Opening a Convenience Store in Wyoming: Licenses & Permits

Wyoming treats beer like liquor inside town limits: you need a quota-limited retail liquor license from the city to sell either. Only people 21 or older may sell alcohol, and there's no school or church distance rule at the state level. Below is who issues what, and how each rule shapes the store you design.

Licenses and permits at a glance

Fuel tanks: DEQ

The Department of Environmental Quality's Storage Tank Program regulates tanks:

• Notice: notify DEQ 30 days before installing or substantially modifying a tank, with a $500 fee per tank or per batch installed together. A licensed installer must be on site.
• Inspection: DEQ inspects within 10 days of completion, and you can't operate until DEQ issues a written letter, unless it hasn't inspected within 15 days.
• Construction: every new tank and line must be double-walled with interstitial monitoring for life. Where sump sensors are the leak detection, an alarm must shut off product flow.
• Registration: register after each installation, with proof of financial assurance of at least $30,000. The annual fee is $200 per tank.
• Operators: Class A and B operators need a DEQ license, which requires an exam. Class C operators need training.
• Cleanup: DEQ runs a Corrective Action Account and performs cleanups itself, ranked by priority, for owners who paid their tank fees.

Alcohol: city, town or county

Cities and towns license inside their limits and county commissioners outside them. The state Liquor Division certifies applications and is the only wholesaler of spirits and wine.

• Retail liquor license: covers liquor and beer, for package and on-premises sale. It's the only way to sell beer inside city limits. The quota is two licenses for a town of 500 or fewer, plus one per additional 500 people up to 9,500. Fees run $300 to $1,500 a year.
• Malt beverage permit: a beer-only county permit for locations outside towns, with no quota.
• Process: notice is published for two weeks before a protest hearing, and the authority can deny a license based on the needs of the area. The applicant must own the building or lease it with alcohol sales allowed, and be operating within a year.
• Hours: set locally.
• Staff: no one under 21 may sell alcohol.
• Off-premises area: unaccompanied under-21s can't enter a locally approved area that's mainly for off-premises alcohol sales.
• Drive-up windows: allowed with approval, if well lit with an unobstructed view.
• Distance: state law has no school or church distance rule.

Tobacco and kratom

Wyoming has no state tobacco retailer license, though cities and counties may require one. Sales are 21 and older, with age signs at each display. Products must stay within the cashier's line of sight or control, with no self-service displays unless the store admits only adults 21 and older. Since July 1, 2026, kratom is also 21 and older and must be displayed out of reach of under-21s.

Food service: the Department of Agriculture

The Department of Agriculture's Consumer Health Services licenses food, except where a local health department covers the area, as in Laramie, Natrona, Teton, Sweetwater and Sublette counties and the City of Laramie. Submit the plan review packet at least 30 days before construction, and schedule a pre-opening inspection. A new license is $200 and renewal is $100 a year.

Sales tax, fuel pumps and lottery

• Sales tax: a Department of Revenue sales tax license is $60 per location, posted in the store. The state rate is 4%.
• Fuel pumps: the Department of Agriculture's Weights and Measures program issues an annual establishment license by device count, due April 1. Registered service technicians place pumps in service.
• Lottery: WyoLotto sells draw games only, with no scratch tickets. Commission is at least 6% of gross sales, plus a one-time fidelity fee of up to $100 per location.

What this means for your store design

• Confirm a liquor license is available before designing for beer. Inside town, beer needs a quota license. See choosing a location.
• Plan a separate alcohol area. Unaccompanied under-21s can't enter an approved off-premises sales area, so a liquor room works best. See the cooler wall planner and beer cave cost.
• Staff every alcohol sale with someone 21 or older.
• Keep tobacco and kratom in the cashier's line of sight or behind the counter.
• Add sump alarms that shut off flow, and wait for DEQ's letter before opening the pumps.
• Consider a drive-up window if you plan a package liquor area; it needs approval and clear sightlines.

Local approvals

Your city, town or county also controls zoning, building permits, fire inspections, signs, the liquor license and any local tobacco license. Our construction checklist covers the local steps.

For Wyoming store design, see convenience store design in Wyoming and walk-in cooler services in Wyoming.

Sources

• W.S. 35-11-1419, 35-11-1420, 35-11-1424, 35-11-1425, 35-11-1428, 35-11-1429 and 35-11-1431; DEQ, storage tank program.
• W.S. 12-1-101, 12-2-303, 12-4-101, 12-4-103, 12-4-104, 12-4-201, 12-5-101, 12-5-301, 12-5-302 and 12-6-101.
• W.S. 14-3-302, 14-3-303 and 14-3-308; 2026 SF0056 (kratom).
• W.S. 35-7-124; Department of Agriculture, Consumer Health Services and retail plan review packet.
• W.S. 39-15-104, 39-15-106 and 40-10-136; Department of Agriculture, weights and measures.
• W.S. 9-17-103, 9-17-114, 9-17-116 and 9-17-118; WyoLotto, become a retailer.

This page summarizes official sources as of October 2026. It is not legal advice. Fees and rules change, so confirm each one with the agency before you apply.