LEGAL GUIDE
Ontario Alcohol Service Hours: Bars, Retail and Delivery (with Exam Scenarios)
Hours questions are some of the easiest marks on the Smart Serve test, as long as you know the exact numbers and which setting they apply to. Here is the AGCO's official schedule, then three scenarios worked the way the exam asks them.
By SmartServe Prep Team
The Official Hours Table
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) publishes the permitted hours for liquor sale, service and delivery. The figures below come directly from that page. Individual licences can carry conditions that further limit these hours, so a specific bar may have to stop earlier than the provincial maximum.
| Setting | Permitted hours | Key detail |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed establishments (liquor sales licence) | 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m., Monday to Sunday | Last drinks must be served before 2:00 a.m. |
| New Year's Eve (December 31) | 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on January 1 | Last drinks must be served before 3:00 a.m. |
| Clear-by rule | 45 minutes after the end time on the licence | For most licensees, all signs of liquor cleared by 2:45 a.m. |
| Retail stores (including in-store or curbside pickup where permitted) | 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., Monday to Sunday | A store may be open longer, but can only sell liquor in these hours |
| Delivery | 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., Monday to Sunday | Eligible licensees, retail stores, by-the-glass endorsement holders and auction permit holders |
| Manufacturer by-the-glass and caterer's endorsements | 9:00 a.m. to midnight, Monday to Sunday | Wineries, breweries and distilleries |
| Special occasion permits | Only the hours specified on the permit | The permit, not the licensed-establishment default, sets the hours |
Reading the Rules Carefully
"End of service" is not "everyone out"
At a licensed establishment, the last drink must be served before 2:00 a.m. The AGCO then allows 45 minutes for patrons to finish: all signs of liquor must be cleared 45 minutes after the end time on the licence, which for most establishments is 2:45 a.m. Exam questions often test whether you can separate these two times. Service stops at 2:00; glasses, bottles and other signs of liquor must be gone by 2:45.
The licence can be stricter than the province
The AGCO notes that some licence holders have conditions on their liquor sales licence that further limit the hours. If your workplace licence says service ends at midnight, midnight is your legal end time and the 45-minute clear-by window counts from there. The provincial 2:00 a.m. is a maximum, not a guarantee.
Retail opening hours and sale hours are different
A grocery or convenience store can open at 6:00 a.m. or stay open all night. That does not change when it may sell liquor. The AGCO says stores may open outside liquor sale hours but can only sell liquor from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Holiday opening is a separate question governed by the Retail Business Holidays Act and municipal by-laws, which the AGCO notes is not under its authority.
Delivery has its own window
Delivery runs from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., seven days a week. That is a later start than retail sales (7:00 a.m.), so a store that can sell at the counter at 7:30 a.m. still cannot deliver liquor at that time.
Permits follow the permit
Special occasion permit holders may only sell and serve liquor during the hours specified on the permit. The AGCO also notes that the Registrar can restrict regular hours as a condition of a permit.
Daylight saving time
Two edge cases occasionally appear in study materials. In spring, clocks move forward at 2:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m.; the AGCO says sales stop at that point and the 45-minute clearing window still applies. In autumn, the AGCO says a licensee may turn the clock back one hour and continue to sell until 2:00 a.m. new time.
One more special case: licensees in sterile areas of designated airports may sell and serve liquor at any time, except where a licence condition limits the hours. This rarely matters at a neighbourhood bar, but it explains why an airport lounge can serve at 6:00 a.m.
Three Worked Exam-Style Scenarios
Scenario 1: The last-minute round
It is a Saturday in June. A table at your bar, which has no extra licence conditions on hours, asks for another round at 1:58 a.m. The drinks will take about five minutes to make. Another guest at the bar is still holding a half-finished beer at 2:40 a.m. What should you do?
Answer: Last drinks must be served before 2:00 a.m. If the round cannot be in front of the guests before 2:00, decline it politely and explain that service has ended. The guest with the beer can finish it, but all signs of liquor must be cleared by 2:45 a.m. At 2:40 a.m., let them know they have a few minutes and collect the glass before 2:45. Serving at 2:03 a.m. "because they ordered before two" is the wrong answer.
Scenario 2: New Year's Eve
You are working a New Year's Eve party at a licensed restaurant. A guest asks at 2:30 a.m. on January 1 whether the bar is still open. Can you serve them, and when must the room be clear of liquor?
Answer: Yes, if the guest is not intoxicated and your licence has no stricter condition. On December 31, licensed establishments may sell and serve from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on January 1, so last drinks must be served before 3:00 a.m. Applying the 45-minute rule to that 3:00 a.m. end time means all signs of liquor must be cleared by 3:45 a.m. Note that the extension applies only to the night of December 31, not to other holidays.
Scenario 3: The early-morning store and the late delivery
You work at an authorized convenience store that opens at 6:00 a.m. A customer brings a six-pack to the counter at 6:45 a.m. Later the same day, the store receives a delivery order for wine at 10:50 p.m. with a 20-minute delivery estimate. What do you do in each case?
Answer: At 6:45 a.m., refuse the alcohol sale. The store can be open, but retail liquor sales are permitted only from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.; the customer can come back after 7:00. For the late order, delivery is permitted until 11:00 p.m. A delivery that would arrive at about 11:10 p.m. falls outside the window, so it should not be dispatched. Exam questions like this reward the answer that keeps every part of the transaction inside the permitted hours.
Common Mistakes on Hours Questions
- Confusing 2:00 a.m. with 2:45 a.m. One is when service ends; the other is when all signs of liquor must be cleared.
- Applying bar hours to retail. Retail is 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., not 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.
- Assuming delivery matches retail. Delivery starts at 9:00 a.m., two hours later than retail sales.
- Forgetting licence conditions. A licence or permit can set stricter hours; the stricter rule wins.
- Treating New Year's Eve as a general holiday rule. The 3:00 a.m. end time is specific to December 31 into January 1.
Hours are just one part of the legal framework. Practise them alongside the rest of the Ontario Liquor Laws questions, and review Service Guidelines for how hours interact with house policies and last call. If you work in a store or deliver, the Retail Sales and Delivery topic applies these hours to counter and doorstep situations.
Sources
- AGCO: Hours for liquor sale, service and delivery (all hours in the table, 45-minute clearing rule, licence conditions, daylight saving time, airports, Retail Business Holidays Act note)
- Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019 (Ontario e-Laws)
Last reviewed: October 30, 2026. The AGCO can announce temporary hour extensions for specific events; always follow your licence and current AGCO notices. SmartServe Prep is an independent study site and is not affiliated with Smart Serve Ontario or the AGCO.
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