E-cigarettes in South America

Argentina: The government has sent Congress a proposal to adhere to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). Argentina signed the convention in September 2003, but is one of the few countries in the world that has not ratified it. Among other things, the FCTC tackles the advertising, labelling and taxation of tobacco products.

Chile: The Chamber of Deputies yesterday approved Bill 12626-11, which together with Bill 12632-11 seeks to equate all vaping products, regardless of their nicotine content, with tobacco products, regulating their sale, advertising and labelling. The bill was introduced four years ago, and received Senate approval in March 2021. However, it needs to be approved again by the Senate since the Chamber of Deputies proposed several modifications. Should the bill be approved, nicotine-containing vaping products will no longer be subject to the pharmaceutical regime.

Brazil: The director of the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa), Antonio Barra Torres, has told media that a resolution of the legal status of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco will probably be reached this year, possibly by the end of June. He said he did not want to anticipate whether that would involve prohibition or authorisation of the products because of the impact it would have on the market.

Paraguay: MP José Rodríguez said yesterday that his Partido Liberal Radical Auténtico (PLRA), the largest opposition party, will press for the excise duty on vaping products to be raised to 24% of the wholesale price – the highest rate allowed by law, press reports. The government recently raised the duty from 20% to 22% of the wholesale price.

Uruguay: The Ministry of Health has opposed the legalisation of e-cigarettes after the Association of Vapers of Uruguay (Asovape) called on the government to regulate them and “campaign for responsible consumption”, press reports. The ministry countered: “It is in the best interest of the population that they continue to be banned because there is no evidence to show that one device is less harmful than another.”

Suriname: The Ministry of Health has emphasised that e-cigarettes should not be used by adolescents, young adults or pregnant women, media reports. The Dutch-speaking republic of Suriname is the smallest sovereign state in South America, with a population of just over 600,000.

Paraguay: Opposition senator Pedro Santa Cruz has written to president Mario Abdo Benítez urging him to increase the tax on e-liquids from 20% to 22% of the wholesale price, with proceeds to go to the National Cancer Institute (Incan).