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Roanoke County, VA Business Licensing & Operations: Tobacco Retail License (2026)

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

Key Facts

Buffer distance
1,000 feet from school building
Schools covered
County public middle and high schools
Adopted
Ord. No. 111924-7, Nov. 19, 2024
Grandfathered
Stores operating before Nov. 20, 2024
Exempt licensees
Va. Code § 4.1-206.3 license holders
Penalty
$10-$2,500 fine, § 30-22

Summary

Roanoke County's zoning ordinance bars the retail sale of vape and nicotine-vapor products, other alternative nicotine products, and smokable hemp products from convenience stores, fuel centers and retail-sales uses sited within 1,000 feet of a county public middle or high school building. The rule is a zoning location restriction, not a separate license, and grandfathers stores already selling those products.

These county ordinances apply to unincorporated areas of Roanoke County. Incorporated cities within the county may have their own rules that take precedence over county-level regulations.

4.The retail sale of nicotine vapor products, alternative nicotine products as defined in Code of Virginia § 18.2-371.2, or hemp products intended for smoking as defined in Code of Virginia § 3.2-4112 shall be prohibited on properties located within one thousand (1,000) feet of a principal school building of any Roanoke County public high school or middle school. This shall not affect (i) a licensee holding a valid license under Code of Virginia § 4.1-206.3 or (ii) any retail sale location of nicotine vapor products, alternative nicotine products, or hemp products intended for smoking operating before November 20, 2024.

View official code

Full Breakdown

Roanoke County's Board of Supervisors added this restriction to the Convenience Store, Fuel Center and Retail Sales use-type standards by Ord. No. 111924-7 on November 19, 2024. 2-4112) on any property within 1,000 feet of the principal school building of a Roanoke County public middle or high school. Because Roanoke County government has no authority over the independent cities of Roanoke or Salem, the buffer runs only from county-operated middle and high schools, not city schools or county elementary schools. 3, and any nicotine vapor, alternative nicotine, or smokable hemp retail location that was already operating before November 20, 2024, are unaffected regardless of distance to a school.

Because the standard sits in the zoning ordinance's use-type standards rather than in the county's Chapter 10 business-license (BPOL) provisions, compliance is checked when a retailer applies for a certificate of zoning compliance and business license, administered by the Zoning Administrator in Community Development and the Commissioner of the Revenue. A retailer proposing a new vape or smokable-hemp sales counter must confirm distance to the nearest county middle or high school building before applying.

Violations & Fines

Opening or operating a new retail sale point for nicotine vapor products, alternative nicotine products, or smokable hemp products within 1,000 feet of a Roanoke County public middle or high school after November 20, 2024, violates § 30-85-13(A)4. As a zoning ordinance violation, this is a misdemeanor under § 30-22(A), punishable by a fine of $10 to $2,500, with each day of continued operation a separate offense.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a vape shop open next to a Roanoke County middle school?
No. Section 30-85-13(A)4 prohibits the retail sale of nicotine vapor products, other alternative nicotine products, and smokable hemp products within 1,000 feet of the principal building of any Roanoke County public middle or high school, so a new retailer inside that buffer cannot sell those products.
Does the ban apply to stores that were already selling vapes?
No. The ordinance grandfathers any nicotine vapor, alternative nicotine, or smokable hemp retail location that was already operating before November 20, 2024, and it does not apply to a business holding a valid license under Code of Virginia § 4.1-206.3.
Is this a separate tobacco license, or part of the zoning rules?
It's a zoning use-standard, not a stand-alone tobacco license. The 1,000-foot school buffer is written into the standards for Convenience Store, Fuel Center and Retail Sales use types in the zoning ordinance, enforced through the certificate of zoning compliance and business license process.

Sources & Official References

Other rules in Roanoke County

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All Roanoke County rules

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