In Alaska, it is generally against the law for anyone under the age of 21 to buy, possess, drink, or serve any alcoholic beverage. There are serious and long-term consequences for drinking while underage or being caught with alcohol in your possession.

Alcohol is a heavily regulated product in Alaska.  Bars and liquor stores are not allowed to serve you if you are drunk.  If you are drunk, it is against the law to go into a place with a liquor license, such as a bar or restaurant.

There are some places in Alaska, such as “dry” villages, that prohibit drinking or possessing alcohol altogether.

Not many.  If you are under 21, your parent, guardian, or spouse who is 21 or older may give you a drink as long as you are not at a place that has a liquor license (like a bar or restaurant that serves alcohol).  For example, your parent can give you a beer at home for you to drink yourself, but cannot legally let you take a drink from his or her glass of wine or beer at a restaurant.

Another exception is that a licensed nurse or doctor may legally furnish an alcoholic beverage as part of medical treatment.

No.  If you have alcohol that a parent, guardian, or spouse over age 21 legally gave to you, it is still against the law for you to sell, give, or serve it to any other person under 21.  So even if your parents gave you a case of beer, you may not legally share it with underage friends.

It is generally a crime to give alcohol to anyone under 21 years old.  So if you ask a person over 21 to buy alcohol for you, you are asking that person to commit a crime.  Except when a parent, guardian, or spouse over 21 legally gives alcohol to you, it is against the law for any person who knows you are under 21 to give alcohol to you, even in that person’s own home. The penalties for providing alcohol to an underage person can be very stiff.

It is against the law for anyone to drink at the site of a school event during the event, regardless of where the alcohol comes from or the age of the person who sells or drinks the alcohol.

Generally, if you are under 21, you must be with your parent, guardian, or spouse who is at least 21 years old to enter or remain at any business that sells or serves alcohol.

However, if you are 16 or older but under 21, you can legally go into a business that is licensed as a “restaurant,” even though it serves alcohol, if you go in only to eat.  If you are under 16 years old, you can go into a business that is licensed as a “restaurant,” even though it serves alcohol, if you go in only to eat, if someone over the age of 21 goes with you, and if you have the consent of your parent or guardian.

Restaurants have the right to, and often will, add their own restrictions about allowing persons under 21 to enter. They may designate special areas for underage diners.

• If you are under 21, you cannot work in a bar.
• If you are under 21, but over 17, you can work in a hotel, restaurant, or other eating place that has a license to sell alcohol, but only if your job does not involve serving, mixing, delivering, or dispensing any alcohol.
• If you are 16 or 17, you can work in a restaurant, hotel, or other eating place that serves alcohol, but you must have written consent from your parent or guardian, and an exemption granted by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development.