{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-138.195","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 138.195","heading":"License required for various dealers -- Fees -- Revocation of licenses --","body":"Appeals -- Records -- Reports -- Administrative regulations -- Tax returns --\nGrounds for denial of license.\n(1) (a) A person other than a manufacturer shall not acquire cigarettes in this state on\nwhich the Kentucky cigarette tax has not been paid, nor act as a resident\nwholesaler, nonresident wholesaler, vending machine operator, subjobber,\ntransporter or unclassified acquirer of such cigarettes without first  obtaining a\nlicense from the department as provided in this section.\n(b) A person shall not act as a distributor of tobacco products or vapor products\nwithout first obtaining a license from the department as provided in this\nsection.\n(c) An individual, entity, or any other group or combination acting as a unit shall\nnot be eligible to obtain a license under this section if the individual, or any\npartner, director, principal officer, or manager of the entity or any other group\nor combination acting as a uni t has been convicted of or entered a plea of\nguilty or nolo contendere to:\n1. A crime relating to the reporting, distribution, sale, or taxation of\ncigarettes, tobacco products, or vapor products; or\n2. A crime involving fraud, falsification of records, im proper business\ntransactions or reporting;\nfor ten (10) years from the expiration of probation or final discharge from\nparole or maximum expiration of sentence.\n(2) (a) Each resident wholesaler shall secure a separate license for each place of\nbusiness at which cigarette tax evidence is affixed or at which cigarettes on\nwhich the Kentucky cigarette tax has not been paid are received.\n(b) Each nonresident wholesaler shall secure a separate license for each place of\nbusiness at which evidence of Kentucky cigarette tax is affixed or from where\nKentucky cigarette tax is reported and paid.\n(c) Each license shall be secured on or before July 1 of each year.\n(d) Each licensee shall pay the sum of five hundred dollars ($500) for each year,\nor portion thereof, for which each license is secured.\n(3) (a) Each subjobber shall secure a separate license for each place of business from\nwhich cigarettes, upon which the cigarette tax has been paid, are made\navailable to retailers, whether the place of business is located within or\nwithout this state.\n(b) Each license shall be secured on or before July 1 of each year.\n(c) Each licensee shall pay the sum of five hundred dollars ($500) for each ye ar,\nor portion thereof, for which each license is secured.\n(4) (a) Each vending machine operator shall secure a license for the privilege of\ndispensing cigarettes, tobacco products, or vapor products by vending\nmachines on which the tax imposed by KRS 138.140 is required to be paid.\n(b) Each license shall be secured on or before July 1 of each year.\n(c) Each licensee shall pay the sum of twenty -five dollars ($25) for each year, or\nportion thereof, for which each license is secured.\n(d) A vending machine sha ll not be operated within this Commonwealth without\nhaving prominently affixed thereto the name of its operator and the license\nnumber assigned to that operator by the department.\n(e) The department shall prescribe by administrative regulation the manner i n\nwhich the information shall be affixed to the vending machine.\n(5) (a) Each transporter shall secure a license for the privilege of transporting\ncigarettes within this state.\n(b) Each license shall be secured on or before July 1 of each year.\n(c) Each licensee shall pay the sum of fifty dollars ($50) for each year, or portion\nthereof, for which each license is secured.\n(d) A transporter shall not transport any cigarettes without having in actual\npossession an invoice or bill of lading therefor, showing:\n1. The name and address of the consignor and consignee;\n2. The date acquired by the transporter;\n3. The name and address of the transporter;\n4. The quantity of cigarettes being transported; and\n5. The license number assigned to the transporter by the department.\n(6) (a) Each unclassified acquirer shall secure a license for the privilege of acquiring\ncigarettes on which the cigarette tax has not been paid.\n(b) Each license shall be secured on or before July 1 of each year.\n(c) Each licensee shall pay the su m of fifty dollars ($50) for each year, or portion\nthereof, for which the license is secured.\n(7) (a) 1. Each distributor shall secure a license for the privilege of selling tobacco\nproducts or vapor products in this state. Each license shall be secured on\nor before July 1 of each year, and each licensee shall pay the sum of five\nhundred dollars ($500) for each year, or portion thereof, for which the\nlicense is secured.\n2. a. A resident wholesaler, nonresident wholesaler, or subjobber\nlicensed under this se ction may also obtain and maintain a\ndistributor's license at each place of business at no additional cost\neach year.\nb. An unclassified acquirer licensed under this section may also\nobtain and maintain a distributor's license for the privilege of\nselling tobacco products or vapor products in this state. The\nlicense shall be secured on or before July 1 of each year, and each\nlicensee shall pay the sum of four hundred fifty dollars ($450) for\neach year, or portion thereof, for which the license is secured.\n3. The department may, upon application, grant a distributor's license to a\nperson other than a retailer and who is not ot herwise required to hold a\ndistributor's license under this paragraph. If the department grants the\nlicense, the licensee shall pay the sum of five hundred dollars ($500) for\neach year, or portion thereof, for which the license is secured, and the\nlicensee shall be subject to the excise tax in the same manner and\nsubject to the same requirements as a distributor required to be licensed\nunder this paragraph.