How to Start a Brewery in North Dakota: Tax Commissioner License, $500 Taproom Fee, the 25,000 Barrel Cap and Why the Attorney General Does Not Issue It

If you want to start a brewery business in North Dakota, begin with a fact that changes the whole plan: the state has no general business license. Forming an LLC is a filing with the Secretary of State, and registering a trade name is also a filing, not a license. Licensing in North Dakota is by activity, and the license that matters most for a brewery comes from the State Tax Commissioner, not the Attorney General. This guide lays out the order we would follow, the fees we can verify, and the mistakes that cost new brewers the most time.

Disclaimer: This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Alcohol law, tax treatment and licensing rules change. The figures here reflect verified state sources as of October 28, 2026. Confirm every fee and deadline with the named agency before you file, and consult a qualified attorney and CPA about your structure and tax position.

Quick Map: Which Agency Handles What

Requirement	Agency	Cost or deadline
Federal brewer permit (TTB)	Federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau	Obtain before state filings
LLC Articles of Organization	Secretary of State, through FirstStop	$135
Name reservation	Secretary of State	$10 for 12 months
Brewery or taproom license	State Tax Commissioner	$500 per calendar year, or $500 per taproom
Sales and use tax permit	Tax Commissioner, through ND TAP	State rate 5% plus city and county taxes
Microbrew pub retailer license	Attorney General, with local approval	Confirm with the Attorney General
LLC annual report	Secretary of State	$50, due November 15
Workers' compensation	WSI (WorkForce Safety and Insurance)	Required once you have employees

What to Gather Before You File

Brewery paperwork moves faster when you have these items ready:

• A production estimate in barrels. The 25,000 barrel taproom cap and the 10,000 barrel limits depend on this number, so build it from a realistic first-three-years plan.
• Your brand name, checked in the Secretary of State's business search before you commit to signage or packaging.
• A lease or letter of intent for your production and taproom space, with zoning and occupancy confirmed by your city.
• Federal paperwork for the TTB permit, plus a federal employer identification number for the LLC.
• A North Dakota registered agent, either an individual who lives in the state or a registered business with a North Dakota office.
• Brewing and packaging inputs and equipment: malt, hops, yeast, water treatment, CO2, fermenters, kegs or cans and bottles, and sanitation chemicals. Your state fees do not depend on these items, but your gallonage records will.
• A bank account in the LLC's name and business insurance in place before you take delivery of equipment.

Step-by-Step: Starting Your North Dakota Brewery

Step 1: Get Your Federal TTB Permit First

The federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) permit comes before your state filings. A North Dakota license does not replace federal authorization. Start this early so it does not hold up your opening date.

Step 2: Form the LLC With the Secretary of State

Most brewery owners form a limited liability company under North Dakota Century Code Chapter 10-32.1. You file Articles of Organization through FirstStop at https://firststop.sos.nd.gov/. The filing fee is $135.

Your name has to follow strict rules. It must contain 'limited liability company,' 'LLC' or 'L.L.C.' It cannot contain 'corporation,' 'incorporated,' 'limited partnership,' or 'limited liability partnership,' or their abbreviations. It must be distinguishable in state records from every other registered entity, reserved name, registered trade name, trademark and service mark. Search the business database at https://firststop.sos.nd.gov/search/business before you commit. A name such as 'Prairie Hop Brewing LLC' passes the form test only if no existing record conflicts with it.

If you need time to file, reserve the name for $10. The reservation lasts 12 months and can be renewed in successive 12 month periods at https://www.sos.nd.gov/business/business-services/register-business.

The Secretary of State publishes no guaranteed turnaround, and its business pages advertise no expedited service. Call Business Services at (701) 328-2900 for current timing, and plan your build-out schedule around that answer rather than around a number from a forum post.

Step 3: Appoint a North Dakota Registered Agent

An LLC must maintain a registered agent with a physical address in North Dakota. The brewery cannot act as its own agent. Get the agent's approval before you name them, because failure to do so may lead to involuntary dissolution. Filing a change of address or agent costs $10. Service of process costs $25.

Step 4: Choose the License Path That Matches How You Sell

North Dakota's brewery statutes give you three main paths. Choose before you file, because each one sets different sales rules and limits.

• General brewery (manufacturing) license. The fee is $500 for a calendar year under NDCC 5-01-04. The first-year fee drops 25% for each full calendar quarter already elapsed, but never below half the fee, which makes the floor $250. For example, if you file after two full quarters have passed, the fee falls to $250. A general brewery sells only to licensed wholesalers. Confirm the proration method with the Tax Commissioner before you calculate your budget.
• Brewer taproom license. The fee is $500 per taproom, which replaces other state license fees for that location under NDCC 5-01-21. It allows on-premises sales, packaged beer to go in brewery-sealed containers up to 5.16 gallons, and free samples up to 16 oz. Total production across all of your taprooms is capped at 25,000 barrels a year. A US beer barrel is 31 gallons, so that cap equals about 775,000 gallons. You may also self-deliver up to 10,000 barrels a year to licensed retailers.
• Microbrew pub. Production is capped at 10,000 barrels a year under NDCC 5-01-14. You need both a brewer license and a retailer license. The retailer side runs through the Attorney General with local approval, so confirm that fee and application there. You must file a monthly sales report by the 15th of each month.

Why the Attorney General does not issue the brewery license: the statutes assign manufacturers and wholesalers to the State Tax Commissioner (NDCC 5-01-04, 5-01-14, 5-01-21 and 5-03). The Attorney General's role is the retail alcohol side, which matters only if you choose the microbrew pub path. Do not send a manufacturing or taproom application to the Attorney General.

