FAQ

There are several ways to find out which of our products are available for online purchase:

• Visit the “Shop Home Delivery“ page
• Use the “Buy Online” filter under “Availability” to see a list of the products that are currently available for online purchase.
• Look for a purple “Add to Cart” button on the individual product page. If a product is currently unavailable for purchase online, this button will be greyed out and you will not be able to add it to your cart. 

No. Online orders for beverage alcohol and cannabis are fulfilled from different locations within the province and processed separately. You will need to place separate orders on each respective site.

If you have an online account, you can use the "My List" feature to save products for later, easily check in-store inventory, or create a shopping list for your next in-store visit. All our products can be added to your lists, but not all products are available to order online and cannot be added to your cart.

The delivery fee is $12 for orders under $150 (tax included). Orders $150 (tax included) and over will receive free shipping.

The Cannabis Control Act specifically states how we can market the product. As it stands right now, we are not able to offer incentives for cannabis purchases and this includes free shipping. 

The NSLC is proud to offer home delivery for online orders to most addresses in Nova Scotia. To find out if we can deliver to your address, please use our postal code verification tool found on the Home Delivery page.

• Orders can only be delivered to eligible civic addresses within the province of Nova Scotia.
• Orders cannot be shipped to a PO Box.
• Orders can only be delivered to a residence or private addresses, which includes locations that may provide long-term accommodations such as hotels, motels, or vacation rentals. When deliveries are made to a hotel or motel, the driver must either deliver directly to the room or have the front desk call up to the room to ask the customer to come down to present identification and signature. Customers may not wait in the lobby for delivery to arrive.
• Orders will not be delivered to campgrounds, national parks, or any location where public consumption is not permitted.

To find out if we can deliver to your address, please use our postal code verification tool found on the Home Delivery page.

No. By law, the NSLC is only permitted to sell beverage alcohol within the province of Nova Scotia. If you make an online purchase, your billing address can be from anywhere in North America, but the shipping address must be within Nova Scotia.

In-store pickup for online orders is not available at this time. You can use the “Check store availability” feature to see where a product is available for in-store purchase.

You can send an online order to anyone who is over the age of 19 if their address is eligible for home delivery. The recipient will be required to be home and present a valid photo ID upon delivery. Please ensure you enter the delivery address of the recipient in the shipping information field at checkout. We recommend confirming this ahead of time to ensure they are ready to receive their order in the delivery window you selected for them

Payment for online orders can be made using a VISA (including VISA debit), MasterCard, or American Express. Complete payment information, including the credit card number, expiry date, and security code must be provided at the time of ordering. We cannot accept NSLC gift cards for online orders at this time.

When you place an online order, you will be prompted to select an available delivery window (date and time) during the checkout process. Delivery windows open seven days in advance. Depending on where you live, same-day or next-day delivery options are often available. 

Delivery times will be displayed during the checkout process. These are based on your location and delivery window availability.

If there is no delivery window option for your preferred date and time, that means it is either full or unavailable. Please select the next most convenient time.

You do not need to create an account to place an order; you can check out as a guest.

When you create an account, you can easily review the status of your current and past orders, identify your preferred store, and curate your own list of products for easier online shopping using the “Add to my list” feature. 

We require this information to ensure the security of your credit card purchase and to know where your order is being delivered. Your phone number is required so we can contact you if there are issues with your order.

The NSLC only collects personal information about you if it relates directly to and is necessary to operate a service, program, or activity of the NSLC or if a law authorizes or requires us to collect it.

To learn more, please review our privacy statement. 

Once you have completed the checkout process, you will see an order confirmation notification on the screen. An electronic order confirmation will be sent to the email address you provide in the checkout process. You will receive another email when your order has shipped.

When you place an order, an authorized hold will be made on your credit card to ensure there are available funds for your purchase. If the balance is available, the amount of your purchase will be reserved on your credit card (therefore, this amount will not be available for other purchases). Your credit card will be charged once your home delivery order has shipped.

A final receipt will be included inside one of your order boxes. You will also receive an email receipt when you place your order.

You can track your delivery with the tracking information provided in your shipping confirmation email.

Your order will be delivered to your door by one of our delivery partners, MBW or Community Courier.

Our courier will arrive at the delivery address within the window you selected at checkout. You, or someone over the age of 19, must be home to accept your delivery. The recipient must show valid government-issued photo identification 

Yes. The person accepting the delivery must be over the age of 19 and must provide valid government-issued photo identification.

