Red line plan for licensed premises

Each liquor licence or BYO permit requires a red line plan. This plan defines the area where liquor can be consumed and where you are allowed to supply liquor at your shop or venue. If you have a remote seller’s licence, then the licensed area is where you pick and pack liquor for delivery.

You will be asked to provide a red line plan when you first apply for your liquor licence.

You must keep a copy of your red line plan at your venue or shop at all times. Our compliance inspectors or Victoria Police might ask to see it, and you must comply with their request.

Requirements of a red line plan

The red line plan for your licence or permit must meet the following requirements:

be on at least A4 size paper
be drawn in a neat and legible manner (either electronically or by hand)
have an arrow or compass pointing North
include the premises address
include the name of the surrounding streets/roads
describe any non-permanent or temporary structures that outline your licensed area, such as cafe barriers, ropes or other fencing arrangements you may have
outline the proposed licensed area/s in a continuous red line
show measurements of licensed areas
include the total floor space of the licensed areas in square metres
show and describe the key fixtures, example; the bar, dining area, the cash register, kitchen area, dance floor, toilets etc.

Including the above, below is specific advice based on the type of licence or permit you are applying for.

Licence or permit specific advice for red line plans

Based on your licence or permit category, you may have specific requirements for your red line plan, in addition to the above requirements.

A general licence allows for patrons to drink at your venue, as well as take packaged liquor away.
You must include any areas in your plan, such as:
- any area you sell liquor, for example, your bar and cash register
- any area that your patrons can drink alcohol at your venue
- your kitchen/s (if applicable)
- the toilets and bathroom areas
If you would like to trade later than 11pm in your outdoor areas, such as courtyards or beer gardens, you will need to include those areas in your red line plan.
The red line for a general licence cannot include any public areas, such as council laneways or footpath areas. You may still be able to supply liquor in these areas if you have permission from your local council.
You are not required to red line your storage areas, unless you intend to let patrons browse, drink or buy liquor directly from those areas. You may include them for completeness.
You can use example A as a guide to what your red line plan may look like. The red line for a general licence must not include a footpath or kerbside area, as shown by ‘AA’ on the example.
An on-premises licence and a restaurant and cafe licence allow for patrons to drink at your venue.
You must include any areas in your plan, such as:
- any area you sell liquor, for example, your bar and cash register
- any area that your patrons can drink alcohol at your venue, including any outdoor areas, like rear courtyards
- any kerbside or footpath areas you are permitted by your local council to use
- your kitchen/s (if applicable)
- the toilets and bathroom areas.
You are not required to red line your storage areas, unless you intend to let patrons browse, drink or buy liquor from those areas. You may include them for completeness.
You may include public areas such as council laneways or footpath areas in your red line plan. However, only include public areas if you have council permission to supply liquor in those areas. You can seek this permission from your local council. It is usually a local laws permit. If you have permission from your local council to use a footpath or kerbside area, that public area should be labelled as AA (which means ‘authorised area’) on your plan.
You can use example A as a guide to what your red line plan may look like.
A club licence allows for your members (and guests of members) to drink liquor at your venue. If you have a full club licence, you may also sell packaged liquor to your members.
You must include any areas in your plan, such as:
- any area you sell liquor, for example, your bar and cash register
- any area that your patrons can drink alcohol at your venue
- your kitchen/s (if applicable)
- the toilets and bathroom areas.
You are not required to red line your storage areas, unless you intend to let patrons browse, drink or buy liquor from those areas. You may include them for completeness.
A club licence cannot include any public areas, such as council laneways or footpath areas.
If you are located at a sporting ground, you may want to include seating up against the sporting field. Please consider this carefully, as it may not be appropriate. If that area is included in your red line plan, you will be responsible for any liquor supplied or consumed in that area at all times, even if you are not there.
You can use example A as a guide to what your red line plan may look like. Please do not include a foot path or kerbside area, as shown by ‘AA’ on the example.
A packaged liquor licence lets you sell packaged liquor to patrons at your shop for them to take away.
You must include any areas in your plan, such as:
- any area you sell liquor, such as your cash register(s)
- any area that you allow patrons to browse your stock, including cool rooms, storage bays and shelving areas
Storage areas that are not accessible or are closed to patrons do not need to be included in the red line plan. For example, loading docks and back of house storerooms.
Your toilets and bathrooms do not need to be included unless they are open to the public.
You can use example B as a guide to on what your red line plan may look like.
A remote seller’s licence allows you to supply packaged liquor by taking orders via a website, phone or email.
Your premises cannot be open to the public, so you are not required to include bathrooms or cash registers. You can permit people to collect liquor they have previously ordered, but they cannot browse or review your stock or purchase liquor on site. This is a breach of your licence.
Your licensed premises must be located at the address(es) where you fulfill orders for delivery to your customer. This may be your home, warehouse or other location. You must red line the area that is specifically assigned for your use. You are not required to include storage areas within your red line plan, but you may do so for completeness.
If you have multiple locations or addresses, you are required to provide a red line plan for each location where you fulfill orders.
You can use example B as a guide to on what you red line plan may look like.
A producer’s licence allows you to supply liquor for patrons to drink at your venue. You can also sell your own liquor as packaged liquor from your venue or online.
Your red line plan must include all areas, such as:
- any area you sell liquor, such as your bar and cash register
- any area your patrons can drink alcohol at your venue, including outdoor areas
- your kitchen/s (if applicable)
- toilet and bathroom areas.
You are not required to include distilling, production or storage areas unless you intend to let patrons browse, drink or buy liquor from those areas.
If you have large garden or vineyard areas, you can choose to include these areas. Your renewal fee may change based on the square meters of the area included your red line plan.
These large areas must be included if you want to set up bars or supply liquor to people directly. This includes events and functions. For infrequent or one off events, you can temporarily extend your red line plan with a temporary limited licence.
If you let patrons pick up a picnic basket (that includes liquor) or a bottle of liquor from an area of your venue that is within your red line plan, and those patrons wander around and consume your liquor within your larger grounds, those larger grounds do not need to be include within your red line plan.
You can use example A as a guide to on what your red line plan may look like. Please do not include a foot path or kerbside area, as shown by ‘AA’ on the example.
When applying for a major event or temporary limited licence, you may need to provide a red line plan.
You must include any areas in your plan, such as:
- any area you sell liquor, for example, your bar and cash register
- any area that your patrons can drink alcohol at your venue
- your kitchen/s (if applicable)
- the toilets and bathroom areas.
A satellite image of the site cannot be supplied as your red line plan. You are required to show the layout of your event and all the important areas within your red line plan.
You may use example A as a guide to what your plan may look like. For larger scale events, you may have separated areas, as long as you also provide a larger site plan where we can see the whole event.
A BYO permit allows you to have patrons bring their own liquor to your venue.
Clubs, restaurants and cafes
You must include any areas in your red line plan that are:
- areas that your patrons can drink alcohol at your venue
- toilets and bathroom areas
A BYO permit cannot include any public areas, such as council laneways or foot path areas. Patrons may or may not be able to drink liquor in these areas in line with your local council’s local laws. Please contact your local council for further information.
You can use 'example A' as a guide to what your red line plan may look like. Please do not include a foot path or kerbside area, as shown by ‘AA’ on the example.
BYO party buses
Your plan must include the area that your vehicle(s) are stored, such as the garage or depot. We also require an approximate layout of your vehicle(s). If you have multiple vehicles with the same or similar layout, we only require a plan of one of them.

