A rapid analytical method for the determination of tobacco specific nitrosamines (TSNA) in tobacco is described. The method has been demonstrated to be applicable to a variety of tobacco types and products, and to a broad range of TSNA values. The extraction scale and supplies are also amenable to robotic implementation. The internal standard method involves an alkaline methylene chloride extraction, followed by a minimal sample clean up and elimination of volumetric dilutions. The extract is analyzed using GC and chemiluminescent detection. The extraction process has been adapted to run robotically on a Zymark XP robot fitted with Pysection processing stations. The robotic system can accommodate 80 samples at a time, and has proven to be quite reliable. Data will be presented to demonstrate not only the accuracy of the method, but also the enhanced efficiency, sample throughput, and increased precision using the robotic implementation.