14 States Now Have Active PMTA Product Registries. Here Is What Every Online Vape Retailer Must Do Before July 1.
North Carolina’s PMTA product registry went live May 1, 2026. Virginia and Wisconsin join the list on July 1.
Online vape retailers that sell into these states must check their product list against each state directory. If they do not, authorities may seize their products. They may also face daily fines for each SKU.
If you sell nationwide, you have about six weeks to certify your Virginia and Wisconsin product lists. You must do this before the enforcement window opens.
What a State PMTA Registry Actually Is
A state PMTA registry is a required product directory kept by a state government. It lists every vapor product approved for legal sale in that state.
The concept draws on the federal PMTA framework but operates independently. A product may have full FDA marketing approval. A registry state can still block it from sale. This can happen if the maker has not finished that state’s separate certification process.
As of May 2026, 14 states have enacted and activated PMTA registry laws. Each registry works differently in its specifics, but the core mechanics are consistent across most of them:
- Manufacturers must certify each product variation individually. A device, its tobacco pod, and its menthol pod need three separate certifications. Each has its own fee and approval timeline.
- Certification fees typically run $500 per product variation per year.
- Products not listed in the state directory are illegal to ship into that state, regardless of their FDA status.
- State compliance inspectors conduct unannounced checks at a minimum of twice per year, targeting both retailers and carriers.
- Retailers must check each product before shipping it to a registry state.
- They must confirm that the state’s current directory lists the product.
- They must do this before they fulfill the order.
The retailer’s responsibility is the piece that catches most online stores off guard. The compliance obligation does not stop at the manufacturer. If you ship a product that your supplier has not certified in a given state, your store bears the enforcement exposure for that shipment.
PACT Act Compliance Guide for Online Vape Retailers
North Carolina: Live Since May 1, 2026
North Carolina’s vapor products directory is now operational. The North Carolina Department of Revenue administers the directory. Manufacturers must submit applications through the state’s online portal. Retailers selling into North Carolina must verify their full product catalog against the published directory before each shipment.
Key details for North Carolina:
- Products not listed in the NC directory are subject to seizure without refund on arrival
- Retailers found shipping non-listed products face civil penalties calculated per shipment, not per order
- North Carolina does not grandfather products based on prior FDA PMTA filing status alone
- The directory is updated on a rolling basis as manufacturer applications are approved
If you have not already pulled your May shipment data for North Carolina, do it now.
Cross-check it against the current NC directory before your next fulfillment run.
Virginia and Wisconsin: Effective July 1, 2026
Both Virginia and Wisconsin have enacted PMTA registry laws that take effect July 1, 2026. That is approximately six weeks from the date of this publication. For any retailer currently shipping into either state, the window to audit your catalog is open now.
Virginia
Virginia’s vapor products directory is administered by the Virginia Department of Taxation. Virginia’s registry law adds a key requirement.
The state allows unannounced compliance checks of online retailer fulfillment records.
It covers more than just physical store locations. Online stores shipping into Virginia are within scope of inspection activity from July 1 onward.
Virginia also requires manufacturers to provide documents. These must show the product is FDA-authorized.
Or they must show that a timely filed, accepted PMTA covers it. You need this for listing on the state directory. You cannot list products with no PMTA history, regardless of manufacturer size.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin’s registry is administered by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Wisconsin’s law applies to all ENDS products.
It includes nicotine pouches and heated tobacco products. It also covers traditional vapor devices and e-liquids. Retailers shipping any of these product categories into Wisconsin must verify against the Wisconsin directory from July 1 forward.
Wisconsin charges daily penalties that increase after 30 days of noncompliance. A late-start audit costs much more than an early one.
The Full List: 14 States with Active PMTA Registries
States with operational PMTA product directories as of May 2026:
- North Carolina (active May 1, 2026)
- Virginia (effective July 1, 2026)
- Wisconsin (effective July 1, 2026)
- Mississippi
- Utah
- Indiana
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Georgia
- Tennessee
- South Carolina
- Alabama
- Kentucky
- West Virginia
If you ship nationally, assume you have filing and verification obligations in every state on this list. Pull your order data by ship-to state. Add a directory check step to your fulfillment process for each state.
