US - California: Assembly Bill (AB) 1690 has been ordered to the inactive file, meaning that the bill is ready to be heard on the floor but for some reason is dormant; an author of the bill may move it off the inactive file at a later date. AB 1690 would prohibit a person or entity from selling, giving, or furnishing to another person of any age in this state a cigarette utilising a single-use filter made of any material, a single-use plastic device meant to facilitate manual manipulation or filtration of a cigar, a single-use e-cigarette, or a single-use integrated cannabis vaporiser.
NEW FORMAT
From February of 2022, subscribers will be able to view and filter individual regulatory alerts per region. If you want to get our monthly compilations, visit our alerts Round-up section.
LATEST ALERTS
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California - United States Bill banning single-use e-cigs and devices on pause… - Spain Draft bill proposes e-cigs to be sold only at tobacco shops…
- United Kingdom Call for restrictions to reduce under-age e-cig sales…
- Rhode Island - United States Bill on penalties for selling flavoured ENDS without a licence goes to committee (...)
- Europe Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation moves into new phase…
- Europe DG TAXUD meeting set; Indirect Tax Expert Group meeting agenda released…
- Australia New South Wales health ministry seize illegal e-cigs and liquids…
- World WHO report raises concerns over electronic waste…
- United States 14th May deadline for synthetic nicotine product PMTAs…
- Slovenia Health minister presents policy paper calling for further legislation…
- Spain Ministers approve draft law…
- United States FDA authorises six new tobacco products…
Spain: ECigIntelligence has been given access to the draft bill on the tobacco market that the Council of Ministers approved last week. In this draft, the government proposes that e-cigarettes will be sold only at tobacco shops in five years. The draft will be subject to parliamentary scrutiny in the following months. If the draft is eventually approved, retail shops that want to continue selling e-cigarettes in the next five years will have to notify the Commissioner for the Tobacco Market within six months after the bill enters into force.
UK: The UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) has called for more control over e-cigarette sales in order to clamp down on selling to under-age consumers. According to UKVIA, retail licences should be required, a fine for selling to under-18s raised to £10,000, and enforcement increased. The call comes following reports of under-age sales of disposable vape products in Scotland.
US - Rhode Island: Senate Bill 2117, which would provide for penalties for selling flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) or for operating without a dealer’s licence, is scheduled to be heard tomorrow, 17th May, in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
EU: The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, a legislative EU development aimed at changing the way products are designed and manufactured, is entering a decisive phase known as the trialogue. In this phase, the EU Council will start negotiations among the 27 member states’ ministers of industry, as well as the EU parliament and European Commission. Environmental organisations, however, are demanding that the negotiations be carried out by ministers of the environment instead, saying that otherwise “the primary environmental goal of the regulation will not be properly prioritised”. These regulations will likely affect all electronic devices and will focus on “product durability, reusability, upgradability and reparability” as well as requirements such as a digital product passport, bans on certain substances, and a requirement to use a proportion of recycled materials.
EU: The Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union (DG TAXUD) has scheduled a meeting, “Stakeholder event on tobacco taxation”, for 18th May to “give interested parties the opportunity to present their views on the latest developments in the area”. In addition, on 13th May the EU’s transparency portal updated its list of documents related to the Indirect Tax Expert Group (E00956), releasing the agenda of the meeting held on 4th May. ECigIntelligence is in the process of obtaining more information about what was discussed during the meeting.
Australia: The New South Wales Ministry of Health has seized illegal e-cigarettes and nicotine-containing liquids amounting to a value of AUD1m ($690,000) since January 2022. The ministry frequently carries out investigations in order to withdraw illegal products from the market and protect young people. Individuals involved in selling illegal e-cigarettes face sanctions of up to AUD11,000 ($7,600), while corporations may be sanctioned up to AUD55,000 ($38,000).
World: A new report from the World Health Organization (WHO) states that new problems have emerged as more and more tobacco companies have started producing nicotine pouches, e-cigarettes and heated tobacco. The report states that the electronic waste is set to exacerbate the industry’s huge ecological impact. “These products will not only keep consumers addicted to nicotine, they also will create a whole new ecological crisis, from mining for battery components, to the manufacturing of plastics, to the disposal of 'vaping pods,' and electronic devices, some of which of course also need electricity to function,” the WHO said.
US - reminder: 14th May is the deadline for submitting premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) for all synthetic nicotine products that were placed on the market on or before 14th April. Companies not planning to use the online portal and wanting to physically submit the PMTA should do so by today, 13th May, at 4pm.
Slovenia: Today, the minister of health officially presented via press conference the adopted Strategy for Reducing the Consequences of Tobacco Use - For Slovenia without Tobacco 2022–2030. As we previously reported, the policy paper calls for the urgent enactment of legislation that extends plain packaging to e-cigarettes, raises the minimum age for the purchase of e-cigarettes to 21, and bans flavoured vapour products, among others.
Spain: The Council of Ministers has approved the draft law on the tobacco market and related products. This regulation aims to fight the illicit trade of tobacco products and guarantee the safety of consumers. It aims to progressively equate e-cigarettes with conventional cigarettes and it states that within five years e-cigarettes will only be sold at tobacconists. The draft has not yet been made public.
US - Federal: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorised six new tobacco products through the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) pathway. It issued marketing granted orders to R.J. Reynolds for the company’s Vuse Vibe and Vuse Ciro e-cigarette brands, including e-cigarette devices and tobacco-flavoured closed e-liquid pods. While the FDA determined the potential benefit to adult smokers who switch would outweigh the risk to youth, this authorisation imposes strict marketing restrictions on the company to greatly reduce the potential for youth exposure to tobacco advertising for these products. The FDA also issued the company with marketing denials for multiple other Vuse Vibe and Vuse Ciro e-cigarette products.
US - Colorado: The City of Boulder is preparing an ordinance that would exclude nicotine-free or tobacco-free products from the city's 40% sales tax on e-cigarettes, local media reports. “From my perspective as a tax administrator, the problem is we have a code that is causing confusion,” tax and special projects manager Joel Wagner said. “The language in the code that says that an electronic smoking device is something that simulates smoking of nicotine or any other substance opens that tax up to interpretation.”
Lithuania: The Seimas (Lithuanian parliament) has rejected a bill that aimed to postpone the entry into force of a flavour ban to 1st July 2023. Therefore, starting 1st July 2022, non-tobacco-flavoured vaping products will be prohibited on the market.
UK: Javed Khan, who has been tasked by the government to head an independent tobacco review, stated that he will present his recommendations to the government on 25th May 2022 at 3pm.
US - Colorado: House Bill 22-1064 failed to pass the Senate Appropriations Committee, which rejected it yesterday by a 5-2 vote, local media reports. The bill would have banned the sale of flavoured cigarettes, tobacco products, and nicotine products. The senators also explained the bill's failure by saying that the ban would just lead to tobacco and nicotine users buying flavoured products online or out of state, describing youth tobacco use as inevitable but improving.
Philippines: The first set of graphic health warning templates for electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco enters into force today. The templates are valid for a period of two years.
New Zealand: From today, all manufacturers and importers of vaping products must ensure that their products conform to the new packaging rules, including health warnings and new prohibited features.
Philippines: Candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is on the cusp of winning the presidential election, has previously opposed tobacco taxes, claiming they would slow down activities for producers, manufacturers and sellers. His sister, senator Imee Marcos, also opposed taxing e-cigs and heated tobacco in 2019. Official vote counting started today and is expected to go on for a few days, despite already showing Marcos with a commanding vote margin.
US - Colorado: House Bill 22-1064 has passed the Senate Committee on Finance after amendments and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Appropriations. This bill would prohibit the distribution of flavoured cigarettes, tobacco products, or nicotine products, and would amend the definition of cigarette, tobacco product, or nicotine product to include products containing synthetic nicotine.
Sweden: The Social Affairs Committee will discuss tomorrow the bill "Stricter rules for new nicotine products" (2021/22: 200), which proposes to ban non-tobacco-flavoured e-liquids and strengthen the restrictions on e-cigarette and refill container marketing and advertising. This bill was proposed by the government following a public consultation on the regulation of tobacco, e-cigarettes and tobacco-free nicotine products conducted between February 2020 and March 2021.
Belgium: Last week, the Chamber of Deputies approved a bill to ban smoking – including e-cigarettes – on station platforms, starting 1st January 2023.
US - California: The El Dorado County Office of Education recently hosted a student training day for the Tobacco-Use Prevention Education (TUPE) Program, which included students from El Dorado, Independence, Union Mine, and Black Oak Mine Unified School District, local media reports. The purpose of the TUPE Program is to reduce youth usage of tobacco products through tobacco-specific educational instruction and activities that build knowledge as well as social skills and youth development assets. Melissa Kistler, director of District and Program Support and TUPE liaison emphasised the fact that the “training is unique because it is the first time we have cross collaboration between school districts in this county”.
US-Connecticut: A flavour ban fails to win passage in Connecticut for the third year in a row, local media reports. The bill, which came out of the Public Health Committee in a divided vote in March, aimed to reduce youth vaping by prohibiting the sale of electronic nicotine delivery systems and vapour products that are flavoured or that have a nicotine content that is greater than 35 mg/ml. Senator John Fonfara, a co-chair of the Finance Committee, explained the bill's failure by saying that the ban would create a flourishing “underground” market for vaping products which would become even more attractive to minors.
Brazil: In response to industry member requests, the National Public Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) has extended the deadline for receiving technical and scientific contributions about e-cigarettes and heated tobacco until 10th June. Previously, the agency published a report suggesting the current prohibition should be maintained, but any firm decisions will come later.
Italy: On 31st May, the Center of Excellence for the acceleration of Harm Reduction (CoEHAR) will hold the first Italian conference on tobacco harm reduction, called "Risks and benefits of smokeless products". The aim of the conference is to analyse all published research in the field of tobacco harm reduction in order to produce a single document that can become an authoritative reference for the definition of effective public health policies to help smokers quit.
France: The National Agency for Food, Environmental, and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES) has published an updated list of notified e-cigarettes, which includes 78,167 products.
