Brewers, Vintners, and Distillers Get Your Money Back! (or hold on to it longer) – Federal Bond Requirements and Tax Payment Timing Changed for Small Breweries, Wineries, and Distilleries

The TTB’s new temporary rule, T.D. TTB-146 removes the bond requirements for breweries, wineries and distilleries that don’t pay more than $50,000 in excise taxes within the calendar year and that didn’t pay more than $50,000 in the prior calendar year.  If your winery, distillery, or brewery fits, the bill, you can amend your notice/registration and get an exemption to remove your bonding requirement. Which means your $1000 may not be tied up before if you posted the cash bond on your own.

The new temporary rule also changes the filing times for taxpayers – small breweries, wineries, and distilleries can now file annually rather than semi-monthly or quarterly if they do not expect to pay more than $1,000 in excise taxes within the calendar year and if they didn’t pay more than $1,000 in the prior calendar year.

Under the rule all locations are counted as one:

“Taxpayers with multiple locations must combine their tax liability for all locations with respect to distilled spirits, wine, or beer to determine their eligibility to use the annual return period and be exempt from the bond requirements.”

These changes are all put in place as part of implementing the PATH Act.  You can read more about how the Act will affect the alcohol industry in the TTB Circular 2016-2 here.