Delaware alcohol laws

What Delaware has enacted on alcohol, what each law requires, and what the bills still moving would do. Delaware is one of 47 states that enacted an alcohol law in the 2025 and 2026 sessions.

Bills in scope
16bills in scope
Past committee
13past committee
Most recent action
16 September 2026most recent action

Alcohol laws enacted in Delaware

11 alcohol laws enacted in the Delaware Legislature in the 2025 and 2026 sessions, newest first. Each links to the legislature's own page.

  • HB 411AN ACT TO AMEND THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO A DIVISION OF ALCOHOL, TOBACCO, AND MARIJUANA ENFORCEMENT.Enacted 16 September 2026

    What it does: Renames the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement to the Division of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Marijuana Enforcement and updates all references throughout Delaware Code to reflect this name change and to change references from 'agents' to 'officers' of the Division.

  • HB 258AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LICENSES FOR SALE OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES.Enacted 23 July 2026

    What it requires: A municipality with a population of 50,000 or more may promulgate ordinances establishing rules for the location of new establishments licensed to sell alcoholic liquor for off-premises consumption that are more restrictive than state law. The Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissioner must refuse to grant a license for any new establishment that does not comply with such municipal ordinances.

    Licensing and retail permits

  • HB 373AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 AND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ALCOHOL AND MARIJUANA.Enacted 23 July 2026

    What it does: Clarifies that hemp products and cannabinoid products that are not infused beverages may be manufactured, distributed, and sold without marijuana licensing if compliant with federal and state hemp laws, and prohibits treating such products as marijuana solely because they contain cannabinoids.

    Excise taxes and fees, Hemp and THC beverages, Underage sales and liability

  • HB 398AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE TIME OF SALES FOR ON-PREMISES CONSUMPTION.Enacted 23 July 2026

    What it requires: Holders of licenses for sale of alcoholic liquor for on-premises consumption must not sell between 1:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m., except entities holding a license as a horse racetrack may sell until 2:00 a.m. Municipalities may not require earlier closing times for horse racetracks.

    Licensing and retail permits

  • SB 168AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ALCOHOLIC LIQUORS.Enacted 23 July 2026

    What it requires: Off-premise licensees may sell alcoholic liquors for curbside or delivery service within a 3-mile radius, with sales completed by certified responsible beverage servers. Third-party delivery vendors must verify recipients are 21 years or older and not intoxicated, maintain recipient records for 2 years, and charge package stores equal fees. Deliveries must occur during lawful sales hours and before midnight.

    Direct-to-consumer shipping and delivery

  • SB 141AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ALCOHOLIC LIQUORS.Enacted 24 June 2026

    What it requires: Wine auction and spirits auction license holders must collect and remit applicable excise taxes and gross receipt taxes for all auctioned products. No person may operate a wine auction or spirits auction without a license from the Commissioner. Products purchased at auction must not be stocked as inventory or made available for further retail sale in any licensed facility or store.

    Licensing and retail permits

  • HB 195AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO BARTENDING.Enacted 10 June 2026

    What it requires: A person must be 18 years of age or older to be involved in the sale, service, or preparation of alcoholic liquor. A person who is 18, 19, or 20 years old involved in preparation of alcoholic liquor must be directly supervised by a person 21 years or older working behind the bar. No person under 21 may work in any capacity in a tavern or taproom offering sexually oriented entertainment.

    Licensing and retail permits, Underage sales and liability

  • SB 243AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ALCOHOL.Enacted 21 May 2026

    What it requires: The Commissioner must establish rules regulating alcoholic beverage manufacture, sale, distribution, and importation, focusing on public safety and consumer interests without unduly restricting competition. Licensees must comply with hours of sale, prohibitions on sales to minors and intoxicated persons, and specific operational requirements for their license type.

    Licensing and retail permits, Excise taxes and fees

  • SB 185AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ALCOHOLIC LIQUORS SOLD FOR OFF-PREMISE CONSUMPTION.Enacted 19 May 2026

    What it requires: Restaurants, brewpubs, taverns, taprooms, and other on-premise licensees may sell alcoholic liquors for off-premise consumption through take-out, curbside, drive-through, or delivery. Third-party delivery vendors must hold a third-party delivery license and cannot also hold an on-premise license. Off-premise sales must be in securely closed containers and limited per customer to 2 750 ML bottles of wine, 1 bottle of private label spirit from a Delaware licensed importer, 6 servings of beer, and mixed cocktails.

