It is not only the Licensing Inspector, the Police and the Medical Officer of Health who can object to a licence being issued; members of the public may also object to the granting of a licence if they have  a “greater interest”. A person or business with a greater interest may be someone who lives or runs a business near the site.

However, someone who is concerned about the general effects of alcohol on the community may not be identified as having a “greater interest”.  A trade-related objection from another licensed business is not grounds for objection under the Act.

Check Section 105 of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 for more information about the Criteria for Objection for a New Application, Section 131 for a Renewal Application and Section 142 for a Special Licence Application.

Your objection must be filed with the Invercargill District Licensing Committee (DLC) within 25 working days of the first public notice announcing an application has been made.

Objections must be submitted in writing providing the following information in either an email to dlc@icc.govt.nz or letter to the Council offices, 101 Esk Street, Private Bag 90104, Invercargill.

Your details
Full name
Organisation if applicable
Full address and Postcode
Contact phone number
Email address

The Application or Renewal details
Name of premises
Address of premises
Your interest in the application
What is your objection?
Reason for your objection (evidence)

When the DLC receives your objection it will send an acknowledgement letter and a copy of the objection will be forwarded to the applicant. If the DLC believes that the objection meets the criteria of Section 105 131 or 142 of the Act, it will notify all parties of a date and time for the hearing.

You can choose not to attend the hearing but your objection will have a greater effect if you attend the hearing personally and speak to support of your submission. The hearing letter will outline support that is available and how the hearing will be managed. DLC support staff will also be there to help.

If you are unsure about the objection process, we are happy to help. Contact Invercargill District Licensing Committee Support Officer Catherine Howard on (03) 211 1777 or email dlc@icc.govt.nz