Georgia: Before 1st September 2022, the parliament is planning to amend the Law on Tobacco Control. It intends to introduce health warnings on packs and notification requirements for tobacco products, media reports. As nicotine-containing e-cigarette products and heated tobacco products fall under the definition of tobacco products in Georgia, we believe that such requirements would be applicable to them.
US - New Mexico: The New Mexico Department of Health has launched Live Vape Free, a text-based programme to help addicted teens stop using e-cigs. The programme is designed to help teens aged between 13 and 17 to quit e-cigarettes, and it provides adults with the tools they need to support teens as they quit. “New Mexico is one of only five states to launch both the youth and adult components of the program, out of the just 13 states using the Live Vape Free program,” local media reports.
Mongolia: Deputy finance minister Sanjaa Mungunchimeg has said a draft law to impose a tax on e-cigarettes is ready, press reports. She added that the bill would be submitted to Parliament and the government separately from the budget amendment that is currently under discussion.
Hong Kong: Hong Kong police have arrested two people for violating the ban on selling alternative smoking products. Officers seized 94 boxes of suspected nicotine-containing e-cigarette cartridges and 74 “smoking devices” during the operation in Mong Kok, press reports. They were reportedly the first arrests under the ban, which came into effect on Saturday.
US - Colorado: House Bill 22-1064 was approved by the state House yesterday and sent to the Senate for consideration, local media reports. The bill would prohibit the distribution of flavoured cigarettes, tobacco or nicotine products, including those containing synthetic nicotine. Since its introduction, the bill has been changed to exempt hookahs, premium cigars and pipe tobacco.
US - Federal: New warning letters have been issued by the FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) to a number of manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products that are “new tobacco products” without the required marketing authorisation.
Sweden: The right-wing Sweden Democrats, the Centre Party and the Left Party have all presented motions against the government’s proposed Stricter rules for new nicotine products (Proposition 2021/22: 200), questioning the suggested ban on non-tobacco-flavoured e-liquids. The parties say banning flavours would make it harder for people to switch from smoking to a less harmful alternative and that a market study on the consequences of such a ban should be undertaken.
Sweden: The Public Health Agency has updated the publicly available list of notified e-cigarettes and refill containers, which contains 11,909 vapour products.
US - Hawaii: House Bill 1570 passed its final reading yesterday on a 36-15 vote. The bill to ban the sale of all flavoured tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, combustible menthol cigarettes and flavoured cigars, has now been passed by both chambers of the Legislature and requires only the signature of governor David Ige to become law.
US - Maryland: Anne Arundel Public Schools, one of the largest school districts in Maryland, is bringing a suit against Juul Labs, alleging its products are marketed to students and claiming gross negligence by the company, media reports. ”You’ve created this whole generation of young people who are now addicted to nicotine because it delivers four to five times the nicotine of a cigarette,” Anne Arundel Schools attorney Phil Federico said.
Thailand: Digital economy and society minister Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn has submitted a petition to the National Tobacco Products Control Committee calling on it to legalise e-cigarettes, press reports. Chaiwut said e-cigarettes are a safer alternative to traditional tobacco and should be regulated as cigarettes. He also highlighted that legalising them would bring in added tax revenue.
Hong Kong: Hong Kong Customs reports a major operation to combat illicit heated tobacco and e-cigarettes, with products with an estimated market value of $15m seized in the past month. The Smoking (Public Health) (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 came into effect on Saturday, 30th April, banning production, import, sales and promotion of heat-not-burn (HnB) and vaping products, subject to a fine of up to $50,000 and up to six months’ jail.
US - Hawaii: Many bills are currently sitting in the legislative process that would ban flavoured tobacco products. Among them, House Bill 1570 has passed both the House and the Senate, but the House seems to disagree with some amendments and so it may still take a while. The ban of flavoured tobacco products is a current political debate: representatives supporting the bill state they are only banning flavours and not vaping, whereas shop owners state that flavours are 99.9% of the business.
Lithuania: In accordance with the amendments introduced by the Law XIV-295 of 13 May 2021 to the Law on Tobacco Control of Tobacco, Tobacco Products and Related Products, the definition of an e-cigarette has changed as of 1st May 2022 and nicotine-free e-cigarettes are equated to those with nicotine. This means that nicotine-free e-cigarettes are now subject to the same requirements and restrictions as e-cigarettes with nicotine.
Estonia: The Health Board has updated the list of notified e-cigarette products, which contains 42,965 vapour products.
China: The Administrative Measures for Electronic Cigarettes – which requires licensing of retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers, and imposes a flavour ban on all flavours other than tobacco – entered into force on 1st May 2022.
Philippines: The Department of Health (DOH) reiterated its call for president Rodrigo Duterte to veto the proposed Vaporized Nicotine Products Regulations Act, press report. According to the authority, the approval of the bill is contrary to the president's position to protect the public from the effects of smoking and goes against the already existing laws. The bill was approved by the Senate and House of Representatives in January and is now waiting for the president’s signature.
US - Federal: The first report on the status of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) is expected today (29th April) following an order from a federal judge. More information can be found in our news briefing.
Germany: The second and final day of the seminar “Opportunities and risks of e-cigarettes" from The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) was today. Among other things, the debate was held on the risk assessment and the banning of flavours, in which the BfR stated that it is currently assessing the toxicity of e-cig flavours.
US - Federal: Yesterday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced two proposed product standards: one to prohibit menthol as a characterising flavour in cigarettes and one to prohibit all characterising flavours (other than tobacco) in cigars; e-cigarettes are not included in either of the proposed rules. The reason behind proposing these rules is to reduce the appeal of those products to youth. The FDA has emphasised that enforcement against individual consumers for possession of menthol cigarettes or flavoured cigars will not be pursued.
Germany: The Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL) has updated the list of notified e-cigarette products, which now contains 257,600 vapour products. Only products notified at least six months ago are listed.
UK (Scotland): The government consultation about restricting the advertising of e-cigarettes closed yesterday. The consultation revolved around imposing a ban on advertising on billboards and bus shelters, free-sampling, sponsorship and brand sharing – where the logos and/or colours of a particular product are used on an unrelated product for promotional purposes.
Czech Republic: The Ministry of Health has updated the publicly available list of notified herbal products for smoking, e-cigarettes and refill containers.
UK: Yesterday, 26th April 2022, a Westminster Hall debate on the progress of the government's Smokefree 2030 ambition took place. The MPs expressed concern about vaping among young people, but also raised the importance of providing information to smokers about its reduced harm compared with traditional tobacco. Maggie Throup, junior health secretary, said: "It remains the Government’s goal to maximise the public health opportunities presented by vapes while ensuring that such products are not appealing to young people and non-smokers."
US - Federal: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorised the marketing of four new tobacco products by Njoy LLC, including its Ace closed e-cigarette device and three accompanying tobacco-flavoured e-liquid pods. The FDA also issued marketing denial orders to Njoy for multiple other Ace e-cigarette products. Applications for two menthol-flavoured Ace e-liquid pods remain under FDA review.
Canada: Health Canada’s consultation on the Tobacco and Vaping Products Act ends tomorrow, 27th April. The government has outlined five objectives for vaping products – restricting access to e-cigarettes, preventing misconceptions about the health hazards of vaping, enhancing public awareness of those hazards, preventing initiation into vaping, and protecting people from exposure to vaping. Final submissions can be sent to [email protected].
EU: EU officials have told ECigIntelligence that at present there are no planned or proposed measures to phase out non-rechargeable portable batteries. However, a possible ban on single-use batteries under the revision of EU rules on batteries and waste – which would affect disposable products such as pods – is expected to be examined by 31st December 2027, when the Commission assesses the feasibility of such a measure and submits a recommendation to the European Parliament and Council.
UK: In response to a parliamentary question, junior environment minister Jo Churchill said no specific assessment had been made of the number of vape pens that go to landfill. She reiterated that the government plans to consult on reforms to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations later this year.
California: San Diego City Council voted 7-2 at a special meeting yesterday to approve the SAAFE (Stop Adolescent Addiction to Flavored E-cigarettes) Act, which would prohibit the sale of all flavoured tobacco and e-cigarette products in the city, local media reports. The issue will come before the council again in 30 days.
Brazil: National Public Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) director Cristiane Jourdan has told media there is not yet enough evidence for the efficacy and safety of e-cigarettes or heated tobacco for them to be approved for use. However, she added that studies were at an early stage and that potential additional measures mentioned in the regulatory report published earlier this month, such as an advertising ban, were awaiting a final decision. ANVISA is taking technical and scientific evidence about the products until 11th May.
Thailand: Health minister and deputy prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul has told the Thai Health Promotion Foundation that he will not support the legalisation of e-cigarettes, press reports. The minister has established a tobacco control panel under the Department of Disease Control to review the current regulations, in the belief that e-cigs have become popular with young people in Thailand.
Malaysia: Health minister Khairy Jamaluddin reportedly said last week that the 15% import duty on nicotine gum products, to be imposed from 1st June, should either reduced or cancelled, describing them as a good smoking cessation tool. This liberal policy towards nicotine gum would be in contrast to the legal framework for nicotine-containing vaping products, marketing of which is currently subject to a pharmaceutical licence. The government is planning to ban the sale of e-cigarettes and tobacco products to anyone born after 2005.
US - California: On today’s agenda for San Diego City Council was Item 600, the approval of the SAAFE (Stop Adolescent Addiction to Flavored E-cigarettes) Act, which would prohibit the sale of flavoured tobacco products in the city. If passed, the ban will include all flavours but for tobacco from 1st January 2023.
UK: A Westminster Hall debate will be held tomorrow, 26th April, on the progress towards the government’s smokefree 2030 ambition.
Netherlands: The Ministry of Health, Wellbeing and Sport has confirmed to ECigIntelligence that legislation to prohibit e-cigarette flavours other than tobacco flavour is being prepared and should be published for consultation this summer. The new law, expected to come into effect in early 2023, will allow a limited list of taste-determining additives.
US - General: Horry County Schools has filed a federal lawsuit this week against Juul, alleging that its "products have created a public health crisis in local schools", according to local news. Horry County is the fourth most populous county in South Carolina, with a population of around 290,000 inhabitants.
