If you take over a business and want to continue its licensable activities, you must apply to transfer the premises licence.

How to apply

You can transfer the premises licence in 2 ways.

Apply online

Complete the online form and consent to transfer.

You should save a copy of the completed forms for your own records.

If you apply online, we will send the additional copy of your application to the police.  

Apply by post

Print and complete the transfer application form and consent form.

You should keep a copy of the completed form for your own records.

Post the completed form along with the original premises licence to:

Licensing Team
London Borough of Sutton
Civic Offices
St Nicholas Way
Sutton
SM1 1EA

You will also need to send a copy of your completed form to the police at:

Licensing Officer
Sutton Police Station
6 Carshalton Road
Sutton
SM1 4RF

Fee

You can find the cost for the application on our fees page.

You can pay online or over the phone by calling 020 8770 5000. 

Consent Form

The current licence holder must complete and sign a consent form that confirms they are happy to transfer the premises licence.

If the form is completed by hand and sent in the post, this document must be the original and not a copy.

If you are unable to obtain this form because you cannot contact the existing licence holder, you should contact the Licensing Team before submitting your application.

What happens next

As soon as we receive your application, we will check to ensure that the application is valid and has been submitted to the police

If we identify a problem

If there is a minor problem with the application, we may contact you for further information or may return the application to you for correction. Where there is a fundamental error, the application may be rejected.

Objections by the police

If you apply to transfer an existing premises licence and the police have concerns about crime and disorder, they may object to the application (within 14 days). In such cases we will contact you.

If you wish to proceed with the application we will hold a hearing at the Council's licensing committee to decide on the application.

If no objections are received

We will send the transferred licence to you.

How long it takes to transfer a licence

We aim to process transfer applications within 28 days of receipt (or sooner if the police raise no objection).

However, you can ask that your application takes immediate effect from the date that we receive it by ticking the appropriate box on the application form.