Tobacco Retail Dealer License

You must have a Tobacco Retail Dealer license to sell cigarettes or tobacco products directly to consumers. The New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) issues this license.

DO NOT SUBMIT THIS APPLICATION IF YOUR BUSINESS IS OR CONTAINS A PHARMACY. NYC law prohibits pharmacies and businesses that contain pharmacies from obtaining Tobacco Retail Dealer licenses.

***Important: Community District Caps***
Community district caps for Tobacco Retail Dealer licenses took effect February 24, 2018. For a list of the current community district caps, visit NYC Open Data at opendata.cityofnewyork.us and search “tobacco retail dealer.”

You can submit this application only if:

• Licenses are available in your community district.
• A business with a Tobacco Retail Dealer license is sold, someone acquires 10% or more of the shares of the corporation, or there is a change in partnership. You (the new business) may apply for a new license at the same location as long as there is a current, active license in “good standing” at the address AND you apply for a new license within 30 days of the sale or change.*
• Your business is located in certain airports or parks that are not subject to the community district caps.*
• You have an active Tobacco Retail Dealer license at your newsstand location and would like to hold both licenses under the same business name.*
• You hold a Newsstand license that was transferred following the death or disability of the prior license holder and would like to hold the location’s Tobacco Retail Dealer license in your name. The existing Tobacco Retail Dealer license must be in good standing.*

*If you meet one of these exceptions to the cap, you must submit the Tobacco Retail Dealer Cap Exception Certification and supporting documentation. See the form for more information.

Monitor nyc.gov/dcwp for updates about community district caps.