US - Connecticut: Senate Bill 367 has been advancing through the legislative process since its introduction on 8th March 2022, and it's meant to be heard today by the Senate Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee. This bill would prohibit the sale of electronic nicotine delivery systems and vapour products that are flavoured or that have a nicotine content that is greater than 35 mg per ml.
South Africa: The National Treasury workshop on taxation of ENDS/ENNDS (electronic nicotine delivery systems/electronic non-nicotine delivery systems) took place today, gathering all comments from January's consultation and allowing industry members to deliberate on the tax proposal. The authority will now consider the comments and present a draft legislation around June/July, when industry members will have the opportunity to provide written comments.
US - Maine: The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids has issued a public statement praising Brunswick Town Council after it passed an ordinance on Tuesday prohibiting the sale of flavoured tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, from 1st June. The pressure group is urging the state legislature to enact a state-wide flavour ban by passing bill LD 1550.
US - New York: Assembly Bill 9879 has been introduced, which would make it illegal for anyone under 21 to possess vaping or tobacco products. Their sale to under-21s is already prohibited.
UK: Health secretary Sajid Javid has told Parliament that the independent review of tobacco control, headed by Javed Khan, should be published in May.
Germany: The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) will hold a seminar on “Chances and risks of e-cigarettes” in Berlin and online on 28th and 29th April. The event aims to discuss the current state of knowledge on e-cigarettes, including flavouring and consumer protection.
US - federal: The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will be required to give premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) status reports every 90 days according to a revised judicial order, media reports. The revised order, signed on Friday by judge Paul Grimm of the US District Court for the District of Maryland, requires the FDA to “forecast the percentages of such products for which it expects to have taken ‘action’ by June 2022 and quarterly thereafter”.
US - General: A settlement has been reached between Juul Labs and the state of Washington, by which Juul has agreed to pay $22.5m. The lawsuit claimed Juul broke the law by marketing its products to appeal to minors and also deceived consumers over the addictiveness of the product. Washington attorney general Bob Ferguson said Juul would not only have to pay, but also ”stop its unlawful conduct and implement a slate of reforms, including: Stopping all its advertising that appeals to youth; Stopping most social media promotion; Accurately marketing the content and effects of the nicotine in its products; Strict practices to confirm the age of consumers who purchase Juul products”.
US - federal: Today, April 14th, is the first deadline in the new federal legislation on synthetic nicotine. Fropm today, new synthetic nicotine products may not enter the market without first obtaining a PMTA. Further, synthetic nicotine versions of tobacco-derived nicotine products whose PMTAs have been denied may not be be marketed.
Chile: The Public Health Institute (ISP) has warned against the use of e-cigarettes, with a reminder that those containing nicotine are illegal in Chile as the ISP has not granted the required pharmaceutical status to any such product. The institute also says nicotine-free vaping products pose multiple health risks.
Finland: The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has confirmed to ECigIntelligence that an amendment to the Tobacco Act was yesterday approved by president Sauli Niinistö. The amendment introduces uniform packaging for e-cigarettes from 1st May 2023 and extends smoke-free and vape-free environments from 1st May 2022.
Netherlands: The e-cigarette flavour ban that was to be introduced on 1st July has been put back six months, the trade association Esigbond reports. The ban will only allow sales of tobacco-flavoured vaping products. Its postponement comes after the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) drew up a list of approved flavourings, which Esigbond says included two – isophorone and pyridine – that are known to be carcinogenic.
Portugal: Following the rejection by Parliament of the first State Budget, prime minister António Costa’s new government today presented a new Budget, with a proposed 1% increase in tax on nicotine e-liquids, from from €0.32 to €0.323 per ml still intact. Parliament still needs to approve the new budget, which is expected to happen by the end of May.
US - Federal: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued several new warning letters to manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products that are “new tobacco products” without the required FDA marketing authorisation to remain in the market.
Italy: The Council of State will hold a hearing on 21st June on the fate of e-liquids without tax stamps that remain unsold, media reports. In January, following a lawsuit filed by e-cigarette manufacturer Smooke France in July 2021, the Regional Administrative Tribunal (TAR) of Lazio overturned a Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) circular from March 2021 which ordered the disposal of all e-liquids without tax stamps from 1st January 2022; the ADM then appealed against that decision to the Council of State, Italy's highest administrative court.
Netherlands: The vape stores’ trade association Esigbond has complained about sales of illegal disposable e-cigarettes in non-specialist shops, markets and online, media reports. It warns that these products are unregistered, often have too high nicotine levels, and lack Dutch health warnings on the packaging. It says the products are being promoted on social media and calls for their sale to be stopped immediately.
UK: Westminster City Council and the Metropolitan Police have seized 4,500 disposables with excessive nicotine levels and 420 counterfeit e-cigarettes from a souvenir shop in London’s Oxford Street, press reports.
China: The State Administration for Market Regulation and the National Standardisation Administration today published the approved mandatory national standard on e-cigarettes, which will be implemented from 1st October. Along the lines of the EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD), the standard will impose a nicotine cap of 20 mg and limit the size of refills to 20 ml.
US - Arkansas: Senate Bill 45 is advancing through the legislative process. It would raise from 19 to 21 the legal age to purchase, sell, exchange, or possess tobacco, nicotine products or any “electronic smoking product”, and ban their online sale. It would also levy a tax on all nicotine-containing electronic smoking products at 75% of their wholesale price.
Russia: Members of the State Duma have proposed a moratorium on mandatory traceability labelling of goods until 1st January 2028, media reports. If adopted, this would affect the traceability labelling of heated tobacco consumables, which become mandatory on 1st March. It might also delay the future mandatory labelling of e-liquids, cartridges and closed e-cigarette systems, which are currently subject to a voluntary traceability labelling experiment that is supposed to run until 28th February 2023.
US - Federal: The FDA has issued Marketing Denial Orders (MDO) to Fontem for several e-cigarette products in the company’s Myblu line, saying their applications lacked sufficient evidence to show that permitting the marketing of them would be appropriate for the protection of the public health. Specifically, the agency did not find the benefits significantly outweighed the risk to youth. Aside from the MDOs to products listed in the publicly available Deemed New Tobacco Product Application List, the FDA has also issued MDOs to additional Myblu products that do not appear in the list, because it will only publicly name products that are confirmed as being currently on the market.
Canada: According to the Federal Budget 2022, e-liquid with or without nicotine will be taxed at a rate of CAD1 ($0.79) per 2 ml, or fraction thereof for the first 10 ml of vaping substance, and CAD1 ($0.79) per 10 ml, or fraction thereof, for volumes beyond that. If a province or territory decides to participate in a coordinated vaping taxation regime administered by the federal government the rates would double, meaning the proposed combined rate would be CAD2 ($1.58) per 2 ml, or fraction thereof, for the first 10 ml of vaping substance, and CAD2 ($1.58) per 10 ml, or fraction thereof, for volumes beyond that. More information can be found in our latest news briefing.
US - Tennessee: Senate Bill 2219 has passed the Senate and is ready for transmission to the House. This bill would authorise local governments to regulate, including the prohibition of, smoking and the use of vapour products in age-restricted venues.
UK: The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has said that while there has been much interest from companies that wish to achieve regulatory approval, no new licence applications for e-cigarettes have been submitted, media reports. In October, the authority announced its intention to encourage the licensing of e-cigarettes as medicines and to support companies to submit marketing authorisation applications. E-cigarettes regulated as medicines may contain higher nicotine levels (more than 20 mg/ml) and e-liquid volume (more than 2 ml for single-use cartridges/disposables, and more than 10 ml for refills).
Spain: The Spanish parliament has passed the "waste and contaminated soils" bill. The bill imposes restrictions on plastic packaging that may affect the e-cigarette industry. For example, single-use plastics (in which pods and e-liquid containers could be included, although the bill does not mention them specifically) will have to be marked as such on their packaging. The bill also intends to reduce the sale of single-use plastics by 50% in weight by 2026 and 70% by 2030. The act will enter into force once it is published in the state Official Bulletin.
Myanmar: From 10th April standardised packaging will be mandatory for almost all tobacco products. The regulation requires the outer surfaces of product packages to be presented in a standardised dull brown colour, and health warnings need to be printed on 75% of the front and back surfaces. Companies will have a 90-day transitional period. It is still not clear if harm-reduction products will have to comply or not with the new requirements.
UK: A plastic packaging tax that applies, among other things, to plastic protective film around a box, has entered into effect. A tax rate of £200 per metric tonne applies to plastic packaging that is manufactured or imported and does not contain at least 30% recycled plastic.
US - Federal: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued several new warning letters to manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products that are "new tobacco products" without the required FDA marketing authorisation to remain in the market.
Taiwan: About 97% of parents who responded to a survey conducted by the National Alliance of Parents Organisations would like all novel tobacco products to be banned, along with e-cigarettes, press reports. The organisation estimated that 73,000 teenagers in Taiwan use e-cigarettes and "similar products". A bill to explicitly ban e-cigarettes and regulate heated tobacco is currently at the final enactment stage.
Brazil: The National Public Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) will be receiving technical and scientific evidence about e-cigarettes and heated tobacco from 11th April to 11th May to help it analyse the impact of regulation. Any interested party can offer evidence. The agency has also published a report suggesting the current prohibition should be maintained, and that educational campaigns should be implemented, aimed particularly at young people. Any firm decisions will come later.
Mexico: The Senate has approved a decree amending the Customs Duty Act in order to prohibit the importation of e-cigarettes, both with and without nicotine. The decree has been submitted to the Chamber of Deputies for further approval.
France: The National Agency for Food, Environmental, and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES) has published an updated list of notified e-cigarettes, which includes 76,309 products.
US - federal: Senate majority leader Dick Durbin has revealed that he spoke yesterday with US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner Robert Califf about what he called “the agency’s delay in comprehensively regulating the e-cigarette marketplace to protect public health”. Durbin said he urged the FDA to conclude the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) review for e-cigarettes, now past the seven-month court-ordered deadline.
Malaysia: A bill banning sales of vaping products to anyone born after 2005 will be discussed tomorrow by a parliamentary Special Committee on Health, Science and Innovation before it is introduced to Parliament in July, press reports. Tomorrow's discussion will be the first of a series of committee proceedings to review the wording of the bill and its implementation plans, while taking into account the different views from all relevant parties.
