MORE than 35,000 restaurants and cafes will be affected by the liquor licence requirement, comes into effect from January 1, proprietors said.

Coffee shops will require a licence to sell beer. The licence is expected to cost RM1,300.

Malaysia Singapore Coffee Shop Proprietors General Association president Wong Teu Hoon said it has enlisted the help of MCA ministers Wee Ka Siong (Transport Minister) and Lim Ban Hong (Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry) to take their concerns to the government.

“With the assistance of two ministers, we submitted a letter to the Finance Ministry, objecting to the move,” Wong said.

He said the rule had already been implemented in Perlis, but that other states had yet to receive a notice.

“But, in mid-September, I heard that it would be implemented nationwide, which is causing anxiety among operators.”

He said coffee shops are small businesses, which rely heavily on the sale of beverages to sustain themselves. Alcohol is sold in these outlets to supplement the sale of other drinks, such as coffee.

“I don’t make a lot of money from alcohol, and, now, I have to apply for a liquor license. In the end, the industry may choose not to sell alcohol at all,” he said.

Wong added that the Finance Ministry and the Customs Department have yet to issue an official announcement on the implementation.

“It now seems that the ministry has retracted this, but the Customs Department is adamant on seeing this through. And this has left many of us confused,” Wong said.

He estimated that at least 35,000 restaurants and cafes across the country will be impacted by the move.

Selangor and Kuala Lumpur Chinese Coffee and Tea Shopkeepers Association president Lee Chow Hait said this issue was mentioned in an engagement session between the industry, the Customs Department and Kuala Lumpur police last month.

“At the meeting, the association voiced the plight of the industry. Coffee shops do not sell a lot of beer but still have to pay an annual liquor license fee of more than RM1,000, which is a huge amount,” Lee said.

“At the meeting, the officials did not state their position but instead announced in the news that we must apply for a liquor license from January 1.”

He said it would be reasonable to charge between RM100 to RM200 annually with little red tape. In that case, he said the industry would be more than willing to cooperate.

“The industry is still recovering. Why would they burden us like this? If the cost is reduced, I believe more industry players would be willing to cooperate,” Lee said.

Tedious rules

On the other hand, Hii Hung Yii, president of the Bintulu Coffee, Liquor and Catering Merchants Association, expressed worry that the tedious rules for the liquor license would make operations more difficult.

“The market is not good. Our cost will increase due to the liquor license, and we have to pay every year, which is really not good,” he said.

He added that there are about 700 coffee shops in Bintulu, and most of them have objected to the move.

There are two types of liquor license. The first is for outlets that operate between 10am and 12am, the licences for which will cost RM110 a month, and the second is the 10am to 10pm category, for which the licence will cost RM70. This works out to be about RM 840-RM1,320 a year.

The opposition has also criticised the move, with DAP secretary-general and Bagan MP Lim Guan Eng calling it extreme. He accused Putrajaya of interfering in the customary lifestyle and business practices of non-Muslims in the country.

Teluk Intan MP Nga Kor Ming, meanwhile, questioned the need for so many licenses for coffee shops.

Since the Perikatan Nasional-led government came to power last year, restrictions had been imposed on the sales of alcohol. The Kuala Lumpur City Hall recently imposed restrictions on the sale of liquor in grocery and convenience stores as well as Chinese medicine halls. – December 7, 2021.