Step 5: File the Tax Commissioner Application

Apply through the Office of State Tax Commissioner at https://www.tax.nd.gov/. Have your LLC filing information, your TTB status, the premises address and your production estimate ready. Application forms and submission steps change, so pull the current versions from the Tax Commissioner's site rather than from a template you found elsewhere.

Step 6: Register for the Sales and Use Tax Permit

Any business making taxable sales must hold a sales and use tax permit from the Tax Commissioner. Apply through ND TAP at https://tap.tax.nd.gov/?Link=Application about 30 days before you open. The state sales tax rate is 5%, plus city and county taxes, so your effective rate depends on your location. Ask the Tax Commissioner which of your sales are taxable before you set your menu and retail pricing. The permit fee is not listed in our verified sources, so confirm it on ND TAP.

Step 7: Plan for Gallonage Tax and Keep Records From Day One

Taproom and microbrew licensees, along with wholesalers, pay beer gallonage tax under NDCC 5-03-07. The rate is $0.08 per gallon in bulk and $0.16 per gallon in bottles or cans. For example, 2,000 gallons packaged in cans carries $320 in gallonage tax. Keep batch logs, keg records and package counts from the first brew. Confirm how gallonage applies to a general brewery license with the Tax Commissioner.

Step 8: Check the Build-Out Contractor Rule

When the cost, value or price of a construction job exceeds $4,000, the person doing the work must hold a North Dakota contractor license. Contractor licenses are issued by the Secretary of State. Fees run from $100 for Class D (jobs up to $100,000) to $450 for Class A (jobs over $500,000), and licenses renew by March 1 each year. If you do your own build-out, confirm with the Secretary of State whether the rule applies to your work.

Step 9: Register for Workers' Compensation Before You Hire

Workers' compensation in North Dakota is a state monopoly administered by WSI (WorkForce Safety and Insurance). Once you have employees, you obtain coverage through WSI rather than a private carrier. Confirm your employer registration timing with WSI before your first hire starts work in the brewhouse or taproom.

Step 10: Confirm Food, Local and Zoning Approvals

Most taprooms serve some food or snacks. If yours does, ask the Department of Health and Human Services whether your kitchen needs a food establishment license, since HHS licenses food establishments. North Dakota counties do not license businesses, and cities license only specific activities. Ask your city about zoning, occupancy, signage and any local approval that applies to alcohol sales.

Step 11: Register a Trade Name and Set Your Compliance Calendar

If your public brand differs from the LLC name, register a trade name with the Secretary of State through FirstStop. Registration costs $25, amendments cost $25 and renewal costs $25 every 5 years. A registered trade name gives you exclusive rights to that name within North Dakota only. Then build a calendar: the LLC annual report is due every November 15, the Tax Commissioner sets your license and tax filing schedule, microbrew pubs file monthly reports by the 15th, and contractor licenses renew by March 1.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Applying to the Attorney General for a brewery license. Manufacturing and taproom licenses come from the Tax Commissioner.
• Selling before every permit is in hand. Finish the federal permit, state license and sales tax permit before your first sale.
• Miscounting the barrel cap. The 25,000 barrel limit applies to all taprooms combined, not to each location.
• Misreading the to-go rule. Packaged beer to go must be in brewery-sealed containers up to 5.16 gallons.
• Missing the annual report. The $50 annual report is due November 15. A late filing adds a $50 late fee, and a terminated LLC faces a $135 reinstatement fee under NDCC 10-32.1-92.
• Letting the registered agent lapse. A business cannot be its own agent, and an agent who has not approved the appointment creates real risk.
• Assuming a North Dakota franchise tax applies. The state levies no franchise tax on LLCs. Pass-through owners pay individual income tax at 0%, 1.95% or 2.50%, depending on bracket. An LLC that elects corporate treatment pays corporate income tax at 1.41%, 3.55% or 4.31%, depending on bracket.
• Allowing minors in without meeting the rule. Minors may enter with a parent only if food is available and most gross sales come from food, under NDCC 5-02-06(3)(b).
• Filing the sales tax permit late. Apply through ND TAP about 30 days before opening, not on opening week.

Expected Results and Timeline

A realistic plan runs from name search to a license-ready taproom over several months, but the exact timing depends on agency processing, your build-out and your local approvals. The Secretary of State publishes no guaranteed turnaround, so build a buffer into your lease start date and your first brew date.

On the product side, results depend on your recipe, sanitation, equipment and market. No filing or license can promise sales, profit or any specific outcome. Federal labeling rules govern what you may say about your beer, and you should avoid making any claim about health effects. Have your labels and marketing reviewed by a qualified professional before you print or publish them.

Cost Summary

Item	Amount	Agency
LLC Articles of Organization	$135	Secretary of State
Name reservation (12 months)	$10	Secretary of State
Registered agent change of address or agent	$10	Secretary of State
Service of process	$25	Secretary of State
LLC annual report	$50 each year, due November 15	Secretary of State
General brewery license	$500 per calendar year, first year reduced, never below $250	Tax Commissioner
Brewer taproom license	$500 per taproom	Tax Commissioner
Trade name registration, amendment and renewal	$25 each	Secretary of State
Contractor license (if applicable)	$100 to $450 per year	Secretary of State
Beer gallonage tax	$0.08 per gallon bulk, $0.16 per gallon bottles or cans	Tax Commissioner
Sales and use tax permit	Confirm on ND TAP	Tax Commissioner
Microbrew pub retailer license	Confirm with the Attorney General	Attorney General

Where to Get Help

The North Dakota Small Business Development Centers, hosted by the University of North Dakota Nistler College of Business and Public Administration, offer free advising at https://und.edu/ndsbdc/index.html. The SBA's North Dakota district page is at https://www.sba.gov/district/north-dakota. For the structure decision, the TTB sequence and any lease or equipment financing, consult a qualified North Dakota attorney and a CPA before you sign anything. This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice.