San Diego County, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Tobacco Retail License (2026)

2603. The Uniform Licensing Procedure of Title 2, Division 1, Chapter 1 applies except where this chapter is more specific. Retailers must display the license on-site, verify ID for any buyer who appears under 30, and are flatly barred from self-service displays, including vending machines: all sales must be face-to-face at the licensed location. No employee under 18 may handle or sell tobacco products unless a person 21 or older continuously supervises them, and delivery sales originating from or terminating in the unincorporated area are prohibited outright.

2606 then limits who can even get a license: no license may issue for a location with an onsite pharmacy, and after January 1, 2022 the County will not issue any new license once the countywide total reaches 330, nor within 500 feet of an already-licensed retailer, measured property line to property line. A license may transfer only to the holder's parent, child, spouse, or domestic partner at the same location, and the transferee must independently qualify. Enforcement runs through the Issuing Officer, who must inspect every retailer and run a youth decoy operation at least once every 12 months.

2608: 30 days for a first violation at a location, 60 days for a second within five years, 90 days for a third, and revocation on a fourth. The County can also pursue administrative civil penalties under Title 1, Division 8, Chapter 2, and any violation may be treated as a public nuisance subject to abatement. 2610, are calculated to recover the full cost of the licensing, inspection, and enforcement program and are nonrefundable.