It depends. If you buy tobacco privately, it must be illegal. Whoever sells tobacco privately, in large quantities or in bad circumstances, commits the crime of illegal business operation, and is sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention according to law, and concurrently or exclusively fined not less than one time but not more than five times the illegal income. If it is bought and sold through formal channels, it is legal. Article 225 of the Criminal Law: Whoever, in violation of state regulations, commits one of the following illegal business operations and disrupts the market order, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention, and shall also, or shall only, be fined not less than one time but not more than five times the illegal income; If the circumstances are especially serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years, and shall also be fined not less than one time but not more than five times his illegal income or his property shall be confiscated: (1) dealing in franchise, monopoly goods or other commodities whose business is restricted by laws and administrative regulations without permission; (2) buying and selling import and export licenses, import and export certificates of origin and other business licenses or approval documents stipulated by laws and administrative regulations; (three) without the approval of the relevant competent departments of the state, illegally engaged in securities, futures, insurance business, or illegally engaged in fund payment and settlement business; (four) other illegal business activities that seriously disrupt the market order.

Legal objectivity:

Article 140 of the Criminal Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) * * * Producers and sellers who adulterate their products, pass fake products off as genuine products, and pass unqualified products off as qualified products, with a sales amount of not less than 50,000 yuan but not more than 200,000 yuan, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years or criminal detention, and shall also be fined not less than 50% but not more than two times the sales amount; Whoever sells more than 200,000 yuan but less than 500,000 yuan shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than two years but not more than seven years, and shall also be fined not less than 50% but not more than two times the sales amount.