Foreign liquor may soon be legally imported. A draft of a law that will allow for the legitimate import of hard liquor has been written and submitted before the attorney general for approval, according to the Myanmar Times.

Importing popular foreign brands like Absolut Vodka and Johnnie Walker for Myanmar store shelves would be a lengthy (and probably expensive) process requiring approval from the General Administration Department, the Ministry of Home Affairs and a new Excise Policy Committee. However, it could be the first step in legitimizing a massive grey market industry that has thrived since 1995, when the military regime banned imported liquor outright. Hotels and airport duty free shops have been the notable exceptions to this ban, and have in turn supplied foreign liquor under-the-table to smaller dealers.

Wine imports were legalized in 2015, however beer remains on the banned imports list. Yet foreign brewers, including Carlsberg, Tuborg, Kirin, Heineken and, most recently, Thai beer giant Chang have managed to set up operations within Myanmar itself. Imported spirits, however, would be more likely to affect the night life and fine dining industries rather than over-the-counter liquor sales, as imported drinks would be vastly more expensive than locally-made offerings, large bottles of which can be purchased at practically any convenience store for only a few thousand kyat.