    Licensing and retail permits

  • HB 187AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO DIRECT PURCHASING AND SHIPMENT OF WINE.Enacted 15 August 2025

    What it requires: Direct shippers located within Delaware must pay excise taxes monthly or as required by regulations to the Division of Revenue on sales to residents of Delaware as required by Section 581(b) of Title 4, and must provide the Division of Revenue and Commissioner any additional information deemed necessary to ensure compliance.

    Direct-to-consumer shipping and delivery

  • HB 170AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO MICROBREWERIES.Enacted 24 June 2025

    What it requires: A microbrewery licensed under § 512C may sell products it manufactures for off-premises consumption at its licensed premises and either at up to 2 brewery-pubs licensed under § 512B or at 1 additional microbrewery licensed under § 512C and 1 brewery-pub licensed under § 512B, provided all such establishments are owned or controlled by the same person.

    Licensing and retail permits

Alcohol in Delaware, by topic

Alcohol bills in Delaware

The bills not yet law, furthest along first, with what each would do.

11Enacted

2Past committee

3Introduced or inactive

16 bills in scope

Past committee

2

HB 403AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO OPIOID ANTAGONISTS AND THE SALE OF ALCOHOL.Passed committee

What it would do: Requires taprooms and taverns to keep at least 2 working opioid antagonists on premises accessible to staff, and mandates that alcohol server training include instructions on administering opioid antagonists in emergencies. Provides liability exemption for staff administering antagonists in good faith.

HB 433AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE SALE OF ALCOHOLIC LIQUOR.Passed chamber

What it would do: Amends Delaware Code Title 4 to allow counties or municipalities to extend the closing hour for on-premises alcoholic liquor sales until 2:00 a.m. by county or municipal ordinance, or make the closing hour earlier.

Introduced or inactive

3

HB 401AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE REGULATION OF HEMP PRODUCTS.In committee
SB 348AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO PRIVATE EVENTS.In committee

What it would do: Creates a private event license for venues and event managers to host invitation-only gatherings of up to 1,000 people where alcohol is provided by licensed off-site caterers or guests, and allows caterers to serve alcohol at private events without requiring 60% of gross receipts from food sales.

HB 98AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 4 AND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ALCOHOL AND MARIJUANA.Introduced

What it would do: Amends Delaware alcohol and marijuana laws to establish infused beverages (THC-containing non-alcoholic drinks with max 10mg THC per container) as a regulated product sold through package stores, creates licensing and taxation requirements for manufacturers and importers, and imposes a $0.50 per container tax.

Bill titles link to the Delaware Legislature's own page.

What LawSignals covers

What counts as alcohol legislation

In scope: Direct-to-consumer shipping and delivery; three-tier, distribution and franchise; licensing and retail permits; excise taxes and fees; hemp and THC beverages; and underage sales and liability.

Questions

Does Delaware have an alcohol law?

Yes. Delaware enacted 11 alcohol laws in the 2025 and 2026 sessions, among them HB 411, HB 258 and HB 373. Each is listed on this page with what it requires.

Which alcohol bills are moving in Delaware?

2 bills not yet law have passed a committee or a chamber, the furthest along HB 403 (passed committee) and HB 433 (passed chamber).

What does Delaware legislate on most in alcohol?

Licensing and retail permits (9 bills), Excise taxes and fees (4 bills) and Underage sales and liability (3 bills).

Are these summaries reviewed by a lawyer?

No. Which bills count as Alcohol bills, and the line on what each law requires or each bill would do, are drafted by software from the bill's own text and not reviewed by an attorney. Every bill links to the legislature's own record: read the text before relying on it. The list covers bills from the 2025 and 2026 sessions.

Other practice areas in Delaware

Alcohol legislation in other jurisdictions

52 more currently hold bills in this tracker

Know when Delaware's alcohol law changes

An alert when a bill moves, and one report a month on what changed in every state and Congress.

Track alcohol laws freeAbout the Alcohol and Beverage Tracker