How to Import Spanish Wine to the USA: 7 Steps for 2026

Before a single case of Rioja can leave a U.S. port for sale, four different authorities have had their say: the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the alcohol regulator of every state where the wine will be sold. Miss one and the wine sits in customs custody, or worse, it clears and then cannot legally be sold.

We import the wines of our own family wineries in Rioja and Navarra into the United States, so this is the process we run every year. Here is the full path, step by step, with what each agency asks for in 2026.

Key Takeaways

• You need a federal Importer's Basic Permit from TTB, and a staffed business office in the U.S. to get one.
• Every wine label needs a Certificate of Label Approval (COLA) before the wine can be released from customs.
• The FDA requires the producing winery to be registered and a Prior Notice for every shipment.
• Federal clearance is only half the job: each state has its own licenses and registrations under the three-tier system.
• Buyers who want Spanish wine without the paperwork can source it from a U.S. importer that already holds the permits and the stock.

Can you import Spanish wine into the USA yourself?

Yes, but not as a casual buyer. Anyone importing wine into the United States as a business must hold a federal importer's permit, and TTB only issues it to an importer that maintains and staffs a business office in the United States. A company abroad that cannot do that must contract with an existing licensed U.S. importer, which removes the need for its own permit.

The rest of this guide covers what a new importer has to put in place. If you only want Spanish wine on your shelf or wine list, skip to the last section: there is a much shorter route.

Step 1: Get a federal importer's permit from TTB

The permit is issued under the Federal Alcohol Administration Act. You apply on form TTB F 5100.24 through TTB's free Permits Online system, or on paper, and TTB charges no fee for it. Three practical points:

• Timing: TTB's customer service goal is to issue 85% of permits within 75 days, and it publishes current median processing times on its website.
• Wholesaling is separate: if you plan to sell at wholesale beverages you did not import yourself, you also need a Wholesaler's Basic Permit. Both can be requested at the same time.
• Dealer registration: importers must also register with TTB as alcohol dealers before they start doing business.

Step 2: Approve every label (the COLA)

Once you hold the permit, each unique wine and label needs a Certificate of Label Approval. For wine at 7% alcohol or more, the importer must have the COLA at the time of importation, and its ID is filed with CBP at entry. Wine whose labels do not match the approved COLA has to be relabeled under customs supervision before it can be released. Applying for a COLA is also free.

TTB lists what an imported wine label must carry, including:

• The brand name and the class or type of wine
• The alcohol content and the net contents
• The importer's name and address
• The sulfite declaration and the Government Health Warning
• A country of origin marking

Spanish labels also carry their own quality codes, from the Rioja back-label seals to terms like Crianza and Gran Reserva. We explain those in our guide to how to read a Spanish wine label.

Step 3: Check cellar treatment and origin paperwork

For grape wine produced after 2004, U.S. law asks the importer to show that the wine was made with proper cellar treatment, usually through a certification. Spain is part of the European Union, and TTB lists natural grape wines from EU member states, Spain included, as not subject to that certification under the U.S.-EU wine agreement. Some wines and spirits also need a certificate of age or origin, so check TTB's list for every product you plan to bring in.

Step 4: Register with the FDA and file Prior Notice

Wine is a food in the eyes of the FDA. The Bioterrorism Act requires anyone who manufactures, processes, packs or holds food for U.S. consumption to register with the FDA, which covers the winery shipping to you. Every shipment then needs a Prior Notice filed before it arrives at the border.

One rule you can usually set aside: alcoholic beverages from a foreign facility that is registered with the FDA and would need a Treasury permit if it operated in the U.S. are exempt from the FDA's Foreign Supplier Verification Program. That exemption does not extend to Prior Notice, which still applies to every shipment.

Step 5: Clear customs, then pay duties and excise tax

A commercial wine shipment almost always goes through a formal entry, which CBP requires for shipments valued above $2,500, and a formal entry requires a customs bond on file before anything moves. Most importers file through a licensed customs broker.

