By law, the City can only license new Tobacco Retail Dealer locations within a Community District when the number of current Tobacco Retail Dealer licenses has fallen below the Community District cap.

After an annual review, the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) (formerly Department of Consumer Affairs, DCA) determined that four Community Districts have available Tobacco Retail Dealer licenses:

DCWP will conduct a lottery for the available licenses in these Community Districts only. The period to apply for the lottery begins May 1, 2022 and ends May 31, 2022. DCWP must receive the completed lottery application by 5 PM on May 31.

Get an Application

Visit the DCWP website. 

Apply

To apply online, you need a DCWP account.

Log in or register for a DCWP account.

To apply in person, you must first schedule an appointment. Email LicensingAppointments@dca.nyc.gov or call (212) 436-0441.

What Happens Next

At the close of the lottery application period, DCWP will assign each accepted lottery application a priority number using a computer-generated random number selection program. 

If the number of accepted lottery applications exceeds the number of available licenses in a Community District, DCWP will issue offers to apply for the license in the order of the assigned priority numbers.

If you apply for the lottery, DCWP will mail—and email, if provided—a letter stating either:

• You are receiving an offer to apply for a Tobacco Retail Dealer license and confirming next steps.
• You were not randomly selected to apply for a Tobacco Retail Dealer license.

If you receive an offer to apply for a Tobacco Retail Dealer license, you must comply with all licensing requirements within 65 days of the date you received DCWP’s offer or the offer will become void. 

By law, the City set caps (limits) on the number of Tobacco Retail Dealer Licenses that could be issued by community district. Community district caps for Tobacco Retail Dealer Licenses took effect February 24, 2018.

View a list of the current community district caps on NYC Open Data.

When the number of licenses falls below the cap in a community district, the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) will announce an open filing period to submit applications through the Tobacco Retail Dealer License Lottery.

You can submit a license application only if:

• You applied for the lottery and received an offer to apply for a Tobacco Retail Dealer license.
• A business with a Tobacco Retail Dealer License is sold, someone acquires more than 10% of the shares of the corporation, or there is a change in partnership. You (the new business) may apply for a new license at the same location as long as there is a current, active license in good standing at the address and you apply for a new license within 30 days of the sale or change.
• Your business is located in certain airports or parks that are not subject to the community district caps.

If you meet one of the exceptions to the cap, you must submit the Tobacco Retail Dealer Cap Exception Certification and supporting documentation with your license application.

Regardless of the cap, DCA still accepts renewal applications from businesses who already have the license.

Exempt Locations

These airports and parks are not subject to the community district caps:

• Bronx Park
• Central Park
• Flushing Meadows Park
• Forest Park
• Gateway National Recreation Area
• JFK Airport
• LaGuardia Airport
• Pelham Bay Park
• Prospect Park
• Van Cortlandt Park

Pharmacies

You can't apply if your business is or contains a pharmacy. New York City law prohibits pharmacies and businesses that contain pharmacies from obtaining licenses to sell tobacco products in the city.

Online

Visit the Department of Consumer Affairs' license page.

By Mail

You will have to complete an application and bring it to the Department of Consumer Affairs Licensing Center or the NYC Small Business Support Center.

• DCA Licensing Center
  42 Broadway
  New York, NY 10004
  Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
  Wed: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM

• NYC Small Business Support Center
  90-27 Sutphin Boulevard, 4th Floor
  Jamaica, NY 11435
  Mon: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

The centers are closed on major holidays. If you need to take an exam, you should arrive before 3 PM.

About three months before your license expires, the Department of Consumer Affairs will mail you a renewal package.

You can complete and submit the application DCA sent you by mail or in person, or you can renew online. Once your license expires, you are considered unlicensed and you may get penalties if you continue to operate. If you don’t renew your license within 59 days of expiration, you will have to reapply for a new license.

Online

To renew online you need to have a DCA online account and a Personal Identification Number (PIN). The PIN is required to link information about your DCA records to your online account.

Log in or register for a DCA account.

If you don’t have a PIN already, you can request it by phone.

In Person

You can drop off your completed application and any required documents at the Department of Consumer Affairs Licensing Center or the NYC Small Business Support Center.

• DCA Licensing Center
  42 Broadway
  New York, NY 10004
  Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
  Wed: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
   
• NYC Small Business Support Center
  90-27 Sutphin Boulevard, 4th Floor
  Jamaica, NY 11435
  Mon: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM 

The centers are closed on major holidays. If you need to take an exam, you should arrive before 3 PM.

By Mail

Mail your application and required documents to:

DCA Licensing Center
42 Broadway
New York, NY 10004

By Phone

You can:

• Get answers to questions about renewing
• Report if you haven’t gotten a renewal package within 30 days of the license expiration date

Online

You can check the status of your application through your DCA account.

Log in or register for a DCA account.

By Phone

Online

On the DCA website you can:

• Live chat with a DCA representative
• Learn about laws you need to know and obey
• Learn about other licenses you might need
• Download valuable publications, tips, and FAQs
• Request an inspection
• Read checklists to learn what DCA inspectors look for in your industry and avoid violations
• Learn how to handle consumer complaints
• Pay fines by credit card
• Resolve a DCA violation
• Update important business information, including your contact information, your name or business name, or corporate officer information
• Request the replacement of a lost, stolen, or damaged DCA license document
• Download DCA's model contracts and model receipts, required signs, and other templates

Go to the DCA Business Toolbox.

With a DCA online account, you can:

• Access your DCA records
• Renew a license
• Change address
• Change name
• Change officer information
• Request license replacement
• Follow the status of applications
• Submit additional documents as part of your license application (if you submitted your application at the DCA Licensing Center)

Log in or register for a DCA account.

In Person

• DCA Licensing Center
  42 Broadway
  New York, NY 10004
  Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
  Wed: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
   
• NYC Small Business Support Center
  90-27 Sutphin Boulevard, 4th Floor
  Jamaica, NY 11435
  Mon: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

The centers are closed on major holidays. If you need to take an exam, you should arrive before 3 PM.

By Phone

If you’re using the online services portal to submit applications and other requests to the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA), you can get help with technical problems, including:

• Log-in problems
• Resetting user names or passwords
• Problems uploading documents
• Error messages
• Web page not loading
• Button not responding

You can get answers to license-specific questions and information about application requirements.