What's the UK duty on a bottle of whisky?

A 70cl bottle of 40% ABV whisky pays £8.86 duty (0.28L pure alcohol × £31.64). Plus VAT on the retail price.

How much duty is in a pint of beer?

About £0.62 for a 5% ABV pint at supermarket rates, or ~£0.56 in a pub due to Draught Relief. Plus VAT on top.

Did Brexit change alcohol duty?

No — alcohol duty is a UK domestic tax unaffected by Brexit. The 2023 reform was a separate UK policy. Brexit did affect import procedures (more paperwork) but not the duty calculation itself.

Are home brewers subject to alcohol duty?

Home brewing for personal consumption (under 5,500L/year) is duty-free. Sale or distribution requires producer registration and duty payment.

How does Small Producer Relief work?

Producers under 4,500 hectolitres of pure alcohol per year qualify for tapered relief: full discount up to 2,500 hl, then tapered up to 4,500 hl. Effective rate reduction can exceed 50% for the smallest producers.

Why is wine duty per litre of pure alcohol now?

The August 2023 reform aligned all alcohol duties to a single principle (tax by alcohol content). The previous wine rate was per litre of beverage with a fixed ABV assumption (12.5%), creating distortions for higher- and lower-strength wines.

Is duty payable on alcoholic chocolates and food?

Generally no — chocolates with under 0.5% ABV by weight are exempt. Higher-alcohol cooking products (e.g. liqueur-filled chocolates above 0.5%) attract duty.

Can pubs reclaim Draught Relief on bottled beer?

No — Draught Relief applies only to dispensing from containers of 20L+ at the point of sale. Bottled and canned beer is taxed at the standard rate regardless of where consumed.

UK Alcohol Duty Calculator 2025/26

UK alcohol duty reform (August 2023)

UK alcohol duty was overhauled on 1 August 2023, replacing the 90-year-old system of fixed-volume duties (so much per litre of beverage) with a strength-based approach. All alcoholic drinks are now taxed on their pure alcohol content, with rates varying by drink category and ABV band.

Key categories (2025/26 rates):

Beer — split between low-strength (1.3-3.4%) at £9.27/L and standard (3.5%+) at £21.78/L pure alcohol.
Cider — low-strength (1.2-3.4%) £9.67/L; standard (3.5-8.4%) £10.42/L.
Wine — still and sparkling treated identically (the prior premium on sparkling was abolished). 8.5-22% ABV: £29.54/L pure alcohol.
Spirits — £31.64/L pure alcohol.
Other fermented products (mead, sake) — taxed by ABV band similar to wine/cider.

Draught Relief: Beer and cider sold on draught in containers of 20 litres or more (most pub kegs) get a reduced rate (~9.4% off standard duty). Designed to support pubs versus supermarket sales.

Small Producer Relief applies to producers under 4,500 hectolitres pure alcohol annually, replacing Small Brewer's Relief and extending to wine/cider/spirits.

How alcohol duty is collected

Alcohol duty is paid by the producer or importer at the point the goods leave bond (i.e. become available for sale to the public). Major payment routes:

UK breweries / distilleries — pay duty when product is removed from the bonded warehouse for sale.
Importers — pay at the border on import declarations.
Personal travellers — duty-paid limits apply: 16L wine, 4L spirits per person from outside the UK; over allowances, declare and pay.
Online private imports — duty + VAT charged by courier on delivery.

The duty is built into the retail price you see on the shelf. For a £20 bottle of 40% spirits (70cl), the breakdown is roughly: duty £8.86 + VAT 20% on (cost + duty + retailer markup) = about £4-£5 VAT, leaving £6-£8 for the producer/retailer/distributor combined. UK alcohol prices are high partly because of this duty stack.

Three worked examples (UK 2025/26)

Example 1: 70cl bottle of 40% gin

Pure alcohol = 0.7L × 40% = 0.28L. Duty = 0.28 × £31.64 = £8.86. VAT 20% applies on retail price including duty.

Example 2: 750ml bottle of 12.5% wine

Pure alcohol = 0.75L × 12.5% = 0.09375L. Duty = 0.09375 × £29.54 = £2.77. VAT 20% on retail price.

Example 3: Pint of 5% beer (568ml) at supermarket

Pure alcohol = 0.568L × 5% = 0.0284L. Duty = 0.0284 × £21.78 = £0.62. Pint sold in pub (draught) gets ~£0.56 due to Draught Relief.

Common mistakes to avoid

Confusing the post-2023 strength-based system with the old fixed-volume rates — rates are no longer per-litre-of-beverage.
Forgetting wine over 22% ABV is taxed at the spirit rate, not wine rate.
Believing draught and bottled beer have the same rate — Draught Relief makes pub-sold beer cheaper.
Not applying for Small Producer Relief if eligible — major saving for craft producers.
Personal-import gifts above the 16L wine / 4L spirit threshold without declaring — confiscation risk.
Assuming duty rates rise annually with inflation — government often freezes for political reasons.

When to use this calculator

Use this calculator if you produce, import, or sell alcohol in the UK; or if you're a consumer interested in what proportion of a £20 bottle is tax. Producers should run it for each new product to verify pricing and margins. Hospitality businesses should compare draught-relief vs bottled-rate maths when choosing keg sizes.

Regional differences (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland)

Alcohol duty is UK-wide with identical rates in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The 2023 reform applies uniformly. Scotland has additional regulations: Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) — currently 65p/unit (2024 rise) — sets a price floor on alcohol sold in Scotland (NOT a tax, but a retail rule). MUP affects supermarket pricing in Scotland but doesn't change the duty calculation. Wales has a 50p MUP. NI Protocol means NI retailers face EU-aligned regulations on labelling but not duty rates.

UK Alcohol Duty Calculator — 2025/26

Alcohol Duty Calculator