Regulatory and market intelligence for the e-cigarette sector
Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, has passed a law requiring plain packaging for e-cigarettes. It will also bring in new restrictions on the advertising and marketing, equating e-cigs with combustible tobacco
Thailand – ranked by delegates at the Global Forum on Nicotine as the worst country in the world in which to be an e-cigarette user – is considering legalising vaping and taxing e-cig imports
New changes to the Information Technology Act aim to block any information on the internet promoting e-cigarettes to residents of India.
This week, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) proposed an amendment to the Draft of the Information Technology Intermediary Guidelines Rules, which obliges any intermediary or internet-based service provider to inform users not to “host, display, upload, modify, publish, transmit, update or share any information that (…) threatens public health or safety; promotion of cigarettes or any other tobacco products or consumption of intoxicant including alcohol and Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS).”
A new bill proposed in Colombia’s Senate is paving the way for the country to begin regulating e-cigarettes on a par with tobacco – though the plan is tied up in the country’s complex political arithmetic
The minister charged with drawing up proposed regulation of e-cigarettes in New Zealand has done so, based on the stated belief that vaping and smokeless tobacco are “highly likely to be much less harmful than smoking”
Health Canada has begun cracking down on e-cigarette advertising campaigns that it believes contravene the country’s new legislation prohibiting lifestyle advertising
Two weeks after the Delhi High Court decided that an advisory banning e-cigarettes was not binding on India’s states, the national government has issued a new notice calling on customs officers to seize imports
Online sales of vape products will be banned in South Australia from the first quarter of 2019 after the state’s parliament passed a law on 15th November, with the support of the state’s two majority parties
The South Korean government has declared e-cigarettes and heated tobacco to be no safer than smoking – a statement that has led to legal action by Philip Morris International (PMI)
E-liquid manufacturers are trying to get around South Korean tax laws by claiming the nicotine they use is derived from the stems and roots of tobacco plants rather than exclusively the leaves
The spectre of vaped cannabinoids is being used in Hong Kong by campaigners seeking to tighten the Chinese territory’s already stringent regime on e-cigarettes
After a long period of opposition to vaping, Australia’s health minister has moved to set up an independent inquiry into the health impact of nicotine-containing e-cigarettes
Health Canada has been quietly consulting vaping stakeholders, seeking their opinions on seven possible health statements that could be allowed under new regulations now being drafted
Malaysian manufacturers of e-liquids are now required to adhere to new labelling guidelines. At present, the rules apply only to non-nicotine liquids – but there are hopes they may be the first step towards wider regulation
Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has signed an administrative order prohibiting the import and marketing of any e-cigarette product with a nicotine concentration higher than 20 mg/ml
The Philippines could be set to take a liberal stance on e-cigarettes after the House of Representatives passed a non-binding resolution urging the Philippine Department of Health to focus on e-cigarettes to aid smoking cessation
A total of 30 suspects have been arrested in a joint anti-smuggling operation by Chinese law enforcement. China Tobacco Ningbo, Ningbo municipal police department and Ningbo municipal anti-smuggling bureau joined forces
The election of a new president could provide the impetus for a more open regulatory regime for vapers in Mexico, according to an e-cigarette lobby group
The e-cigarette crackdown in India has continued with new bans proposed in the southern state of Tamil Nadu and the northern state of Rajasthan
Members of the e-cigarette industry in South Africa and India, or looking to do business in those countries, have been urged to submit comments to the various bodies preparing legislation there
The full implementation of a 57% tax on e-liquid in Indonesia has been delayed until 1st October 2018. The tax was originally scheduled to come into force on 1st July
Japan, although a socially conservative nation with stringent laws on both medical and recreational marijuana, now allows the sale of CBD products, including e-liquid – and even the prime minister’s wife approves
Brazilian public health officials are trying to make judgements in areas such as the regulation of e-cigarettes without clear data on the country’s smoking demographics – and they want more and better information
Hong Kong plans to regulate HnB products in the same way as conventional cigarettes, lifting a rarely-enforced ban. But the current heavy restrictions on nicotine-containing e-cigarettes will remain
Lawmakers in Argentina’s most populous province are expected to vote on a new bill that bans electronic cigarettes, in a move intended to reinforce a country-wide ban that has been largely ignored
A few weeks after the launch of the Juul vaping device on the Israeli market, the Ministry of Health has announced restrictive measures against its sale, claiming it contains too much nicotine
The South Korean government is stepping up its efforts to discourage use of electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products with new graphic health warning images that will appear on packages later this year
A draft bill to regulate the use of nicotine-containing e-cigarettesin Russia has received the approval of the Ministry of Economic Development – but the Ministry of Health considers the proposal “a conflict of laws”
E-cigarettes will not be legalised in Brazil any time soon, according to members of a government science panel who concluded there was not enough scientific evidence to justify supporting them
South Africa has published a draft version of its proposals to regulate e-cigarettes, fulfilling the fears of some in the industry by classifying vaping as equivalent to smoking and banning online sales
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