Which Alcohol Training Do I Need in Ontario? Smart Serve Full vs Retail vs Delivery

Who Needs Training at All

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) says that anyone involved in the sale, service, sampling or delivery of liquor, or in taking orders for its sale, must hold a valid certification from an AGCO Board-approved training course. This is a legal requirement under the Registrar's Interim Standards and Requirements for Liquor. The AGCO specifically includes security staff, staff selling from motorized vending carts, golf course marshals (for Golf Course Endorsement holders) and large quadricycle chauffeurs. Employees involved in delivery sales for grocery and convenience store licensees are covered by the Registrar's Standards for Grocery and Convenience Stores.

Whichever program you choose, the certificate must be renewed every five years. See our Smart Serve recertification guide for how that works.

The Three Types of AGCO-Approved Training

1. Smart Serve Full Course

The AGCO says the Smart Serve Full Course applies to all liquor licensees and employees, including bars, restaurants, grocery and convenience stores, and delivery licensees. It is available online and in person. Smart Serve describes it as preparing learners for "all environments where alcohol is sold, served, delivered, or sampled" in Ontario, and notes that if you take it, you do not need the Retail or Delivery course.

• Fee: $44.95 CAD (non-refundable)
• Course time: about 4 hours
• Final Test: 33 randomly generated multiple-choice questions, 80% to pass, proctored online

2. Liquor Retail Training Programs

These apply only to retail settings: convenience stores, grocery stores and off-site winery retail stores. The AGCO's approved list includes Acts of Service, AhoyLMS (StoreServe), CannServe Standard, Licensed to Serve, Liquor Retail Employee Training, SafeCheck Alcohol Retailer Training, Safe Selling, ID Please SABR and Smart Serve Retail.

The important limit, in the AGCO's words, is that a retail-only certificate does not allow sales, service, delivery or order-taking outside a retail store. For Smart Serve Retail specifically:

• Fee: $24.95 CAD (non-refundable)
• Course time: about 1.5 to 2 hours
• Final Test: 20 randomly generated multiple-choice questions, 80% to pass, proctored online

3. Licence to Deliver Liquor Training Programs

These apply to General Delivery and Affiliate Delivery licence holders and their employees or contractors. The AGCO's approved list includes Ahoy EnRoute, CannServe License to Deliver Liquor, Liquor Delivery Training (worksitesafety.ca), Responsible Alcohol Delivery (R.A.D.) and Safe Delivery (safebyoliver.com).

The AGCO updates these lists as new providers are approved, so check its training page for the current list before you pay for a course.

Smart Serve Full vs Smart Serve Retail

The trade-off is $20 and a couple of hours against flexibility. If there is any chance you will pick up shifts at a restaurant, bar, event or delivery service in the next five years, the Full Course avoids buying a second program later.

Age Rules: 18 to Serve, 19 to Drink

The AGCO sets two different ages, and the exam expects you to keep them apart:

• 18: If an employee will handle alcohol, including providing samples, the minimum age to work in a liquor sales licensed establishment, an authorized grocery store, or a winery, distillery or brewery retail store is 18.
• 19: The legal drinking age in a liquor sales licensed establishment in Ontario is 19.
• ID checks: You must check and verify the identification of anyone who appears under 19 before selling or serving liquor. The ID must be valid, government-issued and not expired.

So an 18-year-old can legally pour a drink for a 25-year-old, but cannot legally be served one. Many employers apply a stricter house policy for checking ID than the legal minimum; follow your workplace's policy. Our ID Verification questions drill these distinctions.

Role-Based Examples

Two situations are worth thinking through before you buy:

• A grocery or convenience store that also delivers. Retail-only certificates do not cover delivery outside a retail store, and the AGCO places delivery employees of grocery and convenience licensees under the Registrar's Standards for Grocery and Convenience Stores. If you will be doing deliveries, confirm with your employer which certificate they need from you; the Full Course covers delivery licensees as well as retail.
• Brewery, winery or distillery tasting rooms. Sampling is one of the activities that requires training. The AGCO's retail program list names off-site winery retail stores, not on-site tasting or by-the-glass service, so check with your employer and the AGCO before relying on a retail-only certificate in those roles.

Already Have Smart Serve?

The AGCO says people with a valid Smart Serve certificate can keep selling and delivering liquor until it expires. After that, they need a certificate from a program that applies to their role and setting. In practice, that means you choose again at renewal time. If your current Smart Serve certificate is still valid, recertifying with Smart Serve costs $29.95 instead of $44.95.

Tips for Employers and Managers

• Match each role to a program the AGCO approves for that setting.
• Keep copies of every staff member's certificate. The AGCO advises licensees to do this because inspectors can ask for proof at any time.
• Track expiry dates; every certificate must be renewed every five years.
• Remember that staff who only take orders, such as hosts who take drink orders, are covered too.

How to Prepare

Whichever course you take, the Final Test is proctored and you get two attempts per purchase. Use free practice to find your weak areas first:

• Retail Sales and Delivery for store and delivery roles
• Ontario Liquor Laws for hours, ages and the LLCA 2019
• Refusal Techniques for handling difficult refusals
• Proctored test setup checklist
• Smart Serve Retail overview