Cigarette and Tobacco Retailer
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Report Suspected Violations

California tobacco directory

It is illegal to distribute, sell, offer, or possess for sale cigarettes and roll-your-own (RYO) tobacco products in California if the manufacturer, brand family, and brand style are not listed on the Tobacco Directory. It is also illegal to affix a California tax stamp on cigarettes or pay the California excise tax on RYO tobacco unless the manufacturer, brand family, and brand style are listed on the Tobacco Directory. All cigarettes and RYO tobacco products and their manufacturers must be included on the Tobacco Directory before they may be lawfully distributed, sold, offered for sale, or possessed for sale in California.

Flavor ban

California prohibits the retail sale of flavored cigarettes, most flavored tobacco products, and tobacco product flavor enhancers. This means retailers may sell only the cigarettes and tobacco products listed on the Unflavored Tobacco List (UTL) or tobacco products that are not prohibited by California’s flavored tobacco sales law. Please keep in mind that we or other law enforcement agencies may seize flavored cigarettes, flavored tobacco products, or tobacco product flavor enhancers, and may issue fines for prohibited products. We may also suspend and revoke the cigarette and tobacco products license of repeat offenders.

A retailer may not sell, offer for sale, possess with the intent to sell, or offer for sale flavored cigarettes, flavored tobacco products, tobacco product flavor enhancers, or any tobacco products not listed on the UTL to any person in California.

Additional local restrictions may apply

Cities, counties, and local jurisdictions may have their own laws restricting tobacco access. In all cases, the stricter law applies.

Types of flavored products banned and subject to seizure

We may seize banned flavored products, including, but not limited to:

  • Electronic devices, such as e-cigarettes, cigars, pipes, or hookahs, that deliver nicotine or other vaporized liquids, containing or sold with flavored nicotine or other flavored liquid or element
  • Flavored eLliquids, eJuices, or pods
  • Components, parts, or accessories of a tobacco product containing or sold with a product that has a flavor other than the taste or odor of tobacco
  • Flavored cigarettes, such as menthol and products that produce a cooling sensation
  • Flavored little cigars and cigarillos
  • Flavored smokeless tobacco products
  • Flavored wraps
  • Flavored looseleaf RYO tobacco
  • Flavored tobacco rolling papers
  • Tobacco product flavor enhancers (products designed, manufactured, produced, marketed, or sold to produce a flavor other than the taste or odor of tobacco when added to a tobacco product)
    • Includes eLiquid flavor enhancers that can be used with a tobacco product regardless if the flavor enhancer contains tobacco or nicotine
  • Flavored synthetic nicotine products
  • Flavored nicotine analogs and alkaloids
  • Flavored products listed on the Tobacco Directory
    • Please note: Products listed on the Tobacco Directory may still be illegal to sell. The Tobacco Directory applies in addition to any state or local restrictions on the sale of tobacco products, including California’s flavored tobacco sales ban law. The Tobacco Directory may list flavored or mentholated products that comply with the Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) but they are still illegal for sale in California under California’s flavored tobacco sales ban law.
  • Flavored tobacco products (including cigarettes) not listed on the California UTL

Types of flavored products not banned

  • Premium cigars. A premium cigar means a cigar that:
    • Is handmade,
    • Is not mass produced by mechanization,
    • Has a wrapper that is made entirely of whole tobacco leaf,
    • Has a wholesale price (retailer’s purchase price) of $12.00 or more,
    • Does not have a filter, tip, or nontobacco mouthpiece, and
    • Is capped by hand.
  • Looseleaf pipe tobacco
  • Shisha tobacco products sold by a hookah tobacco retailer who:
    • Has a valid cigarette and tobacco products retailer license at the location,
    • Only allows people 21 years of age or older to be on the premises at any time, and
    • Complies with all state and local laws related to the sale and consumption of tobacco products.

