Can your winery ship wine to Louisiana?

Louisiana DTC wine shipping requirementsCan a winery ship wine directly to consumers in Louisiana?Yes. And TWO separate annual authorizations are required, from two different agencies. Volume limits apply; the exact cap is in the table below. Sales tax applies and excise tax is Still wine not over 14% ABV: $0.20 per litre. Last verified 2026-08-01 against primary sources; next review due 2026-10-30.

DTC shipping

Generally permitted

Permit required

Yes — and TWO separate annual authorizations are required, from two different agencies

Licence

ATC: 'Direct Ship Permit' / direct shipper permit for direct shipment of sparkling wine and still wine (R.S. 26:359(B)(3)-(4); LAC 55:VII.335.H) — PLUS — LDR: 'Authority to Make Direct Shipments of Wines to Louisiana Consumers' (Form R-8695)

Application fee

Out-of-state wine producer or manufacturer: $250 annual ATC permit fee + $150 annual LDR authority fee = $400/yr total. Out-of-state retailer: $1,000 annual ATC permit fee + $1,000 annual LDR authority fee = $2,000/yr total.

Bond required

No. Neither Louisiana direct-shipment authorization requires a bond, certificate of deposit or letter of credit — not the ATC direct ship permit (La. R.S. 26:359(B)(3)-(4)) and not the LDR Authority to Make Direct Shipments (Form R-8695). The La. R.S. 26:348 bond ($10,000 minimum per type of permit held; $5,000 for native wines) binds manufacturers and wholesalers in the three-tier gallonage-tax channel and does not attach to the direct shipper permit.

Volume cap

12 cases per adult person per household address per CALENDAR year. A case is defined as nine litres, so the cap is 108 litres per adult per household address per calendar year; LAC 55:VII.335.F states the same cap as 144 x 750 mL bottles per adult person per household address per calendar year. No monthly sub-limit, no producer-size tier, no state aggregate cap.

Sales tax

Yes

State sales-tax rate

5.00%

Excise tax

Yes

Excise rate

Still wine not over 14% ABV: $0.20 per litre. Still wine over 14% but not over 24% ABV: $0.35 per litre. Still wine over 24% ABV: $0.55 per litre. Sparkling wine: $0.55 per litre.

Shipment reports

Monthly to LDR by the 20th (the R-5696 statement doubles as the shipment report), with a concurrent copy to the ATC commissioner. If a fulfillment house is used, that fulfillment house must additionally file QUARTERLY shipment reports to ATC by January 15, April 15, July 15 and December 15.

Record retention

No fixed retention period. Louisiana imposes an on-demand production duty, not a term of years: a direct shipper 'shall make available to the commissioner all books, invoices, and records concerning the direct shipment of wine to consumers in Louisiana immediately upon request' (LAC 55:VII.335.B), and LDR asks only that 'Copies of the invoices should be retained by the authorized party for inspection upon request of the Secretary' (Form R-8695i (7/25), item 10). The one durational rule that reaches a direct shipper is La. R.S. 47:309, which binds it in its capacity as a sales and use tax dealer and requires records to be kept 'until the taxes to which they relate have prescribed'. No Louisiana regulator states '3 years'.

Product registration

Required — every label shipped DTC must be registered with ATC via its electronic system, and the registration must be renewed annually by June 30

Approved carriers

Any transporter registered with the ATC commissioner under R.S. 26:359(D)(3). Louisiana regulates carriers by REGISTRATION, not by publishing an approved-carrier list, and the shipper must notify the commissioner within 30 days of any change of transporters.

Regulator

Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control (ATC) — with the Louisiana Department of Revenue (LDR), Excise Tax Unit, as the second required contact

Last verified

2026-08-01

Next review due

2026-10-30

Verified 2026-08-01 by primary-source audit against 31 primary sources; next review due 2026-10-30. How we verify.

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