Perris, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Tobacco Retail License (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- Per retail location, Sec. 5.51.030(a)
- Covers
- Tobacco and nicotine-containing vape/e-cig products
- Unlicensed sale
- Declared a public nuisance
- Lockout after 1st violation
- 30 days, no new license
- Lockout after 3+ violations
- 5 years, no new license
- License term
- 1 year, renew 30 days ahead
- Civil fine range
- $250 to $10,000, tiered by count
Summary
Selling tobacco, including vape and e-cigarette products, in Perris requires a valid tobacco retailer's license for each location: Perris Municipal Code Section 5.51.030(a) makes unlicensed tobacco retailing unlawful and declares it a public nuisance outright, under the city's Chapter 5.51 tobacco licensing program aimed at keeping tobacco out of the hands of minors.
(a)It is unlawful for any person to act as a tobacco retailer without first obtaining and maintaining a valid tobacco retailer's license pursuant to this chapter for each location at which that activity is to occur. Tobacco retailing without a valid tobacco retailer's license shall constitute a public nuisance. ... (e)In addition to any other penalty under this chapter, a person found to have engaged in tobacco retailing without a valid tobacco retailer's license shall be ineligible to apply for or be issued a tobacco retailing license according to the following:(1)After a first violation for a person within any 60-month period, no new license may issue for the person as a proprietor until 30 days have passed from the date of last violation.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 13).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 5.51 defines 'tobacco product' broadly enough to reach vaping and e-cigarette products: the definition covers any substance containing tobacco leaf as well as any product or formulation containing biologically active amounts of nicotine manufactured, sold or distributed for introduction into the human body, with an exception only for FDA-approved nicotine-cessation products (Section 5.51.020). Section 5.51.030(a) makes it 'unlawful for any person to act as a tobacco retailer without first obtaining and maintaining a valid tobacco retailer's license,' and it declares that retailing without one 'shall constitute a public nuisance.' A retailer caught operating without a license, or on a revoked license, must keep the products out of public view and cannot advertise them (subsection (b)).
Beyond any other penalty, subsection (e) locks the retailer out of getting a new license for a period tied to how many times they have been caught: 30 days after a first unlicensed-sale violation in a 60-month period, 90 days after a second, and five years after three or more. Unlicensed product is subject to seizure, forfeiture and destruction (subsection (f)). Licenses are issued only for a single fixed location, so foot and vehicle tobacco sales are barred outright (Section 5.51.040(a)), licenses cannot be transferred between owners or locations (Section 5.51.050), and each license runs for one year with renewal due at least 30 days before expiration (Section 5.51.060).
Licensed retailers must display the license, check identification of anyone who looks under 27, keep to the minimum legal sale age, and cannot use self-service tobacco displays (Section 5.51.070).
Violations & Fines
Beyond the ineligibility periods in Section 5.51.030(e), a licensed retailer who violates the chapter faces revocation under Section 5.51.090: settlements for a first violation run at least a one-day shutdown and a $1,000.00 payment, a second at least ten days and $5,000.00, and civil fines otherwise range from $250.00 to $1,000.00 for a first violation, $1,500.00 to $2,500.00 for a second, and $3,000.00 to $10,000.00 for a third or later violation within 60 months, prosecutable as an infraction or misdemeanor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Perris's tobacco license requirement cover vape shops and e-cigarettes?
What happens if a Perris retailer sells tobacco without a license?
How long is a Perris tobacco retailer license valid, and can it transfer with a business sale?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Perris
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