Guide
New Jersey’s flavored vape ban explained: what the law says
Published September 27, 2026 · Last checked against New Jersey and FDA sources: September 27, 2026 · Informational research, not legal advice
The short answer
- The law is P.L.2019, c.425, codified at N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:170-51.12. It was approved January 21, 2020, and says it takes effect “90 days after the date of enactment.”
- It says no retailer shall “sell, offer for sale, distribute for commercial purpose at no cost or minimal cost or with coupons or rebate offers, give or furnish, to a person any vapor product that has a characterizing flavor.”
- “Characterizing flavor” means any flavor “other than tobacco,” and the list in the law expressly includes mint, menthol and wintergreen.
- The ban covers the substance a device vaporizes “regardless of whether the substance contains nicotine,” and it covers components, parts and accessories.
- Retailers face civil penalties of at least $500, $1,000 and $2,000 for first, second and later violations, plus possible suspension or revocation of a vapor business license.
What counts as a “vapor product”
The law defines it this way:
“Vapor product” means any device that may be used to deliver any aerosolized or vaporized substance to the person inhaling from the device, including, but not limited to, an e-cigarette, e-cigar, e-pipe, vape pen, or e-hookah. “Vapor product” includes any component, part, or accessory of the device, and also includes any substance that may be aerosolized or vaporized by such device, regardless of whether the substance contains nicotine.
The same definition then excludes “any drug, device, or combination product approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration pursuant to the ‘Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.’” See the open question below for why that sentence matters.
What counts as a “characterizing flavor”
“Characterizing flavor” means a distinguishable flavor, taste, or aroma other than tobacco, including, but not limited to, any fruit, chocolate, vanilla, honey, candy, cocoa, dessert, alcoholic beverage, herb, mint, menthol, wintergreen, or spice flavoring, that is imparted, prior to or during consumption, by a vapor product, including any smoke or vapor emanating from that product.
The law adds a marketing test: a vapor product “shall be deemed to have a characterizing flavor if the product is advertised or marketed as having or producing any such distinguishable flavor, taste, or aroma.” In other words, how a product is described can bring it under the ban, not only how it tastes.
Who the ban applies to, and the penalties
The prohibition is written for a retailer, acting “directly or indirectly by an agent or employee, or by a vending machine owned by the retailer or located in the retailer’s establishment.” It covers selling, offering for sale, giving away, and distributing at no or minimal cost or with coupons or rebate offers.
| Violation | Civil penalty under § 2A:170-51.12(b) | License consequence under § 2A:170-51.12(c) |
|---|---|---|
| First | Not less than $500 | None stated |
| Second | Not less than $1,000 | None stated |
| Third | Not less than $2,000 | Vapor business license suspended for not less than three years, after a municipal hearing |
| Fourth or later | Not less than $2,000 | Vapor business license suspended for not less than three years, after a municipal hearing; or, instead, the license may be revoked on the municipality’s recommendation, after a hearing |
A licensee facing suspension or revocation is also subject to administrative charges set by the Director of the Division of Taxation.
Penalties are collected in a summary proceeding before the municipal court, and the money goes to the municipality where the violation happened. The Division of Taxation handles the license suspension or revocation. The section says it does not apply to medical cannabis products dispensed to registered patients under the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act.
This section’s penalties are written for retailers. This page does not address other laws that may apply to other people.
How New Jersey enforces it
On January 16, 2025, the New Jersey Attorney General’s office said in a release that the Division of Consumer Affairs had sent letters to nearly 11,000 businesses licensed to sell tobacco and vapor products, “reminding them that selling flavored vapor products is unlawful and directing them to cease any such sales immediately.”
According to the same release, the Division’s letter warns that selling flavored vapor products in violation of the ban, “including mint, menthol, and wintergreen,” is a violation of New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act, “punishable by up to $10,000 for the first violation and $20,000 for each subsequent violation.” The release also says that in August 2024 the Division issued Notices of Violation with assessed civil penalties of $4,500 each against 19 retailers for alleged Consumer Fraud Act violations involving flavored vapor products.
The Governor’s office described the 2020 law as making New Jersey the “First State in the Nation to Impose Permanent Ban on Flavored Vape Products,” and said it “prohibits the sale and distribution of flavored vape products, including menthol.”
Open question: FDA-authorized menthol and flavored e-cigarettes
The FDA’s list of authorized e-cigarettes (current as of August 28, 2026) includes products named “Menthol” from Glas, JUUL and NJOY. In May 2026 the FDA also authorized Glas “Gold” and “Sapphire” pods, which it called “the FDA’s first authorization of non-tobacco and non-menthol ENDS products.”
New Jersey’s law excludes products “approved” by the FDA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act from the definition of “vapor product.” But the FDA says of the e-cigarettes on its authorized list: “it does not mean these products are safe, nor are they ‘FDA approved.’”
So the statute’s text doesn’t settle whether FDA-authorized menthol or flavored e-cigarettes fall under New Jersey’s ban. We did not find a New Jersey court decision or agency statement that answers it. Treat it as unclear. New York is different: its flavor law, N.Y. Public Health Law § 1399-mm-1(4), expressly exempts dealers’ sales of flavored nicotine vapor products that the FDA has authorized to market and that have received a premarket review order.
Related New Jersey rules
New Jersey has other vapor rules in separate sections, including a ban on discounted sales, limits on who can sell bottled e-liquid, and a minimum sale age of 21. See the New Jersey vape laws guide for those, with citations.
Related guides
- New Jersey vape laws
- Are disposable vapes legal in the US?
- FDA-authorized vapes database
- Is my vape FDA authorized?
- New York vape laws
- Vape laws by state
This page is informational research for adults 21+, not legal advice. TristateVape doesn’t sell vapes or link to any retailer from this page.
Sources
- New Jersey Legislature — P.L.2019, c.425 (enacted text; N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:170-51.12)
- State of New Jersey — Governor’s office on S3265 (Jan 21, 2020)
- New Jersey Office of Attorney General — Warning letters to nearly 11,000 businesses (Jan 16, 2025)
- FDA — E-Cigarettes Authorized by the FDA (current as of Aug 28, 2026)
- FDA — Expands Market Access, Authorizes New ENDS Products (May 5, 2026)
- New York State Senate — Public Health Law § 1399-mm-1