# Legality of mailing cigarettes within the US

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 28, 2005, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762 "2005-09-28T00:20:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2005, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762/1 "2005-09-28T00:20:54Z")

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Is it illegal for a person to mail cigarettes from one state to another?

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**Author:** ![ltfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@ltfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ltfire)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2005, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762/2 "2005-09-28T00:30:12Z")

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> [@Mr. Blue Sky](#):
>
> Is it illegal for a person to mail cigarettes from one state to another?

I’m in N.Y., where prices for cigarettes are double the prices in the South. I get a regular delivery from a company in SC.  
NY State has effectively shut down all the Indian reservations that were selling tax free cigs to residents of N.Y. by ‘convincing’ credit card issuers (Master Card, Visa etc.) that they frowned on it.  
Before I located the out of state store, my brother in law was shipping me cigs from Tenn. It’s the tax issue that a State would be concerned with.

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**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2005, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762/3 "2005-09-28T00:33:31Z")

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How about going to a store, buying cigs and mailing them to someone in another state?

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**Author:** ![ltfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@ltfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ltfire)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2005, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762/4 "2005-09-28T00:47:15Z")

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[QUOTE=Mr. Blue Sky]  
How about going to a store, buying cigs and mailing them to someone in another state?[/QUOT

Do you mean as a gift? I don’t see anything wrong with that at all. The thing is, as I mentioned, the tax problem, if you are shipping them to avoid same.

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**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762/5 "2005-09-28T00:48:48Z")

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> [@ltfire](#):
>
> Do you mean as a gift? I don’t see anything wrong with that at all. The thing is, as I mentioned, the tax problem, if you are shipping them to avoid same.

Definitely not trying to avoid taxes. It’s for my wife’s father (he’s in Alaska).

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**Author:** ![ltfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@ltfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ltfire)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2005, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/legality-of-mailing-cigarettes-within-the-us/323762/6 "2005-09-28T19:52:34Z")

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I was at the post Office today, and on the wall was a poster listing the items that you cannot send through the US Mail. Explosives, flammable liquids led the list. There was no mention of tobacco or tobacco products.  
I’d ship cigarettes and not worry about it at all.  
(Unless you are talking about ‘funny cigarettes). 😃