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Port St. Lucie, FL Business Licensing & Operations: Tobacco Retail License (2026)

Some Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

Minimum age to buy
18 years old, § 119.21
Self-service display
Prohibited, § 119.22(a)
Open display units
Must be customer-inaccessible, § 119.22(b)
Indoor vaping
Banned where smoking is banned, § 119.23
Civil penalty
Up to $500 per occurrence
Signage required
"NO SMOKING OR USE OF E-CIGARETTES"

Summary

Port St. Lucie bans selling e-cigarettes or liquid nicotine to anyone under 18 and forbids self-service displays of vape products under Chapter 119 of the Code of Ordinances. Retailers must keep e-cigarettes and liquid nicotine in areas customers cannot reach, and vaping is barred anywhere indoor smoking is already prohibited under Florida's Clean Indoor Air Act.

No person, business, retailer, or other establishment shall sell, permit to be sold, or offer for sale to any person under 18 years of age any e-cigarette with liquid nicotine within the City. ... No person, business, retailer, or other establishment engaged in the retail sale of e-cigarettes or liquid nicotine shall sell, permit to be sold, offer for sale, or display for sale e-cigarettes or liquid nicotine within the City by means of self-service merchandising.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 103).

Full Breakdown

Chapter 119, the Electronic Nicotine Delivery Devices and Products Ordinance, regulates retail sale and use of e-cigarettes and liquid nicotine citywide. 21 makes it unlawful for any person, business, or retailer to sell or offer to sell an e-cigarette with liquid nicotine to anyone under eighteen, and holds the seller's employer and any person controlling that seller liable along with the seller. 22(a) bars self-service merchandising of e-cigarettes or liquid nicotine entirely, and subsection (b) requires any open display unit holding those products to sit in an area customers cannot reach without staff help.

Where a retailer also sells medical marijuana, subsection (c) requires the marijuana and its ingestion accessories to be kept physically separate from the e-cigarette and liquid nicotine stock. 23 extends the ban on vaping into any enclosed indoor workplace where smoking is already prohibited under Florida's Clean Indoor Air Act, Chapter 386, Florida Statutes, and requires the proprietor to post "NO SMOKING OR USE OF E-CIGARETTES" signage and adopt a written compliance policy for employees. 03 as workplaces dedicated predominantly to selling nicotine dispensing devices, are exempted from the indoor use ban on their own retail floor.

Chapter 119 does not create a separate city license beyond the standard business tax receipt; its force comes from the sale, display, and use restrictions themselves.

Violations & Fines

Section 119.31(a) sets a civil penalty of up to $500.00 per occurrence for violating the sale-to-minors ban in section 119.21, the self-service merchandising ban in section 119.22, or the indoor-use ban in section 119.23(a). A first violation of the workplace-policy requirement in section 119.23(b) draws a written warning; a repeat observation escalates to the same $500 civil penalty. Every day a violation continues counts as a separate offense under section 119.31(d).

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a Port St. Lucie store let customers pick up vape products off a shelf?
No. Section 119.22(a) prohibits self-service merchandising of e-cigarettes and liquid nicotine entirely, and section 119.22(b) requires any display case holding those products to be placed where customers cannot reach them without a store employee's help.
Is vaping allowed inside businesses in Port St. Lucie?
Only where smoking itself would be allowed. Section 119.23(a) bans using e-cigarettes or nicotine dispensing devices anywhere indoor smoking is already prohibited under Florida's Clean Indoor Air Act, though the same exceptions that let a location permit smoking also apply here.
What is the penalty for selling vape products to a minor?
Section 119.31(a) sets a civil penalty of up to $500.00 per occurrence for selling an e-cigarette with liquid nicotine to anyone under eighteen, and section 119.21 makes both the seller and their employer liable for that sale.

Sources & Official References

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