If you miss your delivery, an information card will be left at your door with a new delivery time for the next day. There will be three attempts of delivery. If the final attempt is unsuccessful, you will be refunded for the cost of the product(s) in your order. Delivery fees are non-refundable.

There is a very short window in which we are able to make changes to or cancel your order. If you need to cancel your order after you place it, please contact us at 1-800-567-5874 or ContactUs@myNSLC.com from Monday to Saturday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. to discuss your options with our service excellence team. If we cannot cancel your order, you may return it a store near you for a refund. Please note, delivery fees are non-refundable.

After 40 minutes of inactivity, your session will time out, and products will be removed from your shopping cart. This ensures these products can be made available to the next customer.

We are unable to remove the tax from online orders at the time of purchase for individuals with a Status Card. Please save your receipt and apply for a rebate through the appropriate channel. We apologize for any inconvenience. 

You can browse The Port products online. To  place an order,  call 782-640-4435 or email our team at ThePortOnline@myNSLC.com . Once confirmed, your order can be picked up at the NSLC store of your choice, usually within 5 business days. Orders of less than $75 will be subject to a $20 (plus tax) shipping charge. Visit The Port page for more information. 

We frequently review our product selection to ensure a diverse offering, and we’re always getting new and unique products. Check The Port products page to look for new products or ask our team at The Port. 

The Port offers our most unique selection of specialty products from around the world. Many products won’t be found in other NSLC stores and are available in limited quantities. Visit The Port page to learn more

Enjoy complimentary one hour customer parking in the designated parking spots located in our  underground parking lot on Birmingham Street. Parking tickets are validated with a purchase from The Port. 

The Port’s full experience store is in downtown Halifax at 5485 Clyde Street. There are also Port Sections within some of our NSLC store across the province where you will find a selection of specialty products. Find out which locations have Port sections by visiting myNSLC.com/Stores.

Product selection and availability vary between our stores and our website. If you see a product in a store, it might not be available online, and vice versa. There are over 400+ customer favourites available for home delivery. 

We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Please send your suggestions to ContactUs@myNSLC.com for consideration by our category teams 

If you would like to purchase a product that is not currently available in our stores, our special orders desk can help. Keep in mind that depending on where the product is travelling from, special orders can take time. There will also be minimum purchase requirements and additional charges for shipping and handling. Visit our Special Orders page for more information. 

Use our search at the top right of the website and type in the product name. Once you have found the product, click “Check store availability” (located under the product price) to see what stores carry this product. Please note that inventory amounts are kept as up to date as possible, but you may want to call ahead to confirm – especially if inventory amounts appear low. You can also inquire about a product with a team member at any of our NSLC stores. 

We do our best to offer a variety of products that Nova Scotians love to buy. We use NSLC sales data and insights, customer feedback, store teams' feedback, and industry trends to determine what is popular and what is not, and then we adjust our offerings on a regular basis. We strive to provide a superb customer experience, but we cannot carry every listed product in every single store.

To maintain price stability where possible, the NSLC has two major pricing reviews annually. The review process allows price adjustments to offset the increasing cost of doing business. These costs include currency changes, labour, energy, transportation, materials, and taxes. Some price adjustments are initiated by the NSLC and some by the suppliers.  

Beverage Alcohol products have an established floor price, which is what the NSLC calls a social reference price. The social reference prices are re-assessed with our bi-annual Pricing Review Process. 

The shelf life of craft beer is about six months. It will last a little longer if it is refrigerated.

We frequently review our products to ensure a diverse offering. Check our New Arrivals to discover new products or ask one of our team members in-store for what is new. 

If you discover a safety issue related to a product you have purchased at one of our stores, we want to know about it right away. To determine whether it is an isolated problem, or one that could affect more than one item, please tell us know where you bought it, when, and what the safety issue is in as much detail as possible. If possible, we would like to have the product returned to us right away, we'll investigate the issue and advise the producer. If there is a problem with the product, we will immediately remove it from our shelves and alert our customers.  

We will also provide you with a refund or exchange for your purchase. Please bring the item to your nearest NSLC store to receive your refund/exchange. You can also review our return policy.  

You can contact our team Monday-Saturday 8:00am-6:00pm at 1-800-567-5874 or ContactUs@myNSLC.com. 

Container deposit fees are applied to all beverage alcohol products. Fifty percent of the deposits will be refunded when you return containers through the ENVIRO-DEPOT™ network. 

We offer more than 700 local products, and you will find our largest selection of local products in our NSLC Signature and Nova Centre stores. Discover all local products and learn more about our local producers by visiting our Proudly Nova Scotian section.

