In November 2025, the Tasmanian Government announced a consultation on reforming the Liquor Licensing Act 1990. Tasmania needs effective regulatory controls to address and reduce harms from alcohol. However, the laws that exist to keep people safe and protect them from harm have not kept pace with the way that alcoholic products are marketed, sold and delivered.
FARE welcomed consideration of some measures in the consultation which have the power to keep people safe by better regulating alcohol promotion and availability, including:
- “Considering and responding to the role that alcohol may play in contributing to family and domestic violence, by strengthening controls on alcohol access and availability.
- Better aligning regulation of online sales and delivery of liquor with premises-based sales and Providing requirements for delivery of liquor.”
Other proposed licensing reforms in the ‘Liquor Licensing Reforms’ Fact Sheet, such as risk-based licensing, also have potential to improve regulation. However, ‘streamlining and modernising’ liquor regulation must not prioritise ‘reducing regulatory burden’ for industry at the expense of community safety. Proposed reforms must demonstrate evidence they will not increase community harm.
Summary of recommendations
Alcohol and gendered violence
1. Prioritise harm minimisation above other considerations, by making it the paramount object of the Act and include gender-based violence in the definition of alcohol harms.
Online sales and delivery (OS&D)
2. Apply the scope of online sales and delivery measures to all deliveries of alcohol, not just same day delivery.
3. Establish a delivery timeframe from 10am to 10pm to prevent late night delivery.
4. Introduce a 2-hour safety pause between order and delivery to prevent rapid delivery.
5. Require an effective ID check for online point of sale and with every delivery.
6. Establish an offence for the selling of alcohol to people under 18 years old.
7. Establish an offence for leaving an alcohol delivery unattended and for delivering alcohol to a person who is intoxicated.
8. Require delivery staff to undergo delivery-specific Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) training.
9. Clarify that delivery companies are liable for delivery breaches.
10. Prohibit delivery companies from imposing a penalty on employees or delivery agents for refusing delivery.
Risk-based licensing
11. Incorporate all risk factors into the calculation of risk ratings and license fees.
12. Ensure that higher risk licenses have increased license fees and stronger conditions.
13. Incorporate both density and proximity risk factor calculations.
14. Establish a risk factor for online sales and delivery and for supply density.
15. Ensure that any new license categories include additional community consultation requirements and evidence-based harm minimisation conditions.
16. Commission independent research to determine the associated risks of harm of different licence types and their conditions, before reducing or changing the license categories.
17. Establish a separate, specific liquor licence category for OS&D to align the administration, licence fees and conditions with the risk of alcohol harm associated with OS&D.
Licensing applications and conditions
18. Prescribe an effective community impact process for OS&D, ensuring effective engagement with all relevant stakeholders.
19. Ensure that any changes to licensing and permit conditions have evidence that they will not increase the risk of harm from alcohol before being implemented.
Preventing harmful marketing
20. Extend the list of unacceptable promotional practices to the digital marketing of OS&D, including prohibiting delayed payment; sending direct prompts; ‘buy-now’ buttons or incentives for a minimum spend or volume.
21. Require alcohol companies with online advertising to display on their websites at least three prescribed rotating health warning statements about the risk of harm from alcohol.
Compliance and data
22. Require retailers to collect data and keep records on the volume of alcohol sold geographically. Publish regular sales and delivery data reports. Collect only postcode data.
23. Require retailers to collect data and keep records on deliveries refused. Publish regular reports on compliance and enforcement.
24. Implement, monitor and enforce compliance test purchasing including of OS&D.