Tobacco and Vapes Under Twenty One
Pub. Health Law § 1399-cc — no sale to anyone under 21, and an ID check at the counter
A place of business selling tobacco products, herbal cigarettes, liquid nicotine, shisha or electronic cigarettes may not sell them, or smoking paraphernalia, to anyone under twenty one years of age, and must post a sign saying so. Sales other than by vending machine are made only to someone who shows a valid driver's license, non driver ID or other ID the section lists.
Who handles this in New York: New York State Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service; and legal aid programs and the state offices, listed in the New York directory.
It is also a crime under the Penal Law. Selling tobacco in any form to a child less than twenty one years old is unlawfully dealing with a child in the second degree, a class B misdemeanor. That the young buyer was acting for someone else is no defense.
The civil penalties for retailers are in a separate section not covered here. A particular charge is a question for a licensed New York attorney.
Sources for this section (2)
- Pub. Health Law § 1399-cc — Sale of tobacco products and electronic cigarettes to persons under 21 prohibited
- Penal Law § 260.21 — Unlawfully dealing with a child in the second degree
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed New York attorney.