US - Colorado: The Finance Committee held a hearing yesterday on House Bill 22-1064, which would prohibit the distribution of flavoured cigarettes, tobacco products, or nicotine products, including those containing synthetic nicotine. Opponents of the bill, which was introduced early this year, argue that the pre-kindergarten (pre-K) program would take a big funding hit as it is currently supported by the state nicotine tax, following a 2020 ballot vote. Democrat representative Kyle Mullica said: “We always run that risk when we want to fund these important programs off of taxes like this that are vices. I think hopefully we start maybe getting away from that because I don’t think that’s probably the most appropriate way to fund these programs.”
Malaysia: The Ministry of Trade and Consumer Affairs today issued an order on Trade Descriptions (Certification and Marking of Electronic Cigarette Device). The order, which will come into force on 3rd August, requires manufacturers and importers of e-cigarette devices and their components to apply to the testing and inspections agency SIRIM QAS International for a certificate of compliance with the Malaysian standard before placing them on the market. Each compliant product will then be marked as such. The order does not apply to e-liquids.
Bulgaria: The Council of Ministers has agreed to introduce an excise duty for vaping products in order to cut usage, media reports. The exact figures have not yet been released, but the new tax is planned to come into force in July.
Pennsylvania: House Bill 2466 has been introduced, which would include “electronic smoking devices” – “An electronic device that contains or delivers nicotine or another substance to an individual inhaling from the device” – within the definition of “smoking” for purposes of the Clean Indoor Air Act. This legislation would also give all localities the right to enact smoke-free ordinances that are more protective than current state law.
Italy: The Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) has issued a circular listing the new excise duty rates on e-liquids that apply until the end of the year. As of 1st April, nicotine-containing liquids will be subject to duty of €0.131303 per ml, while the rate for those without nicotine is €0.087535 per ml.
Canada - New Brunswick: Yesterday, the Court of Queen's Bench of Fredericton rejected a motion filed by a group of vape stores to suspend the province's ban on flavoured e-cigarettes introduced in September 2021, local media reports. The plaintiffs were also seeking to halt a requirement for vape stores to obtain a licence, which enters into force today.
Belarus: The resolution of the Council of Ministers introduces a mandatory conformity assessment by the National System of Conformity for nicotine-containing e-liquids and e-cigarettes with liquids as of today. The resolution imposes limits on nicotine concentration of 20 mg/ml, tank size volume of 2 ml and on refill volume of 10 ml. It also introduces mandatory labelling.
US - Texas: During a meeting on 30th March, Houston City Council unanimously approved an ordinance banning the use of electronic smoking devices in public spaces, local media reports. The original ordinance, passed in 2006, bans smoking in enclosed public places, within 25 ft of a public building’s entrance or exit, and other public areas, including outdoor seating areas and covered public transport facilities. Now those rules are extended to electronic smoking devices, which include e-cigarettes and cigars, vapes and any other device that uses vapour or aerosol liquids.
Finland: The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has told ECigIntelligence that the amendment to the Tobacco Act, which was recently approved in the second reading in the parliament, is currently waiting for the president's approval. The amendment aims, among other things, to introduce standard packaging for e-cigarettes and seeks to extend smoke-free environments. If approved, it envisages different dates for its entering into force.
US - Hawaii: House Bill 1570 will be included in the public consultation that both the Senate Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection will hold tomorrow. This bill would ban (1) the sale of flavoured tobacco products and (2) mislabelling as nicotine-free any e-liquid product that contains nicotine.
US - Federal: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued new warning letters to manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products that are "new tobacco products" without the required FDA marketing authorisation to remain in the market.
US: Michele Mital, deputy director of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) since 2018, is to become acting director of the CTP following the retirement of Mitch Zeller in April, an FDA spokesperson confirmed to ECigIntelligence today.
UK: Junior health minister Maggie Throup told MPs during a debate on “Smoke-free England” that the government’s tobacco control plan would be published later this year. She added: “The new plan will set out a comprehensive package of new policy proposals and regulatory change.”
Lithuania: The Ministry of Health, along with the Drug, Tobacco and Alcohol Control Department (NTAKD), has presented a draft National Agenda on drug, tobacco and alcohol control, prevention of drug sse and drug-related harm up tol 2035 to the Seimas (parliament) Committee for Addiction Prevention. The plan aims to reduce the supply of tobacco and related products through policies based on scientific studies, improving excise duties, raising awareness of the effects of smuggling on the public budget, regulating emerging products promptly, and strengthening advertising restrictions.
South Africa: The libertarian think think the Free Market Foundation is reportedly concerned that the government’s plans for regulating vaping products will push more people back toward smoking and to buying from the black market. The South African Treasury’s director for economic tax analysis, Chris Axelson, told press that a flat tax rate based on e-liquid volume, regardless of nicotine concentration, had been agreed in principle. He said the Treasury would draft a bill aiming to have a tax in force from 1st January 2023.
Spain: The Ministry of Health has told the press that a draft amendment to the tobacco control law will shortly be finalised. Although the exact content of the proposal is not yet known, it is expected to include a ban on the use of tobacco products, including heated tobacco and e-cigarettes, in places such as outdoor terraces, beaches, and in private cars. It is also reported that plain packaging is to be introduced, although it is unclear for which products. It remains uncertain what other restrictions might be applied to heat-not-burn (HnB) products and e-cigarettes and whether nicotine pouches are to be included. Lastly, the press reports that prices will be raised, however, it is again unclear which products will be affected.
US - Maine: There is still an ongoing dispute between proponents and opponents of Legislature bill LD 1550, which was introduced last year, local media reports. The bill would ban the sale and distribution of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, in any flavour other than tobacco.
Canada - New Brunswick: A judge will give a decision tomorrow, 31st March, on a bid by a group of vape stores to suspend the province’s ban on flavoured e-cigarettes, introduced in September 2021, local media reports. The plaintiffs are also seeking to halt a requirement for vape stores to obtain a licence, due to come into force on Friday, 1st April.
US - Texas: Houston City Council will today consider a proposal that would add vaping to the city’s existing ban on smoking in public spaces, local media reports. Quality of Life Committee chairman Robert Gallegos yesterday urged his colleagues to support the proposal. The original ordinance, passed in 2006, bans smoking in enclosed public places, within 25 ft of a public building’s entrance or exit, and other public areas, including outdoor seating areas and covered public transport facilities.
EU: The European Commission has launched an initiative to evaluate the progress made under Directive 2012/19/EU on waste electrical and electronic equipment, which applies to e-cigarette devices. The Commission’s recommendations are planned for adoption in the third quarter of 2023.
Switzerland: Stakeholders have until tomorrow to comment on the Federal Council consultation on a partial revision of the Tobacco Tax Act, which would set a tax on e-liquids 77% lower than that on combustible cigarettes. The Federal Department of Finance told ECigIntelligence it would revise the preliminary draft based on the results of the consultation. The draft will then be discussed in Parliament. The changes are not expected to come into force before mid/late 2023.
Germany: The Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL) has updated the list of notified e-cigarette products, which now contains 254,020 vapour products. Only products notified at least six months ago are listed.
Thailand: The National Tobacco Products Control Commission has decided that the current ban on the import and sale of e-cigarettes will not be lifted, saying this is in order to protect the lives of Thai people. According to the authority’s statement, the National Statistical Office’s 2021 Tobacco Consumption Survey found that 78,742 people over the age of 15 vape. The survey broke that down to show that there are 71,486 male vapers and 7,256 female vapers, most of whom live in Bangkok.
Bahrain: The Council of Representatives has recommended the approval of the ban on import, distribution, sales and manufacturing of electronic cigarettes, press reports.
US - Federal: Yesterday, 28th March, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it is requesting “a total budget of $8.4 billion as part of the President’s fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget – a nearly 34% ($2.1 billion) increase over the agency’s FY 2022 appropriated funding level”. FDA commissioner Robert Califf stated: “The FDA has focused our budget request on some of today’s most urgent needs such as human and animal food safety, medical device security and e-cigarette oversight.” Specifically, it requested a $100m increase in user fees to support the FDA’s mission to reduce the use and harm of tobacco, including funding on e-cigarette oversight, “which remains a high priority and is critical to the agency’s public health mission, especially, to protecting kids from the dangers of nicotine addiction and other harmful health consequences”.
EU: The European Commission is scheduled to launch the EU’s “Sustainable products initiative” tomorrow, 30th March, as Commission adoption is planned for the first quarter of 2022. This initiative potentially affects electronics used in nicotine and tobacco products. It “aims to make products placed on the EU market more sustainable [...], durable, reusable, repairable, recyclable, and energy-efficient”. Among its main aims is to make companies focus on extending the products’ life cycle and to demand that companies disclose and report certain information.
US: Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, has confirmed to ECigIntelligence its decision to stop selling tobacco products in a number of its stores. The company did not say how many of its 5,000 US stores would be affected. Walmart announced in 2019 that it would no longer sell vaping products.
UK: The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published its eagerly awaited Post-Implementation Review of Tobacco Legislation. It says the government will consider changes to the Tobacco and Related Product Regulations as part of its plans towards meeting its Smokefree 2030 ambition, but recommends, on the basis of the evidence reviewed, that the current regulations should remain in force. The consultation responses on one side suggested amendments to e-cigarette packaging to promote them as less harmful than smoking, along with increases in allowed e-liquid bottle and tank sizes, and nicotine strength. On the other side, some respondents wanted stronger packaging designs and colours to deter youth use. The new Tobacco Control Plan is yet to be published, but following this no major changes to the vaping framework can be expected.
Belgium: The Federal Public Health Service (FPS) for Health, Food Chain Safety and the Environment has told ECigIntelligence that the draft 2022-2028 Interfederal Strategy for a Tobacco-Free Generation presented last week at the Interministerial Conference on Public Health (CIM Santé) will be supplemented by a series of operational objectives and the goal is to have a complete strategy adopted in autumn.
US: VPR Brands has announced the settlement of a patent infringement case against three companies, which have agreed to pay $155,000 for a fully paid-up, royalty-free, non-exclusive licence to use VPR’s e-cigarette technology, patented in 2009. This is the third such case brought by VPR, which agreed settlements of $275,000 and $85,000 with other companies in December 2021 and claims to have identified over 50 more that it says are using its Auto Draw Technology. Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based VPR said: “Additional lawsuits will continue to be filed as necessary to protect the company’s Intellectual Property rights.”
