LATEST ALERTS
Philippines: A group of House leaders has proposed a bill to temporarily suspend the annual increase of 5% in tobacco excise taxes for
Brazil: The Federal Highway Police (PRF) confiscated 623,437 vape products on federal highways nationwide in 2024. This marks a 150% rise from the previous year,
Uzbekistan: The Committee on Labour, Healthcare and Social Affairs of the lower chamber of the parliament has held a working group meeting to discuss
Indonesia: The Ministry of Health has said that the draft regulations potentially introducing plain packaging for all tobacco and nicotine products are still being finalised, press
Egypt: The Ministry of Health plans to establish a committee to ensure the enforcement of the Prevention of Smoking Law. This law prohibits smoking,
Philippines: The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has suspended 14 manufacturers and importers of vaping products for failing to meet packaging requirements. A preliminary
Thailand: On 26th December 2024, the chairman of Thailand’s Special Committee on E-Cigarette Control, presented a comprehensive report to the Thai parliament following
Saudi Arabia: The Ministry of Municipalities and Housing has launched a public consultation, running until 28th January, on additional requirements for tobacco shops.
Philippines: The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has reminded importers and manufacturers of vaping products and heated tobacco products to register for the Philippine Standard
Chile: The Public Health Institute (ISP) has issued a warning about the harmful effects of e-cigarettes to health. The warning mainly references the
New Zealand: The Asthma and Respiratory Foundation and the Cancer Society New Zealand have criticised a government scheme that offers free vaping kits to
Philippines: The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has confirmed a decrease in excise tax collection from 2021 to 2024 that led to a
Uzbekistan: At a meeting of the lower chamber of the parliament, health minister Asilbek Khudayarov announced that a bill aimed at banning the
Saudi Arabia: The Saudi Health Council published a warning on its official X account last week about short-term effects from the use of e-cigarettes. The
Bangladesh: The government has banned the import of e-cigarettes and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), with immediate effect. The ban follows a government decision to
Bangladesh: Bangladesh Electronic Nicotine Delivery System Traders Association (Bendsta) and Consumers Rights of Sales Alternatives (Corsa) have proposed a new regulatory framework. Bendsta
Vietnam: As of 1st January, the sale and import of “electronic cigarettes”, including related equipment and accessories, are prohibited, according to resolution 17/TCHQ-GSQL. In
Armenia: In response to complaints about the frequent disregard for the ban on smoking and vaping in various locations, the Ministry of Health
Uzbekistan: Today, at a meeting of the lower chamber of the parliament, a bill aimed at banning the distribution of certain types of tobacco
Kyrgyzstan: According to the Tax Code, the tax rate for nicotine e-liquids in cartridges, reservoirs and other containers will increase from KGS15 ($0.17)
Armenia: The Tax Code will increase the tax rate for e-liquid cartridges – regardless of nicotine content – including disposable e-cigarettes, from AMD65
Armenia: In October 2024, the government adopted a resolution according to which traceability control marks would apply to e-cigarettes. Products produced in Armenia
Canada: In October, the minister of finance published amendments to the Excise Duties on Vaping Products Regulations, formalising the entry of New Brunswick,
Morocco: Following the approval of the budget law for the year 2025, starting 1st January 2025, disposable e-cigarettes will be subject to an
Indonesia: The minimum retail price of electronic cigarettes will increase from 1st January 2025, following the publication of Ministry of Finance regulation 96
New Zealand: On 16th December 2024, The Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Amendment Bill received royal assent. As of 17th December, penalties for
Indonesia: The Ministry of Finance has issued regulation 96 of 2024, to take effect on 1st January 2025, press reports. The regulation sets
Vietnam: The National Assembly has issued resolution 173/2024/QH15 in which it formally asks the government to ban the production, trading, import, storage, transport and use
Bangladesh: The interim government has decided to add e-cigarettes and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) to the list of prohibited items under the Import
New Zealand: The Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Amendment Bill was adopted in the third and final reading. The main changes expected are zoning restrictions for
Indonesia: Merrijantij Punguan Pintaria, director of Beverages, Tobacco Products and Refreshment Materials within the Ministry of Industry, said that the draft regulations introducing
Mexico: Yesterday (11th December), the Senate passed an amendment to the constitution that expressly bans the manufacture, distribution and sale of vaping products
Brazil: The Department of Consumer Protection and Defence (Procon) of the state of Goiás has asked the social media company Facebook to provide information about illegal
Indonesia: Former director of research policy and cooperation at the World Health Organization (WHO) Tikki Pangestu said that, in order to reduce the
Thailand: A parliamentary committee is finalising its report on measures to regulate e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs) in an effort to protect
Philippines: Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) commissioner Romeo Lumagui said in a social media post that online vape sellers still need to pay the
Philippines: The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has reacted to social media posts by two vape companies, Flare and Shft, in which they
Philippines: Public health advocacy group HealthJustice has called for a total ban on e-cigarettes. After Vietnam's National Assembly approved a resolution to ban e-cigarettes from
India: Two members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, the ruling party), Shalini Yadav and Shehzad Poonawala, have called for stricter enforcement of anti-tobacco laws,
Taiwan: Today, the Ministry of Health and Welfare released the findings of the 2023 Youth Smoking Behavior Survey. The survey reported a 4.8%
China: The State Council Customs Tariff Commission recently issued the Methods for Levying Customs Duties, Value-Added Tax, and Consumption Tax on Imported Goods, effective 1st
Mexico: The Chamber of Representatives has passed an amendment to the constitution that expressly bans the manufacture, distribution and sale of vaping products and heating
Philippines: According to a social media post by Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) commissioner Romeo D Lumagui Jr., the BIR has seized more
Indonesia: Cashtry Meher, a health practitioner and member of the National Democratic Party (NasDem), which currently holds 69 seats in the parliament, has
Philippines: Senator Sherwin Gatchalian from the majority bloc Nationalist People’s Coalition party has filed Senate Resolution 1243, calling for an investigation into revenue
Vietnam: The National Assembly unanimously agreed to ban the production, trading, import, storage, transportation, and use of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco from 2025.
Jordan