Navexa Tax
Nicotine excise is a stack, not a single rate.
State, county, city, and special-district levies land on the same sale — each on its own basis. Here is how the stack is built, and how Navexa Tax computes every layer on every transaction.
Why it's hard
One sale, several taxes, no shared rulebook.
01
It stacks
A single sale can carry a state levy, a county levy, and a city or special-district levy at the same time. Each is its own line, computed on its own basis.
02
The basis changes
One jurisdiction charges per millilitre, the next takes a percent of wholesale, a third a flat fee per pod. Open-system and closed-system products are often split apart.
03
The numbers move
Rates, thresholds, and product definitions change by statute and by ballot. A rate that was right last quarter quietly stops being right — usually without a headline.
The four bases
Four ways to charge the same product.
Every nicotine excise rate resolves to one of four bases. Which one applies depends on the jurisdiction and, often, on whether the product is an open-system liquid or a closed-system pod. Navexa Tax classifies each product and applies the right basis with exact math — no float rounding.
Per-mL
$0.05 × 120 mL
Volume of e-liquid, regardless of price. Common on open-system bottles.
Per-unit
$0.30 × 4 pods
Flat charge per pod, cartridge, or closed device.
% of wholesale
12.5% of cost
A cut of the price you paid — needs your cost, not the shelf price.
% of retail
6% of price
A cut of what the customer pays at checkout.
Stacking
How the layers add up on one order.
Take a $112.50 wholesale order shipping into Los Angeles. The state takes a percent of wholesale, the county charges per millilitre of liquid, and a city special district adds a flat per-unit fee. Three levies, three bases, one transaction — each computed independently and pinned to the rate it used.
- Each layer is its own line, on its own basis
- Every transaction stores the exact rate snapshot it was calculated against
- Recompute against current rates and see the delta
Figures illustrate how the bases combine. Live rates are configured per jurisdiction in the product.
Provenance
Rates you can defend, or no answer at all.
Navexa Tax fails closed: if a required rate is missing or unverified, the transaction is flagged for review rather than calculated on a guess. Rate changes come from statute monitoring and are approved by human review before they publish, with provenance, freshness tracking, and an immutable audit log of every change.
Get early accessFAQ
Common questions.
Get every layer right, on every sale.
Navexa Tax is in early access for nicotine, vape, and nicotine-pouch sellers. Tell us your stack and your states, and we'll onboard you as coverage lands. This page is general information, not tax advice — confirm obligations with each jurisdiction's tax administrator.