Canada - Northwest Territories: E-liquids of any flavour other than tobacco are now banned, as of 25th March, under amendments to the Tobacco and Vapour Products Control Regulations.
US - Federal: The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken action on additional e-cigarette products: it has authorised several tobacco-flavoured products from Logic Technology Development, and has also issued marketing denial orders to Logic for multiple other electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) products. The agency said it is close to making further decisions on applications for “popular ENDS products that account for a large part of the market”. Read more in our latest news story.
UK: Trading Standards Sandwell have seized more than 1,600 illegal disposable vapes from two shops. Non-compliant products exceeded the maximum volume of 2 ml and instead contained between 4.5 ml and 9 ml of e-liquid. The Sandwell Council warned: “Look out for products that don’t meet legal requirements such as Vapeman, who have not been authorised for sale in the UK. Retailers should remove these products from sale and return them to the supplier.”
Spain: The government’s delegate for the National Plan on Drugs, Joan Ramón Villalbí, has expressed some concern over e-cigarette use among teenagers, press reports. The National Plan on Drugs is an initiative from the Ministry of Health aimed at coordinating and promoting drug policies carried out by the different public administrations in Spain. Villalbí said that, according to a survey on the use of drugs among secondary school students, almost half of Spanish teenagers have tried vaping at least once. “It is possible that many of those teenagers who tried vaping did so because they borrowed an electronic cigarette from a friend,” he added, “but this still makes us think.”
Finland: On 16th March, the parliament approved the content of the amendment to the Tobacco Act. The second reading of the bill has ended. The amendment aims to introduce standard packaging for e-cigarettes and seeks to extend smoke-free environments, among other things. If adopted, it envisages different dates for its entering into force.
UK: Lancashire County Council reported yesterday that Trading Standards had carried out inspections of vape shops in response to a huge increase in the number of complaints relating to under-age sales. One shop owner was fined £166 by a court and ordered to pay £275 in costs after two volunteers, aged 15 and 16, were able to make successful test purchases. The shop assistant who sold the products was also fined. Similar actions have been carried out recently in other parts of the country.
Belgium: The General Drug Policy Unit (CGPD) yesterday presented the draft of the 2022-2028 Strategy for a Tobacco-Free Generation during an interministerial conference on public health. The plan, which includes vaping, sets several objectives, such as: removing tobacco industry interference from the preparation and implementation of public health policies, improving health promotion policies, a ban on vending machines, tightening restrictions on long-distance sales and advertising, and improving the make-up of vapour products.
US - Connecticut: Senate Bill 367 was heard yesterday in the Senate Public health Committee, where it received a favourable vote 20-11. The bill would prohibit the sale of electronic nicotine delivery systems and vapour products that are flavoured or that have a nicotine content above 35 mg/ml.
Netherlands: The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) has confirmed to ECigIntelligence that in general it is still allowed to print the names of flavours on the packaging of e-liquids and pods. However, it offered a reminder that flavours will soon be banned in the Netherlands.
Mongolia: The government has decided to submit changes to the Law on Tobacco Control by June and propose an e-cigarette tax, press reports.
UK: Conservative MP Bob Blackman today called on the government to raise the purchasing age for tobacco products from 18 to 21 and introduce a “polluter pays” levy on Big Tobacco in order to achieve the smoke-free 2030 targets and to raise funds for smoking cessation services. Prime minister Boris Johnson agreed that smoking was a number one cause of preventable deaths and said that Javed Khan, who is currently reviewing tobacco policy, would take Blackman’s proposals into account.
Iceland: A bill amending Law 87/2018 on e-cigarettes and refills, which we have reported on, has been approved at its first reading in the Althingi (parliament). In addition to banning “flavours that may appeal to children, such as sweet and fruit flavours”, the bill includes a mandatory licence to sell vaping products, issued by the Housing and Civil Engineering Institute, and a ban on vaping on education premises. The bill now moves on to the Welfare Committee, which could propose amendments.
US: New warning letters have been issued by the FDA to manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products that are “new tobacco products” without the required FDA marketing authorisation to remain in the market.
US - Idaho: Senate Bill 1285 has been delivered to governor Brad Little for signature. This bill denies local government authorities the right to adopt or enforce requirements for the regulation, marketing, or sale of tobacco products or e-cigarettes that are more restrictive than state law. It would also prevent them from imposing or enforcing a tax or fee on tobacco products or e-cigarettes.
Australia: The Australian Bureau of Statistics yesterday published the results of its 2020/21 smoking and vaping prevalence survey. They show that almost 9.3% of adults have tried vaping at least once and 2.2% vape regularly, including 4.8% of those aged 18-24. In all, 21.7% of 18-24s had tried vaping at least once. Strikingly, the survey also shows that among current smokers, 23.8% were former users of vaping products.
Paraguay: The government is currently discussing with the Senate the immediate enactment of a bill that would increase the tax on e-liquids from 20% (in force since February) to 22%, press reports. The tax rise is in response to the government’s plan to subsidise oil in order to keep its price stable.
Russia: Dmitry Davydov, author of the non-profit project "20 Ideas for the Development of Russia", recommends increasing the purchasing age for nicotine-containing products – including e-liquids and heated tobacco consumables – media reports. Referring to the experience of other countries, Davydov proposes a gradual transition, raising the age limit in the first year from 18 to 19, in the second year from 19 to 20, and in the third year to 21.
Australia: Doctors and public health experts are reportedly urging the government to ban the sale of nicotine-free vaping products that may seem appealing to children. While nicotine-containing e-cigarettes have been subject to prescription since last October, the import and sale of nicotine-free products are not subject to the same requirement. Since the nicotine-containing vaping products import restrictions came into force, the Border Force has seized 248 shipments of such products.
US - California: The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against RJ Reynolds’ case against Los Angeles County’s flavour ban, which includes menthol cigarettes and other flavoured tobacco products. Reynolds argued that, under the Tobacco Control Act (TCA), states and local jurisdictions could not ban the sale of tobacco products. However, the federal judge said the TCA included a preemption clause with an exception (“requirements relating to the sale, distribution, possession, information reporting to the State, exposure to, access to, the advertising and promotion of, or use of, tobacco products”), a broad preservation of state and local authority which the ban would fit.
Russia: The Association of Internet Trade Companies has called on prime minister Mikhail Mishustin to lift the ban on online sales of alcohol, tobacco products and prescription drugs until the end of 2023 in order to support industry, media reports. It is unclear whether the request includes online sales of e-liquids.
Philippines: The Department of Education has backed the Department of Health in appealing to president Rodrigo Duterte to veto the proposed Vaporized Nicotine Products Regulation Act. According to the department, the bill weakens the existing laws on e-cigarettes and heated tobacco, especially when lowering the restriction age from 21 to 18. The bill was approved by the Senate and House of Representatives in January and is now waiting for the president’s signature.
US: Zanoprima Lifesciences Ltd. filed a complaint for patent infringement against Hangsen International Group Ltd. in the US District Court in the Western District of Texas, on 12th March. Per a Zanoprima Lifesciences press release, Hangsen has violated Zanoprima’s patent entitled “Process for Making (S)-Nicotine” (US Patent No. 10,913,962) through Hangsen’s manufacture and importation into the US market of products containing synthetic nicotine. In addition to seeking damages for infringement, Zanoprima’s complaint seeks preliminary and permanent injunctive relief to prevent Hangsen from continuing its infringing actions.
Spain: The association Nofumadores.org (non-smokers.org) has asked the government to prohibit the sale of tobacco and electronic cigarettes to anyone born after 2007 so that once they turn 18 they cannot buy those products and become addicted, press reports. More than 20 associations support this measure. Nofumadores.org has also accused the Ministry of Health of not being harsh enough with the tobacco industry.
UK: David Jones, Conservative MP from Clwyd West in Wales, asked the health secretary what steps the department is taking to help ensure small convenience stores adhere to age-verification standards for the sale of e-cigarettes and what assessments have been made of the effectiveness of the enforcement measures. Maggie Throup, Conservative parliamentary under-secretary for health, said that the government provides funding to local authorities who allocate them to local service, including for combating the under-age sale of e-cigarettes. She pointed out that the department also commissioned the Chartered Trading Standards Institute to publish annual tobacco control surveys on trading standards activities. Throup said: “We believe that the current enforcement measures are proportionate. However, we will continue to monitor the evidence regarding under-age or illegal sales.”
Sweden: The public consultation on a proposal to increase excise duties on e-liquids ends today, 18th March. The Ministry of Finance proposed an increase of 1% on e-liquids excise duties from 2024; therefore, highly concentrated e-liquids (from 15 to 20 mg per ml) would be taxed at SEK4,040 (€387) per l, while other e-liquids at SEK2,020 (€194) per l.
UK: Trading standards for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) has announced results of inspections of under-age sales of e-cigarettes, revealing that more than half of the shops visited by trading standards are illegally selling vaping products to minors. Two 14-year-old volunteers were sold disposable vape in three out of five premises across BCP without being asked for any proof of age during the undercover operation in February. Officers also found that none of the e-cigarettes sold to the children complied with the legal requirements, and one of the products is suspected to be counterfeit.
Costa Rica: The Ministry of Health and the Costa Rican Social Security Fund asked the National Assembly to approve the bill that imposes neutral packaging for tobacco products, including e-cigs with or without nicotine, press reports. The bill also eliminates advertising and increases the size of health warnings from 50% to 80% of the package area. The bill has been under discussion in the Social Committee since September 2021.
Czech Republic: The Ministry of Health has updated the publicly available list of notified herbal products for smoking, e-cigarettes, and refill containers.
US - New York: Assembly bill A 9576 has been introduced, which would prohibit smoking and vaping on the grounds of public colleges and universities.
