Alcohol regulations in Italy

Licences needed

Tax warehouse authorization (autorizzazione all'esercizio di deposito fiscale), fiscal operating license (licenza di esercizio con codice accisa), sanitary registration under EU Reg 852/2004, and municipal Certified Notice of Commencement of Activity (SCIA)

Authority

Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM), local health authority (Azienda Sanitaria Locale - ASL), and local municipality (Comune - Sportello Unico per le Attività Produttive / SUAP)

Documents

Technical distillery and plant schematics, technical report on distillation equipment/meters/stills, cadastral documentation, financial guarantees (fideiussione) for excise liability, HACCP plan, fire safety compliance (CPI), and company registration certificate (Visura Camerale)

Fees

Annual excise license fee (diritto annuale di licenza, approx. €200–€500 depending on category) plus administrative stamp duties (marca da bollo) and obligatory bank/insurance guarantee costs

Time to obtain

Approximately 2 to 6 months depending on technical inspections, verification of metering devices by customs officials, and validation of guarantees

Who can import

Any registered business entity established in the EU with a valid Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) number, operating directly or via an authorized customs broker / certified consignee / tax warehousekeeper

Licences or registrations

EORI registration; Excise Identification Code (Codice Accisa) or Certified Consignee status if receiving duty-suspended or duty-paid cross-border goods

Authority

Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM)

Documents

Single Administrative Document (SAD / bolletta doganale), commercial invoice, bill of lading / airway bill, packing list, certificate of origin, and electronic administrative document (e-AD / e-SAD) via EMCS if in excise suspension

Fees

No statutory fee for obtaining an EORI number; standard customs handling, brokerage, and administrative stamp fees apply

Time to obtain

EORI is issued within 1–5 business days; excise warehouse/consignee authorization requires 1 to 3 months

Required

no

Process

Italy and the EU do not operate a pre-market brand or label approval system (such as US TTB COLA). The importer and food business operator bear legal responsibility for ensuring full compliance with EU and Italian food labelling standards prior to commercial distribution.

Authority

Ministero dell'Agricoltura, della Sovranità Alimentare e delle Foreste (MASAF) / ICQRF for market surveillance

Documents and samples

None required prior to import, but technical specification sheets and analysis certificates must be maintained for official regulatory inspections

Fees

None

Renewal

None

Time to obtain

Immediate (no prior authorization barrier)

Imports from outside the EU require an EU-established Importer of Record, customs clearance via SAD, proof of origin, and an e-AD generated through the EU Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS) if moved in duty suspension. Spirits released for consumption in Italy must be affixed with Italian State fiscal marks/strip stamps (contrassegno di Stato) issued by the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (IPZS) and obtained through ADM.

0% (duty-free) for most standard spirits under HS heading 2208 under the WTO plurilateral agreement on distilled spirits / EU Common Customs Tariff (third-country MFN rate); preferential rates of 0% apply under EU free trade agreements.

Spirits excise duty: €1,035.52 per hectolitre of pure alcohol (€10.3552 per litre of pure alcohol / anidro) under Testo Unico delle Accise (D.Lgs. 504/1995). Standard Value Added Tax (IVA): 22%.

Private retail network: licensed supermarkets, bottle shops (enoteche), and on-premise bars/restaurants holding municipal commercial authorization and ADM excise communication. Law No. 120/2010 restricts alcohol sales: retail off-premise sales are prohibited between 24:00 and 06:00; on-premise sales in bars and clubs must stop between 03:00 and 06:00; highway motorway service areas cannot sell spirits between 22:00 and 06:00 (and no alcohol between 02:00 and 06:00).

Allowed. Commercial vendors must hold appropriate retail/excise registration. Strict age verification (18+) is required at point of sale and upon final delivery. Cross-border B2C distance selling of excise products from another EU country into Italy requires a fiscal representative registered with ADM to prepay Italian excise duty.

Mandatory label details under Reg. (EU) No 1169/2011 and Reg. (EU) 2019/787: legal category name (e.g., Gin, Vodka, Whisky), alcoholic strength by volume (% vol), nominal volume, lot number, name and address of EU food business operator/importer, allergen declaration (e.g., 'contains sulphites' if >10 mg/L), environmental packaging disposal recycling instructions (environmental labelling D.Lgs. 116/2020), and Italian language text. State excise strip stamp (contrassegno di Stato) must be affixed across the closure.

Regulated under Law No. 125/2001 and the Italian Advertising Self-Regulatory Code (Codice IAP). Advertising of spirits is banned on TV and radio between 16:00 and 19:00, in broadcasts aimed at minors, and in cinemas before movies for children. Ads must not associate alcohol with driving, sexual prowess, psychological relief, or target minors. AGSOM and Antitrust (AGCM) sanction violations.

Defined strictly by Regulation (EU) 2019/787: Whisky/Whiskey (minimum 40% ABV, distilled from cereals, matured for at least 3 years in wooden casks); Rum (minimum 37.5% ABV, from sugarcane juice/molasses); Vodka (minimum 37.5% ABV, from ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin); Gin (minimum 37.5% ABV); London Gin (minimum 37.5% ABV, no added sweetening exceeding 0.1 g/L, no colorants); Brandy (minimum 36% ABV, from wine spirits matured in oak); Neutral spirit of agricultural origin (minimum 96% ABV).

No nationwide dry zones. Municipalities (e.g., Rome, Milan, Florence, Venice) routinely enact local police ordinances (ordinanze sindacali) restricting night sales of takeaway alcohol or public consumption of alcohol on streets in designated tourist and nightlife precincts.

• Enactment and implementation of the revised Italian Highway Code (Nuovo Codice della Strada, Law No. 177/2024, effective December 2024), enforcing stricter penalties for drink driving and mandatory vehicle alcolock installation for repeat DUI offenders.
• ADM initiatives and 2025/2026 circulars (e.g., Circolare 12/2026) testing modernised adhesive, heavier-gauge paper, and QR-coded State fiscal strip stamps (contrassegni di Stato) for spirit drinks to streamline excise tracking.
• Full enforcement of environmental recycling labelling for all primary and secondary packaging of alcoholic beverages under Legislative Decree 116/2020.

High demand in Italy's thriving mixology and aperitivo culture for premium and super-premium imported spirits, particularly craft gin, single malt whiskies, aged rums, and artisanal tequilas/mezcals. Zero percent EU customs duty on distilled spirits simplifies tariff-free entry for international craft producers partnering with Italian distributors.

• Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM)
• Ministero dell'Agricoltura, della Sovranità Alimentare e delle Foreste (MASAF)
• Ministero della Salute
• Istituto dell'Autodisciplina Pubblicitaria (IAP)

1. Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli - Settore Alcoli e Accise
2. EUR-Lex - Regulation (EU) 2019/787 on Spirit Drinks
3. Gazzetta Ufficiale - Legge 25 novembre 2024 n. 177 (Nuovo Codice della Strada)
4. US TTB - International Trade Guidance: Italy