Notes

  1. The wholesale price, or in other words, the retailer’s purchase price, for flavored premium cigars includes California tobacco products excise taxes. We presume that the excise taxes have not been paid to us on tobacco products, which include cigars, in the retailer’s possession until the retailer establishes the contrary by proof of payment to us or by tax-paid purchase invoices (Business and Professions Code [BPC] section 22974.3(b)).

Unflavored Tobacco List

On December 31, 2025, the California Office of the Attorney General (OAG) published the UTL on its website. The UTL, which is updated regularly, identifies specific types of tobacco product brand styles that do not have a characterizing flavor (a taste or odor other than tobacco) and can be sold in California. Any tobacco product not on the UTL is prohibited under California’s tobacco sales law and can’t be sold.

  • Submit product information for the UTL

    To assist with maintaining the UTL, the OAG created a UTL Portal to allow tobacco manufacturers, importers, and the public to submit any information about a tobacco product, such as photos, reviews, or studies, relevant to the UTL.

Civil penalties

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH), OAG, and local law enforcement agencies (including city attorneys, district attorneys, and county counsels) may subject a retailer or any entity to civil penalties, ranging from $1,000 to $20,000 or more, per violation for selling, offering for sale, or possessing flavored tobacco products or tobacco product flavor enhancers. In addition, upon receiving notification from CDPH of a retailer or entity who has a third, fourth, or fifth violation at the same location within a five-year period, CDTFA will impose the following civil penalties:

CDTFA imposed civil penalties for a retailer or any entity to civil penalties, ranging from $1,000 to $20,000 or more, per violation for selling, offering for sale, or possessing flavored tobacco products or tobacco product flavor enhancers.
Retailers
(Health and Safety Code (HSC) section 104559.5(f)(2))
Occurrence At the Same Location Within a Five-Year Period Civil Penalty
Third violation $250 fine and a 45-day license suspension
Fourth violation $250 fine and a 90-day license suspension
Fifth violation $250 fine and a license revocation

Retailers who violate the ban will have their flavored products seized and be subject to the following penalties:

Retailers who violate the ban will have their flavored products seized and be subject to the following penalties
Retailers
(Business and Professions Code (BPC) section 22974.2(b))
Occurrence per Location Civil Penalty
First seizure $50 per individual package of flavored tobacco product or tobacco product flavor enhancer seized
Second seizure $50 per individual package of flavored tobacco product or tobacco product flavor enhancer seized and license suspension
Third seizure $50 per individual package of flavored tobacco product or tobacco product flavor enhancer seized and license revocation

Resources

Enacted legislation

Product transfers—Retailers with multiple locations

Generally, the sale or transfer of cigarettes and tobacco products between retailers is not permitted. However, if a retailer owns more than one store and the retailer’s licenses for the transferring and receiving retail locations are held by the same legal entity, that retailer may be allowed to transfer portions of their tax-paid (stamped) cigarettes or tax-paid tobacco products from one retail location to another retail location they own so long as the retailer:

  • Is the licensee for each of the retail locations,
  • Prepares a transfer log or similar document at the time of each transfer,
  • Keeps the original transfer log or similar document for four years from the date the retailer purchased the transferred inventory,
  • Keeps copies of the transfer log or similar document and purchase invoices for the transferred inventory at both the transferring and receiving retail locations for at least one year from the date of transfer, and
  • Provides copies of the transfer log or similar document and purchase invoices for the transferred inventory upon request.

The transfer log must be created at the time of transfer and made available upon request during an inspection. A transfer log created or provided after an inspection is not acceptable. Legible transfer logs and copies of purchase invoices must be kept at each retailer’s location involved in the transfer.

These retailer’s product transfer requirements do not apply to tobacco products that are not subject to the tobacco products tax. For example, vape liquids that do not contain any nicotine are not subject to these requirements; however, they are subject to the cigarette and tobacco retail licensing requirement.

Regulation 4801, Records, provides more clarification on transfers.

