License for the sale of alcohol, tobacco, and electronic cigarettes: rules, documents, fines
18.02.2026 15:02License for the sale of alcohol, tobacco products, and e-cigarette liquids in 2026: what shops, cafes, and delivery services need
The retail sale of alcohol, tobacco products, and e-cigarette liquids in 2026 is primarily regulated by the Law of Ukraine No. 3817-IX. This is the basic act for licensing, circulation, storage, sale, labeling, restrictions, and liability in this area. The old Law No. 481/95-VR is no longer in effect.
When a license is required and when it is not
A license for the retail sale of alcoholic beverages is required to sell all alcoholic drinks except table wines. This rule also applies to online sales. If a seller already has an alcohol retail license, they do not need a separate license for cider and perry without added alcohol.
The retail sale of tobacco products requires a retail license for tobacco products. A separate license is required for the retail sale of liquids used in electronic cigarettes. Selling tobacco raw materials, raw materials for liquids, and nicotine individually or in sets is prohibited.
Table wines remain the main exception: their retail sale does not fall under the general rule of a mandatory alcohol license. However, mulled wine, "hot wine," and alcoholic cocktails, even if prepared on the basis of table wine, are not considered table wines. Their sale requires an alcohol retail license.
There is a separate special case for small wine production facilities: if they produce their own alcoholic beverages without adding alcohol, the law allows them to retail such products without a separate retail license. For an ordinary shop, cafe, or bar, this exception does not apply.
Who can trade on the single tax system
There is an important restriction for sole proprietors (FOP) on the simplified system: the sale of excisable goods is generally incompatible with the single tax, except for a narrow exception for the retail sale of beer, cider, perry without added alcohol, and table wines. Consequently, the sale of strong alcohol, liqueurs, cocktails, mulled wine, tobacco products, and e-cigarette liquids requires the general taxation system. For legal entities on the third group of the single tax, the sale of excisable goods is also not allowed.
Practical example: the State Tax Service explicitly clarifies that mulled wine and "hot wine," even if made exclusively from table wines, are cocktails, not table wines. Therefore, an alcohol license is required to sell them, and a sole proprietor on the single tax must switch to the general system for such activities.
What the place of trade should be like
A license is issued separately for each retail location. The law considers a retail location to be either a single commercial premises where payment transactions take place or a place from which goods are dispatched for further delivery to the final consumer.
Payment transactions in such a place are conducted through registered fiscal cash registers (RRO) or software cash registers (PRRO), and in cases permitted by law, through settlement books. This is a key condition for legal operation when selling alcohol, tobacco, and e-cigarette liquids.
For the sale of alcoholic beverages, except beer, cider, perry without added alcohol, and certain naturally fermented beverages up to 8.5% vol., the retail area of the sales location must be at least 20 sq. m. This rule is important for cafes, shops, and temporary outlets planning to sell stronger alcohol or cocktails.
The sale of alcohol on tap for on-site consumption is allowed only to licensees who have the status of a public catering business entity. For a restaurant, bar, cafe, or other catering establishment, this is not enough without an alcohol license: both the establishment status and the license are required.
The person selling such goods must be of legal age. Sale to persons under 18 is prohibited. If the seller or the person making the delivery doubts the buyer's age, they must demand a document confirming the age, including an electronic document in the Diia app. If the buyer refuses to present the document, the sale or transfer of the goods is prohibited.
The law also prohibits the sale of these goods in the premises and territories of educational and healthcare institutions, in children's and sports shops and sections, through vending machines, from hands or trays, and for tobacco — also individually and in non-standard consumer packaging. During mass events, local councils may additionally prohibit or restrict sales.
How to obtain a license
Before submitting an application, the business entity must be registered and registered with the tax authority, notify the State Tax Service about the taxation objects through which the licensed activity will be carried out, undergo electronic identification in the electronic cabinet, and set up correspondence with the tax authority through the electronic cabinet. In practice, a notification about taxation objects is submitted using form No. 20-OPP within 10 working days after the registration, creation, or opening of the object.
The application is submitted to the territorial body of the State Tax Service at the retail location, and in some cases, a license can be obtained automatically. The application specifies, among other things, the address of the sales location, the identifier of the taxation object, the details of the license payment, and a list of fiscal numbers of RROs, PRROs, cash books, and settlement books available at the sales location. The application forms and register extracts are approved by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 374.
The decision on retail licenses for alcohol, tobacco, and e-cigarette liquids is made no later than 10 working days from the date of receipt of the application. Confirmation of the right to conduct business is information in the Unified Register of Licensees; if necessary, the licensee receives an extract from this register.
A refusal to issue a license is most often caused by the absence of information about the applicant in state registers, failure to submit or improper submission of a notification about taxation objects, incorrect application form, incomplete documents, or discrepancies in information about RRO/PRRO. Such a decision can be appealed administratively or in court.
How much does a license cost
The fee amount is now tied not to fixed amounts, but to the minimum wage set on January 1 of the payment year. The following rates apply to retail trade:
Licenses for the retail sale of alcohol, tobacco, and e-cigarette liquids are granted indefinitely, but the fee is charged quarterly in equal installments. The first payment must be made before receiving the license, and each subsequent payment — before the beginning of the new quarterly period with simultaneous notification to the licensing authority of the payment.
If an entrepreneur has several shops, a license is required for each sales location separately. If there are several cash registers in one shop, the fee for alcohol is calculated for each RRO/PRRO, and for tobacco and liquids — for the sales location itself.