Examples of red line plans

Below is an example of a red line plan for a venue that supplies liquor for people to drink on site.

Example A

For a venue or event supplying liquor at the venue or event only.

A drawing in black of the layout of the venue with pictures showing bathrooms, tables, chairs and outdoor areas. The outside of the venue is outlined in red. There is a separate box outlined in red showing an area with chairs and tables on the footpath. The address, a scale and a compass pointing north have been included.

Example B

For a shop supplying packaged liquor only.

A drawing in black of the layout of the shop venue with pictures showing bathrooms, shelving and entry and exists. The shop floor, registers and cool room are outlined in red. The toilets and back of house area is not included in the red line. The address, a scale and a compass point north have been included.

Access your red line plan

You are required to always have a copy of your plan available. Our compliance inspectors or Victoria Police might ask to see it, and you must comply with their request.

You can easily access a copy of your venue or shop’s premises approved red-line plan using the Liquor Portal.

To view the plan, you must link your licence or permit to your account. If you need help doing this, see our Liquor Portal Registration guide.

LCV will only provide a red line plan to the licensee/permit holder or a party with written authority to act on their behalf.

The area outlined in red on your plan is your licensed area. As the licensee or permittee, you are responsible for what happens within the red line area. You cannot share this area with other businesses, licensed or not.

Areas at your venue that are not included in your red line plan are unlicensed areas. At larger, shared venues there can be more than one licence or permit. But the licensed areas as shown by the red line plans cannot overlap.

Change your red line plan

An application to vary a licence or permit is required if you already have a licence or permit and want to:

increase or decrease the size of your licensed premises
change the perimeter of your licensed premises.

You must apply change your licence with LCV. If LCV grants the application, you will receive an updated red line plan of your licensed premises. You will be able to download the updated plan from the Liquor Portal.

The ‘size’ of a licensed premises is the area of the venue or shop that is licensed, and is measurable in square metres. The ‘perimeter’ of a licensed premises is the distance around the edges of a licensed premises. Both are delineated by the red line on the plan of the licensed premises.

When an application to vary a licence or permit is not required

If you make makes a change to the internal area of your licensed premises (for example, by adding or removing a particular structure such as a stage, a service area, or a wall) without changing the overall size or perimeter of the licensed premises, an application to vary your licence or permit is not required.

However, if the internal change results in more available space, and you want to increase the maximum number of patrons allowed on the licensed premises (or any other condition of your licence or permit), then you will need to apply for a variation of your licence or permit to increase the maximum patron capacity. If you want to decrease your patron capacity, you can apply to reduce your venue capacity.

You can refer to our advice on how to complete an application for more information about what must be included in an application to vary a licence or permit to increase the maximum patron capacity.

Providing an updated plan to LCV

When you apply for a new licence or permit, you must provide a plan of the premises in the form specified by LCV. If you make changes to your licensed premises, even if you do not require a variation application, a new plan should be submitted to LCV where possible.

You can do this by emailing a copy of your new plan, a description of what changed and your licence number to contact@liquor.vic.gov.au.

We will review the plan and, if necessary, advise if a variation is required.

Compliance with your licence or permit conditions

Regardless of any internal changes you make to your licensed area, you must continue to ensure compliance with the conditions of the licence or permit.

For example, if the internal changes increase noise emissions from the licensed premises, this may have a detrimental impact on the amenity of the area surrounding your venue, resulting in a breach of the conditions of the licence or permit. In these circumstances, the licensee or permittee may be prosecuted under section 108 of the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998, or disciplinary action may be initiated.

Business & the workplace

Updated 16 October 2024