How to Start a Farm Winery in Kansas: $500 ABC License, Winery Outlets and Tasting Rooms

If you grow fruit or grapes in Kansas and want to make wine you can sell from your own land, a farm winery license is the place to start. The state license itself is inexpensive. The harder work is everything around it: a Secretary of State filing for your entity, a federal permit, a zoning check, sales tax registration, and local rules that differ from one city and county to the next.

This guide covers the steps in the order most new wineries should handle them. The figures come from Kansas statutes and agency sources checked in October 2026. Where a rule depends on your site or product, we say so and name the agency that confirms it.

This is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Alcohol law, zoning and tax treatment depend on your facts. Talk with a Kansas attorney who handles alcohol licensing and a CPA before you sign a lease, buy equipment or file.

Materials and information you need before you apply

Gather these items before you file anything. Most delays in winery startups come from missing one of them.

• A production estimate in gallons. A farm winery may make up to 100,000 gallons of domestic table and fortified wine a year under K.S.A. 41-308a. Write down your expected annual output and the growth you plan for the next few years.
• A fruit or grape source. This can be your own acreage or written supply agreements with growers. Keep the paperwork in case KDOR asks about your sources.
• Production equipment. Plan for crushing and destemming equipment, a press, fermentation tanks, filtration, a bottling line or a contract bottler, and closures and bottles.
• A premises that meets zoning rules. The site must be zoned agricultural, commercial or business, and it must sit at least 200 feet from schools and churches. Get the zoning letter in writing before you sign anything.
• A Kansas registered agent. Kansas calls this the resident agent. It must be an individual or business that can be present at a Kansas street address, not a PO box.
• Working capital for licensing. Budget for the $500 license, the $30 application fee and the $2,000 surety bond, plus the Secretary of State filing fees listed below. Ask your surety company what its premium will be, because that cost is separate from the bond amount.
• Insurance quotes. Ask for quotes that cover product liability, premises liability and any event or tasting activity you plan to host.
• Federal paperwork. You will need a federal permit from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) before you produce wine for sale.

Step-by-step: from entity filing to your first bottle sold

Step 1: Form your entity with the Kansas Secretary of State

Most farm wineries organize as limited liability companies. In Kansas, the formation document is the Articles of Organization, Domestic Limited Liability Company (Form DL), filed for an $85 fee. Online filings process within minutes, and you can print a certified copy right away. You can file through the Secretary of State's Business Services online portal, or use the business search at sos.ks.gov business search to check your name first.

Kansas requires the name to include L.L.C., L.C., LLC, LC, LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY or LIMITED COMPANY. The name is checked against entities already on file. If a similar name is in use, you need a Consent to Use of Similar Business Name (Form CN) with the formation filing. If you want to hold a name while you finish paperwork, a name reservation costs $35 and lasts 120 days.

Kansas has no statewide business license, so forming the LLC is a filing, not a license. The recurring filing is the biennial Information Report, which costs $90 and is due every two years by April 15. An LLC formed in an even year reports in each later even year. An LLC formed in 2026, for example, files its first report by April 15, 2028. Confirm the schedule on the Secretary of State's site when you file.

Keep your brand name in mind. Kansas has no state-level DBA, assumed or trade name filing, so your tasting room name does not need a state registration. City and county rules may still apply, and you can protect a brand through the Secretary of State trademark and service mark registration.

Step 2: Confirm zoning and the 200-foot rule before you buy or lease

This is the step most often skipped, and it is the one that can stop a project outright. Kansas has 105 counties and 624 cities. Every incorporated place is legally a city, so your zoning comes from the city if you are inside city limits and usually from the county if you are not.

Ask the planning or zoning office for a written answer to three questions. Is the parcel zoned agricultural, commercial or business? Does the 200-foot distance from schools and churches pass, and how does your local office measure it? Does the local code allow a tasting room, retail sales and events on this parcel? Check with the local office on the measurement method, because it can differ from what you expect on a map.