\n(b) The department may, upon application, grant a retail distributor's license to a\nretailer for the privilege of purchasing tobacco products or vapor products\nfrom a distributor not licensed by the department. If the department grants the\nlicense, the licensee shall pay the sum of one hundred dollars ($100) for each\nyear, or portion thereof, for which the license is secured.\n(8) KRS 138.130 to 138.205 shall not be construed to prevent the department from\nrequiring a person to purchase more than one (1) license if the nature of that\nperson's business is so diversified as to justify the requirement.\n(9) (a) The department may, by administrative regulation promulgated in accordance\nwith KRS Chapter 13A, require any person requesting a license or holding a\nlicense under this section to supply such information concerning his or her\nbusiness, sales or any privil ege exercised, as is deemed reasonably necessary\nfor the regulation of the licensees, and to protect the revenues of the state.\n(b) Failure on the part of the applicant or licensee to:\n1. Comply with KRS 131.600 to 131.630, 138.130 to 138.205, 248.752, or\n248.754 or any administrative regulations promulgated thereunder; or\n2. Permit an inspection of premises, machines, or vehicles by an authorized\nagent of the department at any reasonable time;\nshall be grounds for the denial or revocation of any license i ssued by the\ndepartment, after due notice and a hearing by the department.\n(c) The commissioner may assign a time and place for the hearing and may\nappoint a conferee who shall conduct a hearing, receive evidence, and hear\narguments.\n(d) The conferee shall  thereupon file a report with the commissioner together\nwith a recommendation as to the denial or revocation of the license.\n(e) From any denial or revocation made by the commissioner on the report, the\nlicensee may prosecute an appeal to the Board of Tax Appeals pursuant to\nKRS 49.220.\n(f) Any person whose license has been revoked for the willful violation of any\nprovision of KRS 131.600 to 131.630, 138.130 to 138.205, 248.752, or\n248.754 or any administrative regulations promulgated thereunder shall not be\nentitled to any license provided for in this section, or have any interest in any\nlicense, either disclosed or undisclosed, either as an individual, partnership,\ncorporation or otherwise, for a period of two (2) years after the revocation.\n(10) A license issued under this section shall not be transferable or negotiable, except\nthat a license may be transferred between an individual and a corporation if that\nindividual is the exclusive owner of that corporation, or between a subsidiary\ncorporation and its parent corporation.\n(11) Every manufacturer located or doing business in this state and the first person to\nimport cigarettes into this state shall keep written records of all shipments of\ncigarettes to persons within this state, and shall submit to the de partment monthly\nreports of the shipments. All books, records, invoices, and documents required by\nthis section shall be preserved in a form prescribed by the department for not less\nthan four (4) years from the making of the records unless the department authorizes,\nin writing, the destruction of the records.\n(12) A person licensed under this section other than a nonresident wholesaler shall either\nsell to or purchase from any other such licensee untax-paid cigarettes.\n(13) (a) Licensed distributors of tob acco products or vapor products shall pay and\nreport the tobacco products tax or vapor products tax on or before the\ntwentieth day of the calendar month following the month in which the\npossession or title of the tobacco products or vapor products are tran sferred\nfrom the licensed distributor to retailers or consumers in this state, as the case\nmay be.\n(b) Retailers who have applied for and been granted a retail distributor's license\nfor the privilege of purchasing tobacco products or vapor products from a\nperson who is not a distributor licensed under KRS 138.195(7)(a) shall report\nand pay the tobacco products tax or vapor products tax on or before the\ntwentieth day of the calendar month following the month in which the\nproducts are acquired by the licensed retail distributors.\n(c) If the distributor or retail distributor timely reports and pays the tax due, the\ndistributor or retail distributor may deduct an amount equal to one percent\n(1%) of the tax due.\n(d) The department shall promulgate administrative regulations in accordance\nwith KRS Chapter 13A to prescribe the details of the reporting requirements.\n(14) A tax return shall be filed for each reporting period whether or not tax is due.\n(15) Any license issued by the department under this section shall not be construed to\nwaive or condone any violation that occurred or may have occurred prior to the\nissuance of the license and shall not prevent subsequent proceedings against the\nlicensee.\n(16) (a) The department may deny the issuance of a license under this section if:\n1. The applicant has made any material false statement on the application\nfor the license; or\n2. The applicant has violated any provision of KRS 131.600 to 131.630,\n138.130 to 138.205, 248.754, or 248.756 or any administrative\nregulations promulgated thereunder.\n(b) If the department denies the applicant a license under this section, the\ndepartment sh all notify the applicant of the grounds for the denial, and the\napplicant may request a hearing and appeal the denial as provided in\nsubsection (9) of this section.","path":["KRS Chapter 138"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=57932","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:50:29Z","sha256":"4b8f0f72354e7cde5837ba65cb7e66321780b8c89823c5cf16d8bef2b6f41e98","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-138.190","next":"us-ky/krs-138.197"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}