US - California: The Monterey County Board of Supervisors passed last Tuesday, 15th March, the ordinance containing a ban on flavoured tobacco products (including e-cigarettes) and single-use electronic cigarettes. “Michelle House, a program coordinator for the county Health Department, said the new regulation will be posted for 30 days before it officially becomes a Monterey County ordinance,” local media reports. Retailers thus have 30 days to sell their stock until the ban becomes effective. This ban comes just two weeks after the Santa Ana City Council also approved an ordinance to end the sale of flavoured tobacco products, which is set to take effect on 14th April. Santa Ana mayor Vicente Sarmiento said that would be sufficient notice for retailers.
US - Federal: New warning letters have been issued by the FDA to manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products that are “new tobacco products” without the required FDA marketing authorisation to remain in the market.
Malaysia: Contrary to what was expected, the minister of health tweeted today, 17th March: “God willing, the Bill [banning the sales of vaping products to anyone born after 2005] will be tabled in July and get bipartisan support.” The minister himself previously announced that the bill would be introduced in the first session of the Dewan Rakyat (lower parliamentary chamber), which runs from 28th February to 24th March.
Switzerland: Answering a Federal Council consultation on possible e-cigarette taxation, the Swiss Tobacco Prevention Working Group has demanded that the tax should apply not only to e-cigarettes, but to all tobacco and nicotine products, based on nicotine content. They say products that are already taxed, such as heated and oral tobacco, should face an increase. The consultation is open until 31st March.
Denmark: Health minister Magnus Heunicke announced yesterday, 15th March, that the government plans to ban access to tobacco and nicotine products to anyone born in or after 2010. This is part of the new government’s health reform plan to “Make Denmark Healthier”, which aims to tackle health inequalities.
US: Senate majority whip Dick Durbin of Illinois yesterday, 15th March, called out the FDA in a speech on the Senate floor for the six-month delay in reviewing e-cigarette applications, the deadline for which was 9th September 2021. He said the FDA had turned a blind eye for years to e-cigarettes, which, in his opinion, cannot meet the standard to stay in the market. He said e-cigarette manufacturers were trying to circumvent regulation under the guise of synthetic nicotine, that he and senators Susan Collins and Patty Murray had “led efforts to close this loophole in the Fiscal Year 2022 omnibus appropriations bill”, which finally passed. He concluded by calling on the FDA to “protect America’s children from Big Tobacco and their candy-flavoured, sickness-causing e-cigarettes”.
US - Connecticut: Senate Bill 367, which was introduced last week, would prohibit the sale of electronic nicotine delivery systems and vapour products that are flavoured or that have a nicotine content above 35 mg per ml. Even with the federal restrictions on flavours in place, supporters of the bill say the state needs to pass its own ban in order to reduce youth use of vapour products, testifying to that effect at a public meeting on Monday. Opponents disagree, saying it would not reduce youth usage, but would hurt small businesses.
Australia: The state health and education departments of New South Wales have together launched a campaign to reduce vaping among teenagers. The “Get the Facts – Vaping Toolkit” aims to raise awareness of the alleged harmful long-term effects of vaping, with health minister Brad Hazzard claiming it has been proven that e-cigarettes can be as addictive as combustible cigarettes.
US – Hawaii: A new batch of bills have recently been introduced in Hawaii, all of them shown in our US regulatory tracker. One of those bills, House Bill 1570, which would ban the sale of flavoured tobacco or synthetic nicotine products, has raised some concerns. Some representatives reportedly described some of the amendments made by the House Health, Human Services and Homelessness Committee as “poison pills”, which would jeopardise the bill’s passing. It was originally supported by the state attorney general and the Hawaii Department of Health (DOH), but has lost their support following the amendments. The lack of support by the enforcement agencies may end up in a veto by the governor, should the bill pass as it now stands. Among the amendments added, one requires the health department to implement a standardised testing process to detect flavours; advocates say this is not found in other jurisdictions and is not necessary, while the DOH found it unreasonable.
Austria: Today, 15th March, is the deadline for the annual reporting of e-liquid ingredients and emissions by brand name and product type. The information must be provided to the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) through the EU Common Entry Gate.
EU: The EU Parliament has approved, by 584 votes to 67, a proposal to overhaul European rules on batteries, which will now have to be negotiated with member states’ national governments. Rapporteur Simona Bonafé, of the Socialists and Democrats group, said: “The Battery Regulation lays down a holistic set of rules to govern an entire product life cycle, from the design phase to end-of-life,” with the aim of introducing “new sustainability standards that should become a benchmark for the entire global battery market”. It includes an obligation to design batteries that are easily replaceable and recyclable.
US - Federal: Last Friday, 11th March, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a modified risk granted order authorising Philip Morris Products S.A. (PMPSA) to market the Iqos 3 System Holder and Charger with the following reduced-exposure information: (1) The Iqos system heats tobacco but does not burn it; (2) This significantly reduces the production of harmful and potentially harmful chemicals; (3) Scientific studies have shown that switching completely from conventional cigarettes to the Iqos system significantly reduces your body’s exposure to harmful or potentially harmful chemicals. These claims do not differ from the ones included in the reduced exposure information of the “IQOS Tobacco Heating System”. Note that, as the FDA reminds, “IQOS and Heatsticks are currently subject to a limited exclusion order and cease-and-desist order issued by the U.S. International Trade Commission which restricts the sales, distribution and marketing of the products in the United States”.
China: The electronic cigarette stand
China: The proposed Administrative Measures for Electronic Cigarettes released in December 2021 are now confirmed and will start applying on 1st May 2022. The regulation stipulates a ban on e-liquid flavours except tobacco flavour. In addition, manufacturers of e-cigs, atomisers, and nicotine, as well as wholesale and retail operators must obtain tobacco monopoly licences and conduct transactions through the national e-cigarette management platform.
Germany: The Federal Council (Bundesrat) sent a bill to the national parliament (Bundestag) to amend the Federal Non-Smoking Protection Act to ban smoking in closed vehicles in the presence of children and pregnant women. Violation would incur a fine of between €500 and €3,000. Although e-cigarettes are not specifically mentioned, the federal government has declared in the past that e-cigarettes fall under the Act. The Bundestag will decide whether to accept the proposal. There is no deadline for the decision.
Armenia: Recently, the National Assembly adopted the amendment to the law “on reduction and prevention of health damage as a result of the use of tobacco products and their substitutes”. The aim of the amendment was to include minor corrections to the definition of “tobacco substitute”. “Tobacco substitute” was previously defined as a non-tobacco product, electronically operated (cartridge or container), by which a solution containing nicotine, propylene glycol or glycerol, or in some cases also various flavours, is evaporated. With the new amendment, the word “mixture” is added after the word “solution”. The amendment enters into force tomorrow, 15th March.
US: The 2022 Omnibus Bill passed the Senate last night and includes language that would give authority to the FDA to regulate products containing nicotine from any source, including products containing nicotine not derived from tobacco (synthetic nicotine). The bill is now on its way to president Biden’s desk to be signed. Dianne Feinstein, Democratic senator from California, issued a statement applauding the passage of the bill by the Senate. Among the provisions passed, Feinstein highlights that nicotine products “cannot go unregulated because of a loophole in law, and this provision will fix that”.
US: In March 2022, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a study on youth use of tobacco products in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The study was based on data from the 2021 National Youth Tobacco Survey obtained by interviewing middle school and high school students. The results showed that the most commonly used tobacco products were e-cigarettes, followed by cigarettes, cigars, smokeless tobacco, hookahs, and nicotine pouches. This year’s study cannot be fully compared with the previous one due to methodological changes in the conduct of the survey. The study demonstrates that there is still an ongoing concern of widespread usage of e-cigarettes among students, the number of which is more than 2 million higher than in 2020.
Finland: On 9th March, the parliament approved the content of the amendment to the Tobacco Act in accordance with a report by the Committee on Social Affairs and Health. The first reading of the bill has ended. The amendment aims, among other things, to introduce standard packaging for e-cigarettes and seeks to extend smoke-free environments. If adopted, it envisages different dates for its entering into force.
Armenia: At a special 9th March sitting, the National Assembly adopted the law “on reduction and prevention of health damage as a result of the use of tobacco products and their substitutes”. The aim of the amendment was to include minor corrections to the definition of “tobacco substitute”. However, the adopted version is not yet publicly available.
Kazakhstan: Disposable e-cigarettes will not be banned in Kazakhstan yet, media reports. According to the reports, the Ministry of Health has decided to exclude this provision from the draft national technical regulation for nicotine-containing products, which has been in development in Kazakhstan since autumn 2021, but has not yet been adopted.
US - South Carolina: Senate Bill 1129 has been introduced. The bill redefines e-liquid to be nicotine-containing products only. The bill would prohibit the sale and distribution of a flavoured vapour product, which would include all flavours except tobacco and menthol. The sale of any vapour products that have been granted a premarket tobacco application and the transportation of flavoured vapour products within the state intended for sale in another state would be exempt from this provision. This bill would provide for the formation of a vapour product dispensary.
Estonia: The Tax and Customs Board has informed EcigIntelligence that it collected €358,195 in e-liquid taxes in 2021. The excise duty on e-liquids was suspended from April 2021 until December 2022.
France: British American Tobacco (BAT) has been ordered by a Paris court to pay a fine of €100,000 for illegal advertising of its vaping products on the internet and via social media following a charge brought by the National Committee Against Smoking (Comité National Contre Tabagisme, CNCT) and DNF-For a Zero Tobacco World (DNF-Pour un monde zéro tabac).
US: The 2022 Omnibus Bill passed the House last night. It includes language that would give authority to the FDA to regulate products containing nicotine from any source, also including products containing nicotine not derived from tobacco (synthetic nicotine). In a last-minute discussion, the Covid-19 relief measures were stripped out from the bill in order to pass the budget bill, and a standalone Covid-19 relief bill was introduced separately instead. The Senate is expected to act on the bill by Friday 11th March at midnight, which is when government funds would expire. In order to prevent a government shutdown, the House further voted on a stopgap bill that provided funding to government agencies through 15th March.
Iceland: The bill amending Law 87/2018 on electronic cigarettes and refills that we previously reported on was introduced yesterday to the Althingi. In addition to laying down a ban on “flavours that may appeal to children, such as sweet and fruit flavours”, the new draft resulting from the bill’s public consultation includes a mandatory permit to sell vaping products, issued by the Housing and Civil Engineering Institute, and a prohibition from vaping in educational facilities. The bill may still undergo some amendments during the committee stage, which will take place after the first reading.