Native Americans

A Native American retailer in California who buys untaxed tobacco products or cigarettes without a California tax stamp and sells them to non-Native Americans on a Native American reservation must collect the cigarette and tobacco products excise taxes from those purchasers and pay the excise tax to us.

If the Native American retailer does not collect and pay the excise taxes due, the non-Native American purchaser is liable for the excise taxes.

Non-Native Americans who purchase cigarettes without California tax stamps or untaxed tobacco products from a Native American retailer owe the cigarette and tobacco

products excise and use taxes and must file a return with us to report purchases and pay their applicable taxes. For more information on how non-Native American purchasers report and pay excise and use taxes, visit the PACT Act, Delivery Seller, Common Carrier, and Consumer guide.

Cigarette-making machines

If a retailer makes a commercial cigarette-making machine available for customers to use, federal law requires the retailer to obtain a permit as a manufacturer of tobacco products from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). It is against federal law to operate as a manufacturer of tobacco products without a TTB permit and doing so without proper permits risks civil and criminal liability.

Under the Cigarette and Tobacco Products Licensing Act of 2003, the retailer is not considered a cigarette manufacturer if the retailer does not own the tobacco when it is manufactured into cigarettes, such as if the tobacco has just been bought by a customer. In this scenario, the retailer is not required to register with us as a cigarette manufacturer.

The TTB has instructed that retailers operating without a permit “must immediately cease operations until a TTB permit is obtained.” The TTB’s enforcement efforts have included investigations of retail locations where the machines are made available to members of a social club or non-profit. The TTB has indicated that the non-profit status of the person making the machine available is not relevant in evaluating commercial purposes under Internal Revenue Code section 5702 and has found members of a social club or non-profit to be in violation of the law and has assessed taxes.

Minimum age of sale

The minimum age to purchase cigarettes and tobacco products in California is 21.

Visit the CDPH’s Tobacco 21 website for more information.

Exported tax-paid tobacco products

If you purchased tax-paid tobacco products from a California licensed distributor located out of state and you subsequently exported or shipped those tobacco products to a buyer outside of California, you may file a claim for refund directly with us for the excise taxes paid on those tobacco products. Claims for the excise tax paid on these purchases may only be made if the excise tax is separately stated on the retailer’s purchase invoice from the California licensed distributor located out of state.

Inspections

We conduct routine inspections to ensure compliance with California state laws that control the sale of cigarettes and tobacco products in California. These inspections are authorized by the Licensing Act, Cigarette and Tobacco Products Tax Law (CTPTL), and the California Cigarette Fire Safety and Firefighter Protection Act.

Our inspectors make sure that:

  • You have a valid cigarette and tobacco products license according to the Licensing Act and CTPTL and any other business permits or licenses that may be required.
  • You display your license at each location so that it is clearly visible to the public.
  • You keep purchase and sales invoices at each licensed location for at least one year after the date of purchase.
  • You bought your cigarettes and tobacco products from a valid CDTFA-licensed cigarette or tobacco products distributor or wholesaler and have purchase invoices to support your inventory. Sales between retailers are prohibited.
  • The cigarettes in your inventory:
  • The California tobacco products excise tax was paid on your tobacco products.
  • The Stop Tobacco Access to Kids Enforcement (STAKE) Act signage is clearly posted at each cash register and other points of sale where cigarette and tobacco products are sold.
  • You do not sell or have flavored cigarettes, flavored tobacco products, or tobacco product flavor enhancers.
  • You do not sell or have cannabis, cannabis products, or presumed cannabis products, such as items containing or appearing to contain a synthetic cannabinoid, like gummies, or other cannabis products, such as creams, dust, crystals, and so on.

For more information on the inspection process, visit the What To Know About Your Cigarette and Tobacco Products Inspection video to learn the process, visit publication 152, Cigarette and Tobacco Products Inspections, and the Cigarette and Tobacco Products Inspections Program page. For information on enforcement and penalties, visit the Resources guide.