Online Ticket Resale Prohibition

We can only answer a limited set of questions about ticket sales. There are several laws that apply and we only have duties with respect to one of them. So, that means we can only answer questions about the law for which we have some responsibility.

You can read the laws about ticket sales and resales on the North Carolina General Assembly's website.

An event venue can ban resale of tickets at a higher price than the face price for a specific event. If that happens, it would be against the law for you to resell tickets for that event at a higher price.

You can:

• Go to the venue’s website;
• Go to the primary ticket seller’s website (if it’s different from the venue); or
• Call us at: 919-814-5400.

The venue has to:

• File a Notice of Prohibition with us (and pay a fee).
• Post the Notice on its website in a prominent place.
• If there’s a primary ticket seller for the event other than the venue, then that seller also has to post the Notice on its website.
• Certain people who offer to re-sell or who do re-sell tickets have to comply with requirements of the NC Department of Revenue.

Yes, the law does ban resale of student sports event tickets issued by colleges, etc. However, that ban is not part of the law our Department implements so we can’t answer questions about it.

A venue is where the event is to take place. If the venue is not itself an entity established by law, the corporation, governmental unit or other entity may file the Notice on its behalf.

No, you can’t do that. The law doesn’t allow blanket notices for all events at a venue. Instead, you have to file a separate notice for each specific event at the venue.

The law doesn’t include a definition of “event”. We don’t enforce this law or have any authority to interpret it. So, we can’t answer this question. You may want to consult with an attorney for help figuring out what the law means.

You have to:

• Download the Notice of Prohibition (PDF) form from our website.
• Complete the form.
• Mail or deliver 3 things to us at the address at the end of these FAQs. The 3 things are:
  • The completed form
  • A payment of $125.00 made out to “Secretary of State”, and
  • A self-addressed, self-stamped envelope.
• Post a certified copy of the filed Notice on your website in a conspicuous place.
• If your venue is not the primary ticket seller for the event, then you need to be sure that the primary seller also posts a certified copy of the filed notice on its website in a conspicuous place.

If the venue is to post the notice on their website, the venue will need an image of the filed copy. In addition, should the venue wish to renew the Notice, the document Id# will be printed on the Notice in the upper right hand corner.

We can’t tell you when to get the Notice. However, it won’t be effective until it’s been posted on your website for 30 days. So, you may want to plan to file the Notice early rather than late.

Yes, every notice filed expires on December 31st of each year.

Yes, the fee to renew is $25 and is payable to the NC Secretary of State.

No, we can’t reject your Notice of Prohibition. However:

• If you don’t include the fee with the Notice, we will not file the Notice until we do receive the fee.
• If there are errors on the Notice when we receive it, there are 2 things we can do:
  • One of our employees may call you if there are errors that can be fixed without your signature; or
  • We may return the Notice to you so that you can correct the errors. When you’ve fixed the errors, you can resubmit it to us. You do not have to resubmit a new fee. To make sure the fee is connected to the new submission, Be sure to include the document ID Number on the Notice when you resubmit it.

We will contact you to try to get you to make the payment good. If you don’t, we will cancel the filing of the Notice of Prohibition.

Our normal turn-around time for filing a document is 3-5 days.

The forms are available on our website.

No, these documents cannot be filed online at this time.

You can read the laws about ticket sales and resales on the North Carolina General Assembly's website.

If you offer to re-sell tickets or you do re-sell tickets, then you have to file reports with the NC Department of Revenue. You have to use their form to file the reports. When you get there, check “What’s New” and “Hot Topics.” You may also call the Department of Revenue directly at 877-252-3052

You can go to the Department of Revenue website. When you get there, check “What’s New” and “Hot Topics.” You may also call the Department of Revenue directly at 877-252-3052 or click the below link.