What the Retailer Audit Process Looks Like
Most online retailers discover their state registry exposure during a supplier conversation or an enforcement notice, not proactively. Here is the audit sequence to run now, before July 1.
Step 1: Identify your registry-state shipment volume. Pull your last 90 days of order data from Shopify or WooCommerce, sorted by ship-to state. Identify every registry state in your current ship-to footprint.
Step 2: List every SKU you shipped into each registry state. This needs to be granular. A tobacco flavor and a menthol flavor of the same device are separate SKUs for registry purposes. Do not assume product family coverage extends to each variant.
Step 3: Cross-check each SKU against the current state directory. Each state publishes its directory online. Search by manufacturer name and product name. If a SKU does not appear, you cannot ship it into that state until the manufacturer approves the certification.
Step 4: Contact your supplier for any unlisted SKU. Ask them to confirm that the manufacturer has submitted a certification application for the product.
Make sure you do this in every registry state where you sell it. Get the application reference number if possible. If the manufacturer has not applied, no one can sell that product in that state until the manufacturer applies.
Step 5: Update your fulfillment rules. For any SKU you cannot verify in a state, add a geo-block or manual hold. Add it to your Shopify or WooCommerce fulfillment workflow. Shipping a product that you do not list in a registry state, after you identify the gap, leads to the largest penalties.
Step 6: Set a quarterly re-verification schedule. State directories update on a rolling basis.
They add new certifications. Someone can revoke existing certifications. Build a quarterly check into your compliance calendar so your fulfillment rules stay current.
How Token of Trust Connects to Registry Compliance
State PMTA registry compliance determines which products you can sell. Age verification at checkout determines whether you can keep selling them.
Both obligations run in parallel for every shipment. A retailer may pass a registry audit but fail an age verification inspection. Under the PACT Act, each failure can trigger separate penalties, even if products comply.
Token of Trust offers age and identity checks.
It helps Shopify and WooCommerce vape retailers meet PACT Act checkout rules. For retailers building state-by-state compliance workflows to address the registry wave, checkout verification stays consistent. It does not vary by state and does not need re-auditing each quarter.
Start Your Free Trial
Six weeks is a workable window for a Virginia and Wisconsin catalog audit. Start now.
Use the free state excise tax calculator at vapetaxes.com to see where your products land before July 1. When you are ready to automate that calculation inside your store, Request a Demo and we will show you how the integration works.
FAQs
Does state PMTA registry compliance apply to retailers or only to manufacturers? Both.
Manufacturers must certify each product variation through each state’s application process. Retailers must check each product before they fill an order.
They must confirm that the registry state’s current directory lists the product.
This applies to any product they ship to a registry state. Shipping a non-listed product into a registry state creates enforcement exposure for the retailer, not just the manufacturer.
Can I still ship FDA-authorized products into registry states without completing the state certification? Not automatically.
Federal FDA marketing authorization and state PMTA registry certification are separate processes. A product with a full FDA marketing granted order still needs separate state certification in each registry state.
Without that certification, the law prohibits shipping it there. Some states expedite the application process for FDA-authorized products, but expedited does not mean automatic.
What happens if I ship a non-listed product into North Carolina, Virginia, or Wisconsin? Authorities may seize products shipped into registry states if they are not in the state directory.
They will not issue refunds.
Retailers face civil penalties calculated per shipment. In Wisconsin, penalties escalate after 30 days of continued non-compliance. In Virginia, online retailer fulfillment records are within scope of unannounced compliance inspections starting July 1.
How often do state PMTA directories update? State directories update on a rolling basis as agencies review and approve manufacturer applications.
The manufacturer may list a product within weeks if their application is under review. However, retailers cannot ship the product until it appears on the published directory. Build a quarterly re-verification step into your compliance calendar to keep your fulfillment rules current.