We work hard to give our customers variety and new selections throughout the year. We do that with our One-Time-Only (OTO) listings. Our OTO products are evaluated based on our sales data and insights. These products are kept on our shelves only if their sales are strong, otherwise they are delisted.  

In some cases, we can only access certain quantities of products from our supplier partners, or the product is produced only in limited amounts. Therefore, some products may only be available while supplies last.  

We also only have a limited amount of space in our stores, and we need to make sure our product mix meets our customers’ preferences.  

Please speak with our store team members to find out more about the OTO products available. If you would like to share some ideas or have some feedback, please email us at ContactUs@myNSLC.com. 

Certain products my be temporarily unavailable due to Canada-wide inventory, and global supply chain issues. This is an evolving situation, and may impact various products and regions at different times. If you’re unable to find your preferred product, we encourage you to ask our team for a recommendation so they can help you discover an alternate choice based on your preferences.

Yes. We are committed to supporting organizations and initiatives that work to build healthy and sustainable communities in our province. Our goal is to help everyone find moments of positive care and connection to help create a stronger Nova Scotia. We do this through investing in three areas: Community Wellbeing, Our Environment and Responsibility Stewardship. Stay updated on our commitment and the good we give at mynslc.com/community 

To request support, or, to ask for more information about our sponsorship and donation programs, please email CSR@mynslc.com. 

All delivery drivers complete mandatory responsible sales training to prevent deliveries to underage or impaired people. Government issued photo identification is required to accept all home delivery parcels, and drivers will check identification to ensure customers are not underage. 19+ ID required and responsible consumption messaging is also included on packing tape of delivery boxes. Drivers will not complete a delivery if ID is not available, there is suspicion that the order is for a minor or if the customer is impaired.

We are committed to reducing our environmental footprint and stewarding the preservation of our natural resources to contribute to the health and sustainability of our communities. We do this through operational efficiencies, waste management efforts and our community investment program. 

When you submit an order online, you are representing that you are aged 19 years or older and that you are not purchasing products for anyone who is younger than 19 years of age. You (or the designated person picking up the order at the store, or accepting the order via home delivery) will be required to present valid government issued ID.  The delivery driver may refuse to deliver the parcel if proper identification is not produced or if the recipient either is or appears to be underage or impaired. 

Our retail team challenges more than two million customers for ID every year, helping to keep our products out of the hands of minors. If you look under 30 years of age, please have your ID ready when shopping in store or awaiting a home delivery order. 

Visit our ID page for more information on accepted forms of identification.

Returns cannot be made at your door. If you would like to return the product, please take the unopened product to your nearest NSLC store within 30 days with your receipt and our team will be happy to help you make a return. If you do not have your receipt, we can exchange the product but cannot offer you a refund. Please note, we cannot refund your delivery fee.  

Alcohol returns cannot be made by mail. Please take the unopened product to your nearest NSLC store within 30 days with your receipt and our team will be happy to help you make a return. If you do not have your receipt, we can exchange the product but cannot offer you a refund. Please note, delivery  fees cannot be refunded. 

Review our full return policy. 

Please contact our team at 1-800-567-5874 or ContactUs@myNSLC.com Monday-Saturday 8:00 am-6:00 pm to let us know if you received the wrong product. We will arrange to get you the correct product and will deliver it to your door. If there’s an issue with your order and you would like to return a product, please go to your nearest NSLC store within 30 days with your receipt and our team will be happy to help you make a return. If you do not have your receipt, we can exchange the product but cannot offer you a refund. Please note, we cannot refund your delivery fee. 

Please contact our team at 1-800-567-5874 or ContactUs@myNSLC.com Monday-Saturday 8:00 am-6:00 pm to let us know if you received the wrong product. We will arrange to get you the correct product and will deliver it to your door. 

Please contact our team at ContactUs@myNSLC.com or 1-800-567-5874 Monday-Saturday 8:00 am-6:00 pm to inquire about other options. 

Any product purchased at one of our stores or online can be returned at any NSLC store as long as it’s unopened, in its original condition and accompanied by the original sales receipt within thirty (30) days of purchase. The return will be credited to the original method of payment. 
 
Returns without a receipt are processed as an exchange for a product of equal value, or greater value if you pay the full difference in price. 
 
You can return defective or broken product to any NSLC store for a full exchange or refund, and you don’t need to provide a receipt. However, you will have to provide your name, address and telephone number to the NSLC store employee. We collect that information so that we can verify for our suppliers that the problem was discovered by one of our customers.  
 