CBP then collects two separate charges:

• Federal excise tax: $1.07 per wine gallon for still wine of 16% alcohol or less, about 21 cents for a 750 ml bottle, before any credit a foreign winery can assign to its importer under the Craft Beverage Modernization Act.
• Customs duties: these depend on the country of origin and have moved several times in the last two years. We keep the current figures in our breakdown of 2026 wine tariffs.

Step 6: Get the wine into each state

Federal clearance does not let you sell anywhere yet. Alcohol in the U.S. moves through the three-tier system: in most states the importer sells to a licensed distributor, the distributor sells to retailers and restaurants, and the retailer sells to the consumer. Each state sets its own licenses and usually requires each brand or label to be registered before it can be sold there.

Two things surprise new importers. In control states such as Pennsylvania and Utah, a state agency is part of the chain, so getting listed works differently. And several states have franchise laws that limit how easily a supplier can change distributors, so the first partner you sign in a state matters.

Step 7: Plan freight, storage and cash flow

Wine travels by container, and a container is paid for long before the first case is sold. Your landed cost includes the wine, ocean freight and insurance, duties, excise tax, broker and bond fees, and warehousing on arrival. Temperature matters too: a summer crossing in a standard container can cook a fine wine, so many importers ship temperature-controlled.

Plan for the time lag. In our own operation, bringing wine from the wineries to a U.S. warehouse takes around three months, so reorders have to be placed well before stock runs low.

How long does it take to import wine into the US?

For a first-time importer, several months. The federal permit comes first (TTB aims to issue 85% within 75 days), then label approvals, then the shipment itself, then the state registrations, which run on each state's own calendar. Once everything is in place, our reorders take around three months from the winery to the warehouse.

The faster route: buy from an importer with stock already in the U.S.

Most retailers, restaurants and distributors do not want to become importers. They want the wine. That is exactly what a Spanish wine importer with landed stock is for: the permit, the COLAs, the customs work and the freight are already done, and you order by the case like any domestic supplier.

That is how we work. Manzanos Wines USA imports the wines of our own family estates in Haro, Azagra and Campanas, five generations of the Fernández de Manzanos family since 1890. Our wines are in stock in the U.S. and ready to ship to all 50 states, through distributor partners state by state. Across the group we count more than 600 wines rated 90 points or higher, including the Manzanos Gran Reserva Rioja 2015 at 95 points from Wine Enthusiast, the Manzanos Reserva Rioja 2018 at 93 points and the Manzanos 125 Aniversario, Decanter Platinum at 97 points.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need my own import license to stock Spanish wine in my store or restaurant?

No. When you buy through a licensed importer and its distributor network, the federal permit, label approvals and state registrations are already in place. You place a domestic order like with any other supplier.

How much does it cost to import wine into the USA?

TTB charges nothing for the importer's permit or for label approvals. The real costs are freight and insurance, customs duties, federal excise tax ($1.07 per gallon for still wine up to 16% alcohol, before any credits), broker and bond fees, warehousing and each state's own fees.

What is a COLA for wine?

A Certificate of Label Approval is TTB's sign-off on a specific label. Wine of 7% alcohol or more cannot be released from customs for sale without one, and every distinct product and label needs its own.

Does imported wine need FDA approval?

The FDA does not approve wines, but it does require the producing winery to be registered as a food facility and a Prior Notice for every shipment before it reaches the U.S. border.

Find Our Wines, or Source Them for Your Business

Wine lovers: explore our wines and use Find Our Wines to see retailers near you, including Costco, Total Wine & More, Spec's and Binny's.

Distributors, retailers and restaurants: skip the permits and the containers. Talk to us about sourcing our wines or becoming a distributor.

Manzanos Wines USA is the premier importer of premium wines from Spain, Italy, Chile, South Africa, and France, serving all 50 US states through our nationwide distributor network. Learn more at manzanoswinesusa.com.

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