If your site is near Kansas City, confirm which city you are in. Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri are different cities in different states. Only Kansas City, Missouri has a city earnings tax, so an address in Kansas City, Kansas does not carry that tax.

Step 3: Get your federal TTB permit

Federal wine production requires a permit from TTB before you produce wine for sale. Plan for TTB to review your premises and your operation, and ask TTB what it requires for labels. Most wine labels need federal label approval before the wine is bottled and sold, so do not print a full run until you have confirmed the approval process.

Kansas licensing and federal permitting run in parallel, but the state will expect you to hold the right federal status, so keep copies of everything you file with TTB.

Step 4: Choose the right Kansas license category

The Kansas Department of Revenue (KDOR) handles liquor licensing. The farm winery license costs $500 per two-year term. Under K.S.A. 41-310, the wine manufacturer license costs $1,000. The two are not interchangeable. Confirm with KDOR which category your operation fits before you pay the application fee.

Item	Amount	Agency or statute	Notes
Articles of Organization (LLC)	$85	Kansas Secretary of State	One-time filing
Name reservation	$35	Kansas Secretary of State	Holds a name for 120 days
Information Report (LLC)	$90	Kansas Secretary of State	Every two years, due April 15
Farm winery license	$500	KDOR, ABC	Per two-year term
Application fee	$30	KDOR, ABC	Paid with the application
Surety bond	$2,000	KDOR, ABC	Bond amount; the premium is separate
Wine manufacturer license	$1,000	K.S.A. 41-310	Confirm whether this category applies to you
Winery outlet license	$100 each	KDOR, ABC	Up to three outlets
Special order shipping license	$100	K.S.A. 41-350	Two-year term
Farmers market sales permit	$25 per year	K.S.A. 41-351	Annual
Kansas business tax registration	Free	KDOR	Required for sales tax

Use the KDOR liquor licensing page and the Kansas business registration page at ksrevenue.gov business to confirm current forms and processing times. Processing times for the liquor license are not set out in this guide, so ask KDOR directly when you plan your opening date.

Step 5: Apply for the ABC farm winery license and post the bond

Submit the application with the $30 fee, the $500 license fee for the two-year term, and the $2,000 surety bond. Your surety company will issue the bond after reviewing your application and your financials, so start that conversation early. The application will ask about your premises, your ownership and your production plans. Answer each question with the facts from your production estimate, and keep copies of all documents.

Do not sell wine until the license is issued. Ask KDOR whether any product sample or pre-opening tasting event counts as a sale before the license date.

Step 6: Register for Kansas business taxes

Register your business with KDOR through the business registration page. The registration is free and is where you get a retailer's sales tax permit. The Kansas state sales tax rate is 6.5 percent. Ask KDOR how sales tax applies to the specific wine, bottles, merchandise and tasting fees you plan to sell, and whether any liquor-specific tax or reporting applies to your products. Your CPA should confirm how your LLC is taxed for income purposes.

Kansas has no LLC franchise tax. Members of an LLC report Kansas income on their individual returns. The top individual rate is 5.58 percent above $23,000 of Kansas taxable income for single filers or $46,000 for married couples filing jointly, and 5.2 percent up to those amounts.

Step 7: Add the sales channels your license allows

A farm winery license gives you several channels, and each has its own rules.

• Sales to wholesale buyers. You may sell to wine distributors, retailers, clubs and bars.
• Bottle sales on site. You may sell bottles from your premises and give free samples.
• Wine by the glass on site. Under K.S.A. 41-308a, you may sell by the glass on site in a county that permits drinking establishments, without a separate drinking establishment license. Confirm with your county that it permits drinking establishments before you plan glass service.
• Winery outlets. You may add up to three winery outlet licenses at $100 each. Ask KDOR what qualifies as an outlet and how the outlet's location must relate to your winery before you sign a lease.
• Farmers markets. A farmers market sales permit costs $25 a year under K.S.A. 41-351.
• Direct shipping to Kansas consumers. A special order shipping license costs $100 for two years under K.S.A. 41-350. It allows up to 12 cases per consumer per year, and the shipment must be signed for by an adult.
• Out-of-state shipping. Shipping out of state follows the laws of the receiving state, so check each state before you ship.