Storage of goods
Alcoholic beverages can only be stored in storage locations entered into the Unified Register of Storage Locations, based on the corresponding license — including retail. The procedure for maintaining this register is approved by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 68, and the application forms by order of the Ministry of Finance.
The rule is more lenient for tobacco products and e-cigarette liquids: they can be stored right at the retail location without entering such a place into the register of storage locations. However, if the warehouse or pantry is located at a different address, this storage location must be entered into the register.
Online sales and delivery
The sale of alcohol, tobacco products, electronic cigarettes, e-cigarette liquids, and heated tobacco devices via the Internet is allowed, but only if three conditions are simultaneously met: prior age identification at the ordering stage, dispatch of goods specifically from the sales location, and direct transfer of goods to the final consumer with re-verification of age upon delivery. Delivery outside the sales location is allowed only if these requirements are met.
For online trade, the State Tax Service maintains a separate Register of website addresses of licensees. If a shop sells such goods through a website, online store, domain, mobile application, or other network address, the relevant data must be entered into this register. The procedure for maintaining it is approved by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1320.
RRO/PRRO and fiscal receipt
For excisable goods, an RRO or PRRO must be set up in programming mode: specifying the product subcategory code according to the UKT ZED, product name, price, and quantity. For the retail sale of alcoholic beverages, the digital value of the excise tax stamp barcode or details of the electronic stamp are additionally specified in cases provided by legislation.
The regulation on the form and content of settlement documents expressly provides that the UKT ZED code is a mandatory detail of a receipt in cases established by law. If payment transactions for excisable goods are carried out without programming the product name, UKT ZED code, price, and quantity, a fine of 300 tax-free minimum incomes of citizens is applied.
Labeling and pricing
Alcoholic beverages sold in Ukraine must be labeled in accordance with the Law on consumer information regarding food products, considering the special requirements of Law No. 3817-IX. The label must contain, among other things, the name of the beverage, data of the responsible food business operator or importer, alcohol content, container capacity, and in specified cases — the country of origin, sugar content, information about colorings or flavorings, and the year of grape harvest for vintage wines.
Packs of tobacco products and packages of e-cigarette liquids must state the manufacturer, general and proper name of the goods, number of units or volume and nicotine content, health warnings, and a barcode. The maximum retail price and production date are also printed on such packaging.
Retail trade in alcoholic beverages at prices below the minimum retail prices is prohibited. For tobacco products and e-cigarette liquids, it is prohibited to sell them above the maximum retail price printed on the package, increased by the amount of retail excise tax on excisable goods.
Advertising and display
There is a very strict regime for tobacco products, electronic cigarettes, e-cigarette liquids, and heated tobacco devices: advertising, sales promotion, and sponsorship are prohibited. Only very limited text information about the available assortment and prices is allowed at the points of sale without graphic design, lighting effects, video, and other elements of promotion.
Taxes
The retail sale of alcohol, tobacco products, tobacco, industrial tobacco substitutes, and e-cigarette liquids falls under operations for the sale of excisable goods. This means the seller must comply with the tax rules established by the Tax Code: choose an allowable taxation system, keep proper records of transactions via RRO/PRRO, and fulfill obligations to pay and report on excise tax in cases provided by the TCU.
Fines
For retail trade in alcohol, tobacco products, or e-cigarette liquids without an appropriate license, a financial sanction applies in the amount of 200% of the value of the sold goods, but not less than 3 minimum wages established as of January 1 of the reporting year.
For selling through an RRO/PRRO or cash book not registered in the Unified Register of Licensees, the fine is 200% of the value of goods sold through such a register, but not less than 8.5 minimum wages. For violating the requirements of Article 71 of Law No. 3817-IX — particularly rules regarding sales to minors, in prohibited places, or violating delivery rules — a fine of 3 minimum wages is stipulated.
For selling alcohol below the minimum retail price — a fine of 100% of the value of the sold product, calculated based on the minimum price, but not less than 2 minimum wages. For selling tobacco products or e-cigarette liquids above the maximum retail price increased by the retail excise amount — also 100% of the product value, but not less than 2 minimum wages.
There is a separate fine for the absence of the programming mode for excisable goods in the RRO/PRRO — 300 tax-free minimum incomes of citizens.
When you can lose a license
The license is terminated, in particular, at the request of the licensee themselves, in case of termination of a sole proprietorship or legal entity, discovery of false data in the registers or in the documents submitted to obtain the license, establishing the fact that the submitted documents were not issued by authorized bodies, and in case of non-payment of the next license fee. If the tax authority determines the absence of the licensee at their location, the validity of all their existing licenses is terminated. A separate ground is an illegal refusal to admit State Tax Service officials to perform an inspection.
The tax authority automatically sends reminders about the next payment 90, 75, 60, 45, 30, and 15 days before the deadline, and a warning nine days before about the date of license termination in case of non-payment.
What an entrepreneur should do before starting sales
Before opening a shop, cafe, bar, or delivery service, you should go through the following practical route: determine the taxation system; register the trade object and submit a notification using form No. 20-OPP; register an RRO or PRRO; submit an application for a license with all fiscal numbers; pay the first quarterly fee; separately register the storage location if the warehouse does not coincide with the point of sale; for online sales — enter the website or application into the register of web addresses of licensees; to sell cocktails, mulled wine, or alcohol on tap for on-site consumption — work strictly as a catering establishment.
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