Selling Tobacco Products in Retail Stores

Note: On Aug. 29, FDA announced a final rule “Prohibition of Sale of Tobacco Products to Persons Younger than 21 Years of Age” that raises the minimum age for certain restrictions on tobacco product sales. FDA is working to update materials on this page to reflect this change. For the latest information, read the press release.

On this page:

How Do I Comply?
Rules for Selling

FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products was created in 2009, and since 2016, FDA has regulated all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, hookah tobacco, and cigars. If you sell tobacco products, you must comply with all applicable federal laws and regulations for retailers.

This page offers a summary of the federal rules broken down by different types of tobacco products. You can find comprehensive federal requirements for tobacco retailers in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act), Regulations Restricting the Sale and Distribution of Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco, and the Deeming Tobacco Products To Be Subject to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

For a list of tobacco products—including e-cigarettes—that may be legally marketed in the United States, visit FDA’s Searchable Tobacco Products Database.

How Do I Comply?

Generally speaking, these rules apply to all cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, cigarette tobacco, roll-your-own tobacco, and "covered tobacco products":

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase any tobacco product. Only sell tobacco products to customers 21 or older.¹
Do NOT sell tobacco products with the assistance of a vending machine in facilities where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of tobacco products to consumers, including any of their components and parts.³

These rules, along with rules specific to each tobacco product, are listed below.

FDA’s "This Is Our Watch" program helps retailers comply with federal tobacco law and regulations to protect youth. The "This is Our Watch" program offers a full toolkit of materials available to owners, managers and clerks – including posters, stickers and age verification tools – to help retailers better comply with federal tobacco regulations

Do you mix or prepare e-liquids, make or modify vaporizers, or mix loose tobacco and sell any tobacco product? If so, you may be regulated as both a retailer and a tobacco product manufacturer.

Rules for Cigarettes, Cigarette Tobacco, and Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Sales

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, or roll-your-own tobacco.
Only sell cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, and roll-your-own-tobacco to customers age 21 or older.¹
Do NOT sell cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, or roll-your-own tobacco with the assistance of a vending machine in facilities where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT sell cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, and roll-your-own tobacco via self-service displays in facilities where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, or roll-your-own tobacco to consumers, including any of their components or parts.³
Do NOT sell cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, or roll-your-own tobacco that contain a characterizing flavor (except menthol or tobacco flavor).
Do NOT sell cigarette packages containing fewer than 20 cigarettes, including single cigarettes, known as “loosies.”
Do NOT break open packages of cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, or roll-your-own tobacco to sell products in smaller amounts.
Do NOT sell or distribute cigarette tobacco or roll-your-own tobacco products without a warning statement on the package.^{4, 5}
Do NOT display advertisements for cigarette tobacco or roll-your-own tobacco products without a warning statement.^{4, 5}

Rules for Smokeless Tobacco Sales

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase smokeless tobacco.
Only sell smokeless tobacco to customers age 21 and older.¹
Do NOT sell smokeless tobacco in a vending machine or self-service display where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT sell smokeless tobacco via self-service displays in facilities where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of smokeless tobacco in facilities unless in a “qualified adult-only facility” and in limited quantities as specified in the law. ^{2, 3}
Do NOT break open smokeless tobacco packages to sell products in smaller amounts.
Do NOT sell smokeless tobacco without a health warning statement displayed on the package.
Do NOT display advertisements for smokeless tobacco products without a warning statement.

Rules for Cigar Sales

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase cigars. Only sell cigars to customers age 21 and older.¹
Do NOT sell cigars in a vending machine where individuals under 21 are present or permitted at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of cigars to consumers, including any of their components or parts.³
Do NOT sell or distribute cigars without a health warning statement displayed on the package.^{4, 6}
Do NOT display advertisements for cigars without a health warning statement.^{4, 6}
If you sell cigars individually, and not in a product package, you must post a sign with six required warning statements within 3 inches of each cash register.^4,6

Rules for Hookah and Pipe Tobacco Sales

Note: If you mix loose tobacco, and you also sell these products, you will be regulated as both a retailer and a tobacco product manufacturer.

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase hookah tobacco or pipe tobacco.
Only sell hookah or pipe tobacco to customers age 21 and older.¹
Do NOT sell hookah and pipe tobacco in a vending machine where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of hookah or pipe tobacco to consumers, including any of their components or parts.³
Do NOT sell or distribute hookah or pipe tobacco without a health warning statement displayed on the package.^{4, 5, 6}
Do NOT display advertisements for hookah or pipe tobacco without a health warning statement.^{4, 5, 6}

Rules for Sales of E-Cigarettes, E-liquids, and Other Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS)

Some examples of ENDS include e-cigarettes, e-liquids, vape pens, e-hookahs, e-cigars, personal vaporizers, and electronic pipes.

Note: If you mix e-liquids or make or modify vaporizers, and you also sell these products, you will be regulated as both a retailer and a tobacco product manufacturer.

