Industry guide

Liquor store age verification: what some state ID-check laws say

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

For liquor and package stores: carding rules and penalties differ from state to state, and Texas now requires ID scanning for most off-premise sales (Tex. Alco. Bev. Code §109.61(a-1)).

What the law says

The drinking age

Federal law (23 U.S.C. §158) conditions a state’s highway funding on the state prohibiting purchase or public possession of alcohol by anyone under 21. Every state has set 21 as the minimum purchase age since July 1988, according to NHTSA.

Texas: scanning at off-premise sales

Senate Bill 650, the Deshawn Jagwan Act, took effect September 1, 2025. Under §109.61(a-1), a person must visually inspect and electronically read a buyer’s driver’s license or ID certificate for off-premises retail sales, with listed exceptions. If the card cannot be scanned, its information may be entered manually into an electronic reader.

TABC may not take disciplinary action for a scanning violation on sales made before September 1, 2027 (§109.61(a-4)). Separately, §109.61(d) makes a violation of the section a Class A misdemeanor, subject to the defenses in (d-1): the buyer was 40 or older, or an internet or data outage prevented the scan. Our Texas SB 650 guide has more.

Under §106.03(b), a seller does not commit the sale-to-minor offense if the minor falsely claimed to be 21 with an apparently valid government ID whose photo and description match the minor, unless a §109.61 scan showed the ID is invalid (§106.03(d)).

Utah

For off-premise beer retailers, Utah’s electronic-verification rule applies to drive-through, drive-up and designated-parking-stall beer sales: proof of age is verified electronically, or through a commission process if that isn’t possible (§32B-1-407(3)(b)(ii), (4)).

Separately, every off-premise beer retailer must require proof of age before every sale, and check that a buyer showing a Utah driver license or ID card is not an interdicted person (§32B-7-202(12)). Utah’s state liquor stores and package agencies have the same two duties (§32B-2-503(10); §32B-2-605(20)). For off-premise retailers, Utah’s alcohol department says electronic scanning is not required for in-store purchases (DABS). See our Utah guide.

Keeping scan data

Texas §109.61(b) reads: “A person may not retain information accessed under this section.” Subsection (b-1) describes how retained information may be stored, and (c) says accessed information “may not be marketed in any manner.”

Decoy compliance checks

State and local agencies may run compliance checks using underage buyers. In California, decoys must be under 20, look under 21, carry their own true ID or none, and answer truthfully about their age (4 CCR §141(b)). A sale to a decoy can be charged as a sale to a minor, and failure to follow the decoy rule is a defense (B&P §25658(f); 4 CCR §141(c)).

Penalties: two examples

• Texas. TABC’s penalty schedule (16 TAC §34.2) lists 8–12 days’ suspension for a first sale to a minor, 16–24 days for a second, and 48 days to cancellation for a third. The statute (§106.13) allows cancellation, or suspension of up to 90 days for a first offense, six months for a second, and 12 months for a third within 36 months. Under §106.13(a), the commission may cancel or suspend if it finds that the licensee “with criminal negligence” sold an alcoholic beverage to a minor.
• California. ABC’s penalty guidelines (4 CCR §144) list a 15-day suspension for a first violation, 25 days for a second within 36 months, and revocation for a third within 36 months. The department can go higher or lower, and ABC says a first sale “may result in a fine or license suspension” (ABC Minor Decoy Program).

What it means at the counter

The Texas §106.03(b) exception describes an ID whose photo and description match the buyer. A barcode read shows what the card encodes, not whether the person at the counter is the person in the photo.

Where Check ID fits

On iPhone and iPad, Check ID reads the barcode on US and Canadian driver’s licenses and ID cards, compares the birth and expiry dates with your rules, and shows a clear result, such as Verified, Underage or Expired ID. Verified means only that the dates meet your rules. 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 claim it qualifies as a “transaction scan device” under Texas §109.61 or meets Utah’s electronic verification program rules (§32B-1-407(5)).

A scan record never keeps the name, date of birth, address, ID number or a picture of the ID. Free and Pro scan history is on by default, can be turned off in Settings, and covers the last 7 days on your device or in your own iCloud. Check ID for Teams keeps records for two years by default. A log shows only the scans that were made.

Whether a scan helps under these laws, or whether keeping these records fits §109.61(b), is a question for your lawyer or regulator.

Frequently asked questions

More state guides

• Florida: reading an ID and keeping scanned data
• Pennsylvania: alcohol sales and permit-specific scans

Sources

• 23 U.S.C. §158, retrieved September 2026.
• NHTSA, Countermeasures That Work, retrieved September 2026.
• Tex. Alco. Bev. Code §109.61 and SB 650, retrieved September 2026.
• Tex. Alco. Bev. Code §§106.03, 106.13, retrieved September 2026.
• TABC Public Safety Penalty Chart, retrieved September 2026.
• Utah Code §32B-1-407, §32B-7-202, §32B-2-503 and §32B-2-605, retrieved September 2026.
• Utah DABS, Utah Legislative Changes to the 100% ID Law Requirements, retrieved September 2026.
• 4 CCR §141 and Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §25658, retrieved September 2026.
• California ABC Penalty Guidelines and Minor Decoy Program, retrieved September 2026.
• Fla. Stat. §768.125, retrieved September 2026.