Step 8: Handle city, county and food rules for the tasting room

Kansas issues no general statewide business license. You will register for the taxes that apply to you with KDOR, and you will get any city or county permits and occupational licenses your location requires. If you serve food at the tasting room, check with the Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA) on food requirements. Check with your city or county on any tasting room, event, parking or signage permits.

If you are building or remodeling the tasting room, know that Kansas has no statewide general contractor, electrician, plumber or HVAC license. Cities and counties license those trades, so ask the local building department which licenses the contractors on your project must hold.

Step 9: Set up production and sales records

Track your production in gallons from the first batch. The 100,000-gallon annual limit applies to your wine volume, not your bottle count, so a spreadsheet that converts bottles and cases to gallons will save you time at renewal. Keep purchase records for fruit and grapes, and keep sales records for each channel: wholesale, on-site bottles, glass sales, outlets, farmers markets and shipments.

Step 10: Calendar your renewals and filings

Put these dates on a shared calendar: the April 15 Information Report every two years, the ABC license renewal at the end of each two-year term, the $25 farmers market permit each year and the $100 shipping license every two years. Missing a renewal can stop sales, so set reminders 60 days ahead.

Tips for a smoother launch

• Get the zoning answer in writing. A verbal yes from a planning clerk is not enough when the 200-foot rule is involved.
• Ask KDOR before you print labels or open. Confirm the license category, the outlet rules and the sample rules before you commit money.
• Line up your bond and insurance early. The surety and insurer both review your business plan, so apply in parallel with your license application.
• Plan agritourism and wine trail activity with your county. Farm winery rules overlap with agritourism, events and wine trail programs. Ask your county what events are allowed on your parcel and whether any special permits apply.
• Use the Kansas Small Business Development Center. The Kansas SBDC network at kansassbdc.net offers free business advising that can help you check your plan before you file.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Assuming Kansas has a general business license. It does not. The Secretary of State filing creates your entity, and KDOR and the agencies named in this guide handle the licenses that apply to you.
• Relying on older guides that cite a Kansas-grown requirement. The old requirement that 15 percent of products be Kansas grown expired January 1, 2023. The current statute sets no percentage.
• Signing a lease before the zoning and distance check. A tasting room on the wrong parcel can cost you the license or the building.
• Confusing the two Kansas Citys. Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri are different cities. Only Kansas City, Missouri has a city earnings tax.
• Counting bottles instead of gallons. The farm winery cap is measured in gallons, so bottle counts alone will not show whether you are within it.
• Printing labels before federal approval. Confirm the TTB label process first, or you may have to reprint.
• Shipping without checking the rules. Kansas shipping is limited to 12 cases per consumer per year, with an adult signature. Other states set their own rules.
• Using a brand name without checking local rules. Kansas has no state DBA filing, but a city or county can still require its own registration.

Expected results

A license and a finished tasting room do not guarantee sales. What a well-prepared farm winery can usually expect is a clear set of legal sales channels, a predictable compliance calendar and a product that can be sold through several routes. Many owners find that on-site sales and events make up a large share of their early revenue, and that wholesale accounts take longer to build. Results vary with your location, your product quality, your marketing and your local competition, so treat any projection as an estimate and build a plan that works if sales are slower than you hope.

Your wine's marketing should stay within federal and state rules. Wine is an alcoholic beverage, so do not describe it as having health benefits or medical effects. Describe the product, the farm and the experience instead.

Use official sources to confirm each figure in this guide before you file. The Kansas Secretary of State is at sos.ks.gov business, and the Kansas Department of Revenue business page is at ksrevenue.gov business. Check with TTB, KDA and your city and county for the federal, food and local requirements that apply to your site.

Disclaimer

This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Fees, statutes, agency processes and deadlines change, and your situation may differ from the examples here. Before you form your entity, sign a lease, apply for a license or ship wine, consult a Kansas attorney who handles alcohol licensing and a CPA who understands your tax position.