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase e-cigarettes, e-liquids, or other ENDS.
Only sell e-cigarettes, e-liquids, and other ENDS to customers 21 and older.¹
Do NOT sell e-cigarettes, e-liquids, or other ENDS in a vending machine where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of e-cigarettes, e-liquids, or other ENDS to consumers, including any of their components or parts.³
Do NOT sell or distribute e-cigarettes, e-liquids, or other ENDS without a health warning statement on the package.^{4, 5}
Do NOT display advertisements for e-cigarettes, e-liquids, or other ENDS without a health warning statement.^{4, 5}

Rules for Sales of Nicotine Gels

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase nicotine gel. Only sell nicotine gel to customers 21 and older.¹
Do NOT sell nicotine gel in a vending machine where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of nicotine gel to consumers.³
Do NOT sell or distribute nicotine gel without a health warning statement on the package.^{4, 5}
Do NOT display advertisements for nicotine gel without a health warning statement.^{4, 5}

Rules for Sales of Dissolvables

These rules apply to dissolvable tobacco products that are not already regulated as smokeless tobacco.

Check photo ID of everyone under age 30 who attempts to purchase dissolvable tobacco products.
Only sell dissolvable tobacco products to customers age 21 and older.¹
Do NOT sell dissolvable tobacco products in a vending machine where individuals under 21 are present or permitted to enter at any time.
Do NOT give away free samples of dissolvable tobacco products to consumers.³
Do NOT sell or distribute a dissolvable tobacco product without a health warning statement on the package.^{4, 5}
Do NOT display advertisements for dissolvable tobacco products without a health warning statement.^{4, 5}

Why Are These Laws Important?

These laws are designed to make regulated tobacco products less accessible and less attractive to youth. Every day, nearly 1,500 kids smoke their first cigarette and about 200 kids become daily cigarette smokers.⁷ Additionally, the CDC and FDA found that in 2024, 5.9 percent of high school students currently used e-cigarettes.⁸ Many of these children will become addicted before they are old enough to understand the risks. As a retailer, you play an important role in protecting children and adolescents by complying with the law and regulations.

Additional Resources

References

_{1. On Dec. 20, 2019, the President signed legislation to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and raise the federal minimum age of sale of tobacco products from 18 to 21 years. It is now illegal for a retailer to sell any tobacco product – including cigarettes, cigars and e-cigarettes – to anyone under 21. FDA will provide additional details on this issue as they become available, and the information on this page will be updated accordingly in a timely manner. Retailers must also follow state and local tobacco laws, even if they are more restrictive.

2. An adult-only facility is one in which individuals under 21 are neither present nor permitted to enter at any time.

3. FDA finalized the Guidance on Prohibition of Distributing Free Samples of Tobacco Products in January 2017.

4. A retailer of any cigarette tobacco, roll-your-own tobacco or "covered tobacco products" will not be in violation of this section for packaging that: (i) Contains a health warning; (ii) Is supplied to the retailer by the tobacco product manufacturer, importer, or distributor who has the required state, local, or Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB)-issued license or permit, if applicable, and (iii) Is not altered by the retailer in a way that is material to the requirements of this section. FDA does not intend to enforce these warning statement requirements for products that were manufactured before the compliance date (August 10, 2018) of the new required warning statement for covered tobacco products, cigarette tobacco, and RYO tobacco. For important details about required warning statements, please see the small entity compliance guide.

5. Retailers and distributors may continue to sell products with non-compliant packaging after the compliance date only if the products were manufactured before Aug. 10, 2018. FDA encourages retailers to contact their distributor/supplier for information about the tobacco products in their inventory.

6. The United States District Court for the District of Columbia recently issued an order vacating the health warning requirements for cigars and pipe tobacco set forth in 21 CFR §§ 1143.3 and 1143.5 and remanding the Final Deeming Rule’s warning requirements for cigars and pipe tobacco back to the Agency. See Order, Cigar Ass’n of Am. v. U.S. Food & Drug Admin., No. 1:16-cv-01460 (D.D.C. September 11, 2020). Although the requirement has been vacated, cigar and pipe tobacco firms may choose to voluntarily comply with these health warning provisions. FDA will continue to enforce the other requirements it was already enforcing for cigars and pipe tobacco under the FD&C Act and its implementing regulations, such as not selling these products to individuals under 21 years of age or marketing them as modified risk tobacco products without an FDA order. The court's order does not enjoin FDA from enforcing the health warning requirements for other product categories, including Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) products, hookah tobacco, and cigarette tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco products. See Guidance: Compliance Policy for Certain Labeling and Warning Statement Requirements for Cigars and Pipe Tobacco.

7. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2020). Key substance use and mental health indicators in the United States: Results from the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (HHS Publication No. PEP20-07-01-001, NSDUH Series H-55). Rockville, MD: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Retrieved from https://www.samhsa.gov/data/

8. Park-Lee E, Jamal A, Cowan H, et al. Notes from the Field: E-Cigarette and Nicotine Pouch Use Among Middle and High School Students — United States, 2024. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2024;73:774–778.}