Review our full return policy.  
 

All available opportunities to work at the NSLC are posted on our Careers page. Application instructions are included in each job listing.   

Please note that we only accept resumes for posted positions.  

Applications submitted for positions in our retail stores are kept on file in the store for a period of six months. 

Service animals that have been specifically trained to provide support to an individual with a disability are welcome in our stores. You may be asked by an employee if your pet is a service pet. Customers entering the store with pets, other than service animals, will be politely asked to take their animal outside the store before they are served. 

In all other cases, in order to keep our customers and their pets safe, we ask that you to refrain from bringing pets of any kind into our stores.

Orders placed online cannot be picked up at a store. All orders will be sent to the delivery address that was provided during the checkout process. If you need to change the delivery address, please contact our team at 1-800-567-5874 or ContactUs@myNSLC.com Monday-Saturday 8:00 am-6:00 pm and we would be happy to help you. 

There are currently five private wine and specialty stores in Nova Scotia that offer different product selections not found in NSLC stores. These stores provide customers with access to a variety of unique products, and at the same time provide business opportunities for Nova Scotia entrepreneurs. Learn more about these stores: 

Bishop's Cellar 

WestSide Beer Wine Spirits 

RockHead Wine & Beer Market 

Harvest Wines & Spirits 

Liquid Assets NS 

Our store hours vary by location. Please visit our stores page for information on store hours.  

The NSLC does not provide compensation for cars damaged by shopping carts in our parking lots. All our store parking lots are “park at own risk,” and any damages should be managed through an individual’s insurance company.

Agency stores are authorized by the NSLC to sell beverage alcohol. There are currently over 60 agency stores in Nova Scotia, and many are operated by retailers in rural communities that are too small to support regular-sized NSLC retail stores. See a list of our current agency stores.

Nova Scotians can import beverage alcohol into the province from other countries only if they have been in those countries in the last 6 months  and  are importing from the country you travelled in using an import license. You can get more details and the license application by contacting customs@mynslc.com 

We are a provincial Crown Corporation and we follow the purchasing guidelines of the province of Nova Scotia.   

For more information about how you can do business with us, visit our Procurement and Tendering Policies page. 

If you plan to serve, sell, or produce beverage alcohol, or use it as an ingredient in a product for sale or public use in Nova Scotia, you’ll need to obtain a liquor license.  

If you would like to obtain a liquor license for a special event such as a wedding, fundraiser or other community event, those licenses are issued by Alcohol, Gaming, Fuel and Tobacco. You can reach their licensing office at (902) 424-6160. There’s also more information on their website.  

The application forms and detailed requirements for all other liquor licenses are available on our Permits page.  

Permit applications are also available at the NSLC’s Head Office & Distribution Centre located at 93 Chain Lake Drive, Bayers Lake Industrial Park, Halifax, Nova Scotia, or by calling out team at 1-800-567-5874 or ContactUs@myNSLC.com 

We do not have current plans to bring back the Festival of Whisky or Festival of Wines but we are continuing to support local industry in their events as they happen.

No, we do not offer the purchase of gift cards online at this time. Our team would be happy to help with the purchase of a gift card over the phone by contacting 1-800-567-5874 Monday-Saturday 8:00 am - 6:00 pm.

No. We are unable to redeem NSLC gift cards online.

No. NSLC Gift Cards are only accepted at our corporate stores. Our Agency store partners do not accept NSLC gift cards as payment.

Use our Gift Card Balance tracker. You’ll need to enter the code on the back of your gift card. 

If you have purchased or received a gift card and were unable to redeem the balance, there are a few possible reasons:   

The gift card may not have been activated. In this case, you’ll need to obtain the purchase receipt, and present the card and receipt to the store where you bought it (if it wasn’t an NSLC store), so that they can activate the gift card for you.  Keep in mind that at some vendors, it can take up to 24 hours from the time it is uploaded for the card to be activated and ready to use.   

The gift card may not have a balance. You can visit the Gift Card Checker to confirm the balance on your NSLC gift card.   

If a gift card has a balance, but the card isn’t working due to damage or some other reason, we may be able to help. Present the card to an NSLC team member at one of our stores.   

Please note: 

The NSLC is not able to activate a gift card if you don’t have a receipt, as we have no proof of purchase. Please go back to the store where you bought the gift card to resolve the issue.  

Other retailers that sell our gift cards are not able to process gift card returns. For gift card purchases made at those stores, you will need to bring the card into an NSLC store.