Premises where excise goods such as alcohol are made need a Customs-controlled area licence, a Licensed Manufacturing Area, covering brewing, fermentation, distillation, blending, ageing and bottling.
Who collects excise on alcohol in New Zealand?
The New Zealand Customs Service. Alcohol made in New Zealand pays excise duty, and imported alcohol pays an excise-equivalent duty; the alcohol levy also applies.
How does Compliant Always help with selling in New Zealand?
Our team reads the rules for the markets you sell in, including the Food Standards Code New Zealand shares with Australia. Compliant Always shows which apply to your product, keeps the documents behind each one ready, and watches the sources for changes. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

Sources

Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

Tell us what you make, and we will show you the rules for it.

Name the product and the markets you sell in. We will come back to you with what applies in New Zealand and what your paperwork needs to show.

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