Are Nicotine Vapes (e-cigarettes) Legal in South Carolina? (2026)

Instrument

Sales to minors, proof of age, remote sales; tobacco product definition

Source

https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t16c017.php

Retrieved

2026-11-06

Fingerprint

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(A) It is unlawful for an individual to sell, furnish, give, distribute, purchase for, or provide a tobacco product to a minor under the age of eighteen years.

(B) It is unlawful to sell a tobacco product or an alternative nicotine product to an individual who does not present, upon demand, proper proof of age. Failure to demand identification to verify an individual’s age is not a defense to an action initiated pursuant to this subsection. Proof that is demanded, is shown, and reasonably is relied upon for the individual’s proof of age is a defense to an action initiated pursuant to this subsection.

(C) A person engaged in the sale of tobacco products made through the Internet or other remote sales methods shall perform an age verification through an independent, third-party age verification service that compares information available from public records to the personal information entered by the individual during the ordering process that establishes the individual is eighteen years of age or older and shall use a method of mailing, shipping, or delivery that requires the signature of a person at least eighteen years of age before a tobacco product will be released to the purchaser, unless the Internet or other remote sales methods employ the following protections to ensure age verification:

	(1) the customer creates an online profile or account with personal information including, but not limited to, name, address, social security information, and a valid phone number, and that personal information is verified through publicly available records; or

	(2) the customer is required to upload a copy of his government-issued identification in addition to a current photograph of the customer; and

	(3) delivery is made to the customer’s name and address.

(8) "Tobacco product" means:

	(a) any product containing, made of, or derived from tobacco or nicotine that is intended for human consumption or is likely to be consumed, whether inhaled, absorbed, or ingested by any other means including, but not limited to, a cigarette, a cigar, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco, snuff, or snus;

	(b) any electronic smoking device as defined in this section and any substances that may be aerosolized or vaporized by such device, whether or not the substance contains nicotine; or

	(c) any component, part, or accessory of subitem (a) or subitem (b), whether or not any of these contains tobacco or nicotine including, but not limited to, filters, rolling papers, blunt or hemp wraps, and pipes. Tobacco product does not include drugs, devices, or combination products authorized for sale by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, as those terms are defined in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

Instrument

ENDS products: youth-appeal labeling and marketing bar; retail license

Source

https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t44c095.php

Retrieved

2026-11-06

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(X) No manufacturer, distributor, or retailer of ENDS products may sell, offer for sale, advertise, or otherwise distribute ENDS products that:

	(1) use, in the labeling of the product, its packaging, its advertisement, or in its marketing materials:

	(a) the terms “candy,” "candies," or variants in spelling;

	(b) the terms "bubble gum," "cotton candy," "gummy bear," “lollipop,” or other variants of these words;

	(c) the terms "cake," "cupcake," “pie,” or any other variation of these words; or

	(d) the terms “ice cream,” “sherbert,” “popsicle,” "bomb pop," or any other variation of these words;

	(2) use, in the labeling or design of the product, its packaging, its advertisement, or in its marketing materials, images of or references to children's toys, cartoons, cartoon characters, superheroes, television shows, video games and movies, or other similar characters or references, that have been commonly used to market products to minors;

	(3) use, in the labeling or design of the product, its packaging, its advertisement, or in its marketing materials, trade dress, trademarks, or other related imagery that imitate or replicate trade dress, trademarks, or other imagery of food brands or products that have been commonly marketed to minors; and

	(4) use, in the labeling or design of the product, or its packaging, or its marketing materials, trade dress, trademarks, or other related imagery that imitate or replicate trade dress, trademarks, or other imagery of school supplies.

(O) A retailer shall not sell ENDS products without holding a valid South Carolina Retail License and disclosing the sale of tobacco or ENDS products on the Business Tax Application filed with the South Carolina Department of Revenue. Failure to comply with the provisions of this subsection constitutes a violation subject to all fines and penalties imposed by the South Carolina Department of Revenue.