Latvia: The State Revenue Service has informed ECigIntelligence that the excise duty revenue for 2021 for e-liquids amounts to €2.3m.
Hungary: The Ministry of Finance told ECigIntelligence that the excise duties applicable to e-liquids, currently at HUF30 (€0.08) per ml, generated an estimated revenue of approximately HUF200m (€528,500) in 2021.
US - Connecticut: Senate Bill 367 has been introduced. It would prohibit the sale of electronic nicotine-delivery systems and vapour products that are flavoured or that have a nicotine content greater than 35 mg/ml.
UK: The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents councils in England and Wales, has called on the government to lower the VAT on e-cigarettes from 20% to 5%, bringing it in line with sales on nicotine gum and patches in order to help people stop smoking. The revenue generated could be targeted in geographical areas, occupational groups, and communities where cessation services are most needed.
Finland: The amendment to the Tobacco Act was introduced in the first reading in the parliament yesterday. At this stage, the content of the bill will be decided. The initial proposal aims to introduce plain packaging for e-cigarettes and seeks to extend smoke-free environments, among other things. Previously it was planned that this amendment would come into force as of January 2022; however, now it is not yet clear when it will go into effecct if adopted.
US: Bantam Vape has announced that United States Postal Service (USPS) has granted their application for a business purposes exception under the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act (PACT Act), so that they may ship their e-liquid products to select vape retailers and distributors throughout the US.
South Korea: A court has decided that the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety shall publish data behind the claims that some e-cigarettes contain ingredients that can cause severe lung disease, press reports. Prior to the court proceedings, the Electronic Cigarette Association had asked the Ministry to disclose this information, yet that request was rejected by the authority.
Rhode Island: Several new bills have been introduced. Among them, House Bill (HB) 7881, HB 7871, HB 7870, and HB 7869, which would provide for penalties for selling flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems or for operating without a dealer’s licence.
Vietnam: Answering the request of the Ministry of Finance to evaluate the current tax policies, the Vietnam Federation of Trade and Industry suggested adding new-generation tobacco products to the Value-Added Tax bill. E-cigarettes are currently not regulated in the country.
US - California: At its latest meeting, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors approved the first reading of an ordinance to ban sales of single-use e-cigarettes and flavoured tobacco products of any flavour other than tobacco. The ban would include all products containing tobacco leaves and any product containing nicotine. The second vote is set for 15th March.
US - Arizona: House Bill 2125 has failed the House third reading. This bill would have required tobacco vendors to have a valid tobacco retail sales licence in order to distribute tobacco products. E-cigarettes would be included in the definition of “tobacco products” for purposes of this bill.
Malaysia: The minister of health said yesterday that the bill banning the sales of vaping products to anyone born after 2005, which we previously reported on, still has to undergo several additional engagement sessions with NGOs and industry players before being tabled in the parliament. The minister expressed his intention to present the bill to parliament during its first sitting, which runs until 24th March, but also acknowledged the possibility of tabling the bill in the next sitting, which will take place between June and July of this year.
Sweden: The Public Health Agency of Sweden has updated a publicly available list of notified electronic cigarettes and refill containers, which contains 11,774 vapour products.
France: The National Agency for Food, Environmental, and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES) has published an updated list of notified e-cigarettes, which includes 74,630 products.
Slovenia: The government has published today a draft Strategy for Reducing the Consequences of Tobacco Use - For Slovenia without Tobacco 2022-2030, which is currently being discussed across ministries and agencies. The policy paper calls for the urgent enactment of legislation that extends plain packaging to e-cigarettes, raises the minimum age for the purchase of e-cigarettes to 21, and bans flavoured vapour products, among others.
US - Virginia: Senate Bill 223 has passed the House after minor amendments. This bill prohibits student athletes from earning compensation for the use of their image in connection with tobacco, tobacco products, alternative nicotine products, nicotine vapour products, and similar products and devices.
Australia: The government of the Australian state of New South Wales is preparing to adopt measures in order to reduce the consumption of electronic cigarettes among teenagers, press reports. The measures to be taken would be implemented in 2023 and would include, among others, suspending students who are caught vaping at school. The use of e-cigarettes at schools is prohibited, but incidents regarding their use and sale in schools have increased by 771%, according to education documents sent to parliament earlier this year.
Croatia: The Ministry of Health has updated the publicly available list of notified e-cigarettes and refill containers.
US: The FDA has issued new warning letters to manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products that are “new tobacco products” without the required FDA marketing authorisation to remain on the market.
Denmark: Yesterday, the health ministry announced that Nicoventures
UK: The West Northamptonshire Council trading standards department has inspected five shops following complaints of underage (under-18s) sales. Three of the shops asked for identification when the customer attempted to buy e-cigarettes and cigarettes, while the other two face under further investigation, press reports.
Germany: The Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL) has updated the list of notified e-cigarette products, which now contains 247,925 vapour products. Only products notified at least six months previously are listed.
US - Georgia: Senate Bill (SB) 572 has been introduced. This bill would require vapour product manufacturers and sellers to deliver an attestation to the attorney general stating that the product has received a marketing granted order by the FDA; it would require the attorney general to develop a vapour product directory, which would be publicly available for inspection; and it would ban any vapour product manufacturer from manufacturing or selling any vapour product not included in such a directory.
Ireland: Today, the Joint Committee on Health discussed the Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Bill with the industry members. The trade organisation Vape Business Ireland (VBI), whose representatives attended the meeting, stated that the credible evidence supporting vaping as a less harmful alternative to smoking must not be ignored and highlighted the importance of flavours in smoking cessation. Said a VBI spokesperson: “While it is essential that we do everything we can to prevent youth access to vaping products, we must also ensure that we find a balance in protecting the 200,000 vapers right across Ireland from relapsing.”
Malaysia: The first sitting of the Dewan Rakyat (Malaysian lower parliamentary chamber) in which the bill banning the sales of vaping products to anyone born after 2005 that we previously reported on is expected to be introduced by the Ministry of Health started today and running until 24th March. Although the bill has not been listed in today’s agenda nor has it been mentioned in the King’s Speech opening ceremony, the Ministry has until 24th March to introduce the bill. However, the longer the Ministry delays the tabling of the bill, the less likely it is to pass, as the time needed to debate it and propose any significant amendments will be increasingly reduced.
Canada - Ontario: France Gélinas, a member of the New Democratic Party, which is part of the minority coalition, tabled Bill 85 “Vaping is not for Kids”. The proposal aims to restrict the sale of vapour products to speciality vape stores, prohibit the promotion of e-cigarette products, and raise the minimum age for purchasing vaping products from 18 to 21.
Canada - Alberta: The provincial government will not introduce a standalone provincial tax for vapour products through the Budget 2022 (page 181). Alberta will work with the federal government to explore a coordinated taxation approach to collect a provincial tax on vaping products. According to the Budget 2022 documents, a coordinated tax structure would minimise the burden on Alberta businesses and could also reduce the risks of interprovincial smuggling and tax leakage.
Missouri: House Bill 2786 has been introduced. This bill would raise the minimum age from 18 to 21 for purchasing and possession of tobacco products, alternative nicotine products, and vapour products.
UK: Maggie Throup, parliamentary undersecretary for health, said that there are no current plans to review smoke-free legislation to include vaping. “The provision of separate vaping areas is a matter for individual organisations,” added Throup.
Estonia: The Health Board has updated the list of notified e-cigarette products, which contains 41,641 vapour products.
China: Following the central government’s announcement on ending e-cigarette sales to minors, a market supervision authority in Tianjin, a northeastern city with 13.8m residents, has increased the oversight of the ban on e-cigarette sales to minors, media reports. The authority will cover both traditional and online retail channels and block access to the latter.
Kazakhstan: The chair of the State Revenue Committee of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan answered the question on the procedure for the import, customs clearance, and sale of e-cigarettes imported from China into the territory of Kazakhstan. The answer is: behind the paywall.
Mexico: The National Commission against Addictions (CONADIC), the Pan American Health Organization (OPS), and the organisation Salud Justa have shown their concern over the new General Custom Duty Act, press reports. The organisations say that the Act does not prohibit the import of the third category of electronic cigarettes (known as “alternative systems of nicotine consumption”) and that it only prohibits the import of the other two categories of electronic cigarettes: “electronic devices of nicotine administration” (SEAN) and “similar devices without nicotine” (SSSN). According to the organisations, the bill would contradict the October 2021 presidential decree that prohibited the import of all electronic cigarettes.
Poland: On 2nd March 2022, the Senate health committee will debate the bill that intends to introduce the cultivation and collection of non-industrial hemp, press reports. According to the bill, the cultivation of medical cannabis will be allowed, but only if conducted by research institutes dependent on the Ministry of Agriculture. The bill was approved on 8th February by the Sejm (Polish lower house) and is currently pending parliamentary approval prior to being signed by the president.
South Africa: The Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, said during the Budget Speech 2022 that the government proposes to introduce a new tax on vaping products of at least ZAR2.90 ($0.17) per ml starting 1st January 2023.
Sweden: From February 2020 to March 2021 the government held an investigation to ensure a coherent and systematic regulation of tobacco, e-cigarettes, and tobacco-free nicotine products. The outcomes of this inquiry were published yesterday, and the government intends to submit a proposal shortly that would ban tobacco-free flavoured e-liquids and strengthen the restrictions on the marketing and advertising of e-cigarettes and refill containers.
US - General: The Federal Trade Commission announced yesterday: “In an Initial Decision announced on Feb. 24, 2022, Chief Administrative Law Judge D. Michael Chappell dismissed the antitrust charges in a complaint issued by the Federal Trade Commission staff against tobacco company Altria Group, Inc., and electronic cigarette maker JUUL Labs, Inc.” The judge concluded that the complaint failed to prove antitrust violation of the non-compete provisions of the agreements between Juul and Altria.
Iceland: The Ministry of Health confirmed to ECigIntelligence that the bill amending Law 87/2018 on electronic cigarettes and refills to introduce a ban on e-cigarette flavourings “that may appeal to children” will be introduced into the Althingi in March. As we previously reported, the bill was meant to be introduced today, according to the official parliamentary register.
Italy: The Senate has approved the text for the conversion into law of Decree-Law 228/2021, which lowers excise duties on e-cigarettes. The rates applied in early 2021 will be restored from 1st April 2022: approximately €0.13/ml for nicotine-containing e-liquids and €0.08/ml for those without nicotine. Our briefing will provide a more detailed outlook of the changes.
California: An ordinance has been approved in the city of Antioch in Contra Costa County to prohibit characterising flavours in tobacco products, impose packaging restrictions on cigarettes and cigars, and ban the sale of e-cigarettes for use with tobacco or tobacco products, local press reports. At the meeting which took the decision, councilmember Mike Barbanica expressed strong opposition, saying: “We have a city that allows cannabis sales...but you cannot buy some bubblegum vaping pen”. Another councilmember put a motion to waive the first reading and read by title only, which passed 3-2.
Kazakhstan: The Ministry of Health has confirmed to ECigIntelligence that the maximum level of nicotine content in e-liquids is 1 mg/ml. Laboratory tests on the maximum permissible content of nicotine should be carried out by labs in Kazakhstan. However, currently there is no certified method for determining the nicotine content in e-liquids, and, thus, testing labs in Kazakhstan currently do not carry out these tests.
Idaho: Senate Bill 1284 has been introduced. It would raise the age of legal possession and use of e-cigarettes and tobacco products from 18 to 21.
Connecticut: Senate Bill 139 has been introduced. It would ban all flavours but for tobacco in electronic nicotine delivery systems and vapour products. It would also amend the definition of “electronic cigarette liquid” to include products with synthetic ingredients.
UK (Scotland): Trading Standards officers found a wide range of non-compliant single-use or disposable vaping devices on sale in Scotland between October and December 2021, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) reports. Following inspections, a total of 88,839 disposable devices were removed from sale as they were either not labelled correctly, did not contain sufficient classification, labelling and packaging (CLP) regulation information or had not been published by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Another 3,683 devices were seized as they had a capacity of over the legal limit of 2 ml.
Italy: The Chamber of Deputies has approved the text for the conversion into law of Decree-Law 228/2021, which aims to lower excise duties on e-cigarettes. If the bill is also approved by the Senate, the rates which applied in early 2021 will be restored from 1st April 2022: approximately €0.13 per ml for nicotine-containing e-liquids and €0.08 per ml for those without nicotine.
Bulgaria: Analysis by the Customs Agency uncovered the evasion of BGN 977,000 (€500,000) in customs duties and VAT on imports of disposable e-cigarettes between 2019 and 2021.
US: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued on Thursday a new batch of warning letters to manufacturers and distributors of e-liquid products classed as “new tobacco products” without the required FDA marketing authorisation to remain on the market.
Italy: The Customs and Monopoly Agency (ADM) has updated the lists of notified nicotine-containing and nicotine-free e-cigarette products. The total number of notified vaping products now stands at 20,743.
West Virginia: Senate Bill 635 has been introduced, which would amend the Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act. It would change the definition of “electronic smoking devices” for the purposes of this Act, to include synthetic nicotine within its definition. It would further modify the definition of “other tobacco products” to include: nicotine-containing products (including synthetic nicotine products); and "electronic smoking devices". The bill would raise the tax on tobacco products other than cigarettes from 12% to 51% of the wholesale price, effective from 1st July 2022. The current tax on e-cigarette liquid would be repealed and thus substituted by this one.
Italy: The Budget Committee of the Chamber of Deputies approved two amendments (after making slight changes) to the conversion into law of Decree-Law 228/2021 presented by the Democratic Party and The League as part of an aim to decrease the excise duties on e-liquids. Should the amendments be approved by the Chamber of Deputies and subsequently by the Senate, the excise duty rates of the first semester of 2021 would be restored starting from 1st April 2022: approximately €0.13 per ml for nicotine-containing e-liquids and €0.08 per ml for those without nicotine.
France: Senator Laurence Cohen submitted a written parliamentary question to the Minister of Solidarity and Health asking how he intends to reduce the widespread use of e-cigarettes among teenagers in middle and high schools and raise awareness of vaping products.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: The Bill on the Control of Tobacco and Other Products for Smoking was not adopted on 17th February. The upper chamber of the parliament will move the discussion to another date. The bill regulates nicotine-containing e-cigarettes, proposes a ban on sales via vending machines and online, online advertising, and vaping in enclosed public places. Nicotine concentration is to be limited to 20 mg/ml and e-liquid refills to a maximum of 10 ml or cartridges of 2 ml.
China: The market administration of Changsha, a city of 8m people in Hunan province, has issued a notice alerting the public to last November’s national legislative changes. Tobacco operators and advertising agencies are reminded that it is illegal to advertise e-cigarettes online, in mass media, newspapers, radio or television. The notice says: “Advertisements promoting product names, trademarks, packaging, branding and similar features of electronic cigarettes must be immediately removed.”
Armenia: A technical regulation on the safety of nicotine-containing e-liquids came into force on 11th February. The regulation introduces certain product, labelling, storage and transportation requirements, as well as conformity assessment procedures. It sets a maximum nicotine content for e-liquids of 20 mg /ml.
Maryland: House Bill 1227 has been introduced. It would specify that a “tobacco product” includes certain products that are made of, derived from, or contain nicotine from any source, including synthetic nicotine.
Ireland: The Oireachtas (parliament) Health Committee is continuing its scrutiny of the Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products Bill by hearing the concerns of stakeholders, press reports. This week the Irish Vape Vendors Association (UVVA) stressed to the committee the role of vaping products in smoking cessation and criticised the threat of a flavour ban, which some medical societies have said should be included in the bill.
EU: The European Parliament voted yesterday, 16th February, by 652 votes to 15, with 27 abstentions, in favour of adopting the Special Committee on Beating Cancer (BECA) report on Strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer. The report is of crucial importance, as it makes recommendations related to traditional and novel tobacco and related products that are likely to be considered by the European Commission in the upcoming revision of the Tobacco Excise Directive and the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD). Last-minute attempts by Socialist and Democrat MEPs to introduce amendments that would have made harsher the recommendations on novel tobacco and related products were rejected in favour of a final text that resembles what was agreed by the BECA in December.
Thailand: The government has approved a draft National Tobacco Control Plan for 2022-2027. Despite recent advocacy efforts towards legalising e-cigarettes and novel tobacco products, no such move is foreseen in the the plan. In January the Digital Economy and Society Ministry reportedly established a working group tasked with exploring possible legalisation of e-cigarettes.
Mongolia: The parliamentary Standing Committee on Social Policy has held a discussion on tobacco use and the legal environment. Committee chair M Oyunchimeg said that drafting of amendments to the Law on Tobacco Control, which will align national regulation with the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is under way and should be finalised by June. “It is necessary to discuss the issue of legalising e-cigarettes, banning domestic smoking, and improving the regulation of licences for production, export and import,” Oyunchimeg said. She announced that the Excise Tax Law would also be amended to prevent reduce risk factors. Health minister Ts Erdembileg said that between 2017 and 2019 the volume of e-cigarettes imported into Mongolia had increased 68-fold.
Italy: The Customs and Monopoly Agency (ADM) is to appeal against the ruling by the Regional Administrative Tribunal (TAR) of Lazio that overturned part of an ADM circular of March 2021 which ordered the disposal of all e-liquids without tax stamps from 1st January 2022, media reports.
Iceland: A bill amending Law 87/2018 on electronic cigarettes and refills to introduce a ban on e-cigarette flavourings “that may appeal to children” will be introduced to the Althingi (parliament) on 25th February.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: The Bill on the Control of Tobacco and Other Products for Smoking will be discussed in the upper chamber of Parliament tomorrow, 17th February. The bill to regulate nicotine-containing e-cigarettes proposes a ban on sales via vending machines and online, online advertising, and vaping in enclosed public places. It would limit nicotine concentration to 20 mg/ml and e-liquid refills to a maximum of 10 ml or cartridges of 2 ml.
Ukraine: Bill 5719, adopted yesterday, 15th February, provides for a change in the mechanism of crediting and distribution of retail tax between local budgets as of 1st April 2022. This relates to an amendment to the Tax Code, adopted at the end of 2021, requiring producers or importers to declare maximum retail prices for tobacco products and e-liquids to the tax authority. The amendment also switched responsibility for paying retail tobacco and e-liquid tax from retailers to manufacturers and/or importers. The tax rate is 5% of the tax base, which is the value of the maximum retail prices of tobacco products and e-liquids, including VAT and excise tax.
US: Altria has announced that an administrative law judge has dismissed the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s claims against Altria and Juul Labs over the tobacco giant’s 2018 investment in the e-cigarette company, which allegedly violated anti-competition laws. This preliminary decision is subject to review by the FTC and may be appealed.
US: The US Senate has confirmed Robert Califf to be commissioner of the FDA by a 50-46 vote, as expected following the recent cloture vote.
Federal: The US Senate was set to vote today on Robert Califf's nomination as Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner. At the end of debate yesterday, a cloture motion was agreed to by a close vote (49-45, with six not voting). A cloture motion is invoked to end a debate quickly, limiting further consideration of a pending proposal to 30 hours.
Spain: The Ministry of Health has launched an awareness campaign against smoking and vaping outdoors in places commonly frequented by other people, such as beaches, parks and restaurant and bar terraces. Although it is not prohibited to smoke in such areas, the campaign aims to reduce passive smoking and vaping. The government revealed last year its intention of prohibiting smoking and vaping on terraces.
EU: The full European Parliament was considering today, 15th February, whether to approve the Special Committee on Beating Cancer (BECA) report in full or to propose further changes. A number of recommendations in the report could have a significant impact on the future of vaping in the EU – such as a proposal to ban e-liquid flavours that appeal to minors and non-smokers in the upcoming revision of the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD).
Finland: The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has set up a working group to consider ways of working towards ending the use of tobacco and nicotine in Finland. The aim is for no more than 5% of the population to be daily users of such products by 2030. Between now and January 2023 the working group will seek measures to promote quitting nicotine use, and consider raising the age limit for the sale of tobacco, nicotine e-liquids and nicotine-containing tobacco substitutes.