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

Instrument

Age 21; tobacco products definition; shipping bar and its exclusion

Source

https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=26.28.080

Retrieved

2026-11-06

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(1) A person who sells or gives, or permits to be sold or given, to any person under the age of 21 years any cigar, cigarette, cigarette paper or wrapper, tobacco in any form, alternative nicotine product, or a vapor product is guilty of a gross misdemeanor.

(21) “Tobacco products” means cigars, cheroots, stogies, periques, granulated, plug cut, crimp cut, ready rubbed, and other smoking tobacco, snuff, snuff flour, cavendish, plug and twist tobacco, fine-cut and other chewing tobaccos, shorts, refuse scraps, clippings, cuttings and sweepings of tobacco, and other kinds and forms of tobacco, prepared in such manner as to be suitable for chewing or smoking in a pipe or otherwise, or both for chewing and smoking, and any other product, regardless of form, that contains tobacco or nicotine, whether derived from tobacco or created synthetically, and is intended for human consumption or placement in the oral or nasal cavity or absorption into the human body by any other means, but does not include cigarettes as defined in RCW
82.24.010 or a drug, device, or combination product approved, as of December 31, 2024, for sale by the United States food and drug administration, as those terms are defined in the federal food, drug, and cosmetic act (21 U.S.C. Sec. 301 et seq.) as it exists on January 1, 2026.

(5) "Tobacco product" means a product that contains tobacco and is intended for human use, including any product defined in RCW
82.24.010
(2) or
82.26.010
(21), except that for the purposes of RCW
70.155.140 only, "tobacco product" does not include:
(a) Cigars defined in RCW
82.26.010 as to which 1,000 units weigh more than three pounds; or
(b) Alternative nicotine products. For the purposes of this subsection (5), “alternative nicotine product” means any noncombustible product containing nicotine from any source that is intended for human consumption, whether chewed, absorbed, dissolved, inhaled, or ingested by any other means.

(1) A person may not:
(a) Ship or transport, or cause to be shipped or transported, any tobacco product ordered or purchased by mail or through the internet to anyone in this state other than a licensed wholesaler or retailer; or
(b) With knowledge or reason to know of the violation, provide substantial assistance to a person who is in violation of this section.

Instrument

Vapor products: mail and internet sales; license required

Source

https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=70.345.090

Retrieved

2026-11-06

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RCW 70.345.090 Mail and internet sales.

(1) No person may conduct a delivery sale or otherwise ship or transport, or cause to be shipped or transported, any vapor product ordered or purchased by mail or through the internet to any person unless such seller has a valid delivery sale license as required under this chapter.
(2) No person may conduct a delivery sale or otherwise ship or transport, or cause to be shipped or transported, any vapor product ordered or purchased by mail or through the internet to any person under the minimum age required for the legal sale of vapor products as provided under RCW 70.345.140.
(3) A delivery sale licensee must provide notice on its mail order or internet sales forms of the minimum age required for the legal sale of vapor products in Washington state as provided by RCW 70.345.140.
(4) A delivery sale licensee must not accept a purchase or order from any person without first obtaining the full name, birthdate, and residential address of that person and verifying this information through an independently operated third-party database or aggregate of databases, which includes data from government sources, that are regularly used by government and businesses for the purpose of age and identity verification and authentication.
(5) A delivery sale licensee must accept payment only through a credit or debit card issued in the purchaser’s own name. The licensee must verify that the card is issued to the same person identified through identity and age verification procedures in subsection (4) of this section.
(6) Before a delivery sale licensee delivers an initial purchase to any person, the licensee must verify the identity and delivery address of the purchaser by mailing or shipping to the purchaser a notice of sale and certification form confirming that the addressee is in fact the person placing the order. The purchaser must return the signed certification form to the licensee before the initial shipment of product. Certification forms are not required for repeat customers. In the alternative, before a seller delivers an initial purchase to any person, the seller must first obtain from the prospective customer an electronic certification, such as by email, that includes a declaration that, at a minimum, the prospective customer is over the minimum age required for the legal sale of a vapor product, and the credit or debit card used for payment has been issued in the purchaser’s name.
(7) A delivery sale licensee must include on shipping documents a clear and conspicuous statement which includes, at a minimum, that the package contains vapor products, Washington law prohibits sales to those under the minimum age established by this chapter, and violations may result in sanctions to both the licensee and the purchaser.
(8) For purposes of this subsection (8) [this section], "vapor products" has the same meaning as provided in RCW 82.25.005.
(9) A person who knowingly violates this section is guilty of a class C felony, except that the maximum fine that may be imposed is five thousand dollars.
(10) In addition to or in lieu of any other civil or criminal remedy provided by law, a person who has violated this section is subject to a civil penalty of up to five thousand dollars for each violation. The attorney general, acting in the name of the state, may seek recovery of the penalty in a civil action in superior court.
(11) The attorney general may seek an injunction in superior court to restrain a threatened or actual violation of this section and to compel compliance with this section.
(12) Any violation of this section is not reasonable in relation to the development and preservation of business and is an unfair and deceptive act or practice and an unfair method of competition in the conduct of trade or commerce in violation of RCW 19.86.020. Standing to bring an action to enforce RCW
19.86.020 for violation of this section lies solely with the attorney general. Remedies provided by chapter
19.86 RCW are cumulative and not exclusive.
(13)(a) In any action brought under this section, the state is entitled to recover, in addition to other relief, the costs of investigation, expert witness fees, costs of the action, and reasonable attorneys' fees.
(b) If a court determines that a person has violated this section, the court shall order any profits, gain, gross receipts, or other benefit from the violation to be disgorged and paid to the state treasurer for deposit in the general fund.
(14) Unless otherwise expressly provided, the penalties or remedies, or both, under this section are in addition to any other penalties and remedies available under any other law of this state.
(15) A licensee who violates this section is subject to license suspension or revocation by the board.
(16) The board may adopt by rule additional requirements for mail or internet sales.
(17) The board must not adopt rules prohibiting internet sales.

RCW 70.345.030(1)(a)

(1)(a) No person may engage in or conduct business as a retailer, distributor, or delivery seller in this state without a valid license issued under this chapter, except as otherwise provided by law. Any person who sells vapor products to ultimate consumers by a means other than delivery sales must obtain a retailer’s license under this chapter. Any person who meets the definition of distributor under this chapter must obtain a distributor's license under this chapter. Any person who conducts delivery sales of vapor products must obtain a delivery sale license.