Newark, NJ Business Licensing & Operations: Tobacco Retail License (2026)

Chapter 8:39, added in 2024 and amended October 2025, defines a smoke shop as any premises dedicated to selling tobacco, tobacco products or tobacco paraphernalia, excluding grocery stores, supermarkets and convenience stores. Section 8:39-2 zones every smoke shop into the C-2 and C-3 commercial districts and bars them entirely from any other zone. Spacing rules keep new shops at least 200 feet from any public or non-public school, licensed child-care facility, park, church or playground, and at least 2,500 feet from another smoke shop, measured in a straight line between property lines.

Section 8:39-3 requires a Smoke Shop License in addition to a standard Business License from the Finance Department's Division of Tax Abatement and Special Taxes, and § 8:39-4 sets both license fees at $1,000 each, due before the license issues; the license is annual, expiring December 31 regardless of issue date, and cannot be transferred or assigned. daily. Hookah bars and lounges are banned outright under § 8:39-2b, and no establishment may sell hookah or let patrons consume it on-site. 3% THC with mandatory batch labeling.

Section 8:39-6 requires the Departments of Engineering, Health and Community Wellness, Police and Fire to conduct annual inspections, and refusing entry triggers immediate closure until a hearing.