Nova Scotia Direct-to-Consumer Alcohol Sales

For consumers

If you live in Nova Scotia, you can order beer, wine, or spirits directly from an authorized producer in another participating province. There's no special registration to receive a shipment — orders come either straight from the producer or through a third-party shipper. You do need to meet Nova Scotia's legal drinking age of 19, and you should expect to show ID when the order arrives.

For producers

If you're a Nova Scotia brewery selling out of province, you need a Manufacturer's permit under the Liquor Control Act.

If you're based in another participating province and want to sell into Nova Scotia, you apply through the NSLC Permit Portal for an Out of Province Direct To Consumer Authorization. You'll need to show good standing with your home province's liquor authority, along with your contact information and the product categories you plan to sell.

Cross-selling is allowed too. You can ship alcohol you didn't manufacture yourself, as long as you hold a valid Manufacturer's Authorization.

Authorized producers report their Nova Scotia sales quarterly and remit a 5% fee on total retail sales.

Worth flagging: two things about that regime aren't publicly nailed down yet. NSLC hasn't defined what counts toward the 5% fee base, whether shipping, HST, container deposits, or discounts factor in. And the regulation's wording requires a consumer to buy "from the manufacturer that produced" the beverage, which sits awkwardly next to the cross-selling permission above, so it's not clear how contract production or co-packing fit. We'd confirm both directly with NSLC (Permits@MyNSLC.com) before relying on them.