State guide

Alabama alcohol and vape ID laws: what the ABC Board rules and Act 2025-403 say

By Apparent Logic, LLC · Updated October 5, 2026
Legal sources last checked September 2026 · How we review sources

For Alabama alcohol licensees and vape retailers. ABC Board Rule 20-X-6-.09(1)(d) limits which IDs count for alcohol, and §28-11-7.1(d) calls for an electronic ID scan, through a board-approved third-party service, before a patron enters a Specialty Retailer of ENDS (electronic nicotine delivery systems).

What the law says

Alcohol: who may not sell, and which IDs count

Code of Alabama §28-3A-25(a)(3) makes it unlawful for any person, licensee, or their employees or agents to sell, deliver, furnish or give alcohol to anyone under 21, the legal drinking age set by §28-1-5.

Rule 20-X-6-.09(1)(d) lists the only documents a licensee, employee or agent may accept as proof of age: a valid driver’s license from any state, a valid passport, a valid U.S. Uniformed Service ID, or a valid state-issued ID with a photo and date of birth. Neither the rule nor §28-3A-25 mentions electronic scanning, and §28-3A-25 doesn’t contain a defense for relying on an ID that turns out to be fake.

Alcohol delivery

Under §28-3A-13.1(b)(11), a delivery service licensee “shall possess identification scanning software technology, or a state-of-the-art alternative approved by the board, available at the point of delivery that verifies the recipient is at least 21 years of age and retains the recipient’s name, date of birth, and signature.” Under §28-3A-13.1(b)(13), the alcohol goes back to the retailer if the recipient doesn’t complete that process. Act 2026-512, effective October 1, 2026, amends the section and keeps this requirement.

Alcohol penalties

Selling alcohol to someone under 21 is a misdemeanor for the person convicted (§28-3A-25(b)(1)): a $100–$1,000 fine, to which the court may add up to six months in jail for a first conviction. A second conviction adds 3–6 months in jail, and a third or later 6–12 months. Separately, §28-3A-24 lets the ABC Board suspend or revoke a license, or fine the licensee up to $1,000 instead.

The Responsible Vendor Program

The Responsible Vendor Program is a voluntary ABC Board certification (§28-10-5; Rule 20-X-12). It calls for an approved course with an 80% passing score for every server, seller and manager, posted signs, and training and acknowledgment records (Rules 20-X-12-.04 and .06–.08).

Under §28-10-7(a), a certified vendor’s license may not be suspended or revoked for a trained employee’s sale to someone under 21, unless the vendor knew or should have known of the violation, or took part in it. Under §28-10-7(b), the board must consider certification when setting fines for such a sale. That protection doesn’t address criminal penalties under §28-3A-25.

Specialty ENDS retailers: the entry scan

Act 2025-403, effective June 1, 2025, created the Specialty Retailer of ENDS permit and added §28-11-7.1. Subsection (d) says no specialty retailer may allow anyone under 21 inside, and has each patron verify their age through a board-approved third-party service that “shall require the presentation and electronic scanning of the patron’s driver license or nondriver identification card as a condition of entry into the retail establishment.”

Under §28-11-7.1(c), vape products may be sold at retail only by a permitted specialty retailer, except FDA-authorized products, which “may be sold by a person permitted under Section 28-11-7.”

The ABC Board’s Rule 20-X-27-.01(4), as amended effective October 13, 2025, requires each Specialty ENDS location to post an under-21 sign on or inside the door and to use “an ABC Board approved third-party scanning software.” That software “shall not sell nor retain a patron’s personal data but shall retain data indicating that a scan was conducted and the results of said scan,” and “shall not release a permit holder from liability.” Applicants ask the board to approve their software on form LCD-52, which calls any scanning software “strictly a tool.”

For tobacco and vape sales, Rule 20-X-24-.01 lists the same four accepted IDs and says accepting one “does not release the permit holder or any other person from responsibility for violations.”

Specialty ENDS penalties

Section 28-11-7.1(e) points to §28-11-9(e): maximum fines on the permit holder of $1,000 for a first violation at a location within two years, $2,500 for a second, and $5,000 plus revocation for a third or later. A suspension can last at most one year (§28-11-9(d)). For federal rules, see our vape shop age verification guide.

What it means at the counter

At a specialty ENDS shop, §28-11-7.1(d) names a driver license or nondriver ID card, not the passports or military IDs that Rule 20-X-24-.01 accepts. How those fit is a question for the ABC Board.

Where Check ID fits

Check ID is a tool that helps your staff check IDs. It reads the barcode on US and Canadian licenses and ID cards, checks the birth and expiry dates against your rules, and shows a clear result, such as Verified, Underage or Expired ID. Your staff make the call. It can’t tell whether a card is genuine: a well-made fake can carry a valid barcode.

We don’t know of any Alabama permit on which the ABC Board has approved Check ID, and we don’t claim it meets §28-11-7.1(d) or Rule 20-X-27-.01(4). No software vendor, us included, can tell you in advance whether the board will approve its product.

A scan record never keeps the name, date of birth, address, ID number or a picture of the ID. It does keep the result and the age in years, and repeat-entry alerts use a one-way code made from the barcode. Free and Pro scan history covers 7 days, on your device or in your own iCloud, and can be turned off. Check ID for Teams keeps scan records on our servers for two years by default. Security & data shows what each plan keeps.

These are scan records, not the training and acknowledgment records the Responsible Vendor Program rules describe. Whether a scan helps your situation under these rules is a question for your lawyer or the ABC Board.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Code of Alabama §28-1-5, §28-3A-13.1, §28-3A-24, §28-3A-25, §28-10-5, §28-10-7, §28-11-7.1 and §28-11-9, retrieved September 2026.
• Act 2025-403 (H.B. 8, 2025), enrolled and Act 2026-512 (H.B. 593, 2026), enrolled, retrieved September 2026.
• Ala. Admin. Code ch. 20-X-6, 20-X-12, 20-X-24 and 20-X-27, retrieved September 2026.
• Alabama ABC Board, form LCD-52 and its Specialty ENDS permit page, retrieved September 2026.