Anyone manufacturing tobacco products without first obtaining the necessary permit is subject to civil and/or criminal penalties. 

The federal Alcohol, Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) issued an announcement regarding the impact of the Aug. 20 ruling on RYO cigarette machines by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO) reported. 

The TTB announcement stated that the court ruling “definitively settles the legal status of retailers that provide cigarette-making machines to customers as manufacturers of tobacco products.” 

Based on the court decision, the TTB can now enforce the law and require that any person who, for commercial purposes, makes an RYO machine available to consumers must obtain a tobacco manufacturer’s permit from the TTB, secure a bond and pay the special occupational tax, comply with recordkeeping, reporting, and inventory requirements, file tax returns and pay the applicable federal cigarette taxes.

The announcement also noted that anyone manufacturing tobacco products without first obtaining the necessary permit is subject to civil and/or criminal penalties. 

In addition, with the court decision resolving litigation that had been pending against the TTB on the RYO issue, the TTB announcement indicates that businesses can now begin obtaining a tobacco product manufacturer’s permit and such applications can be submitted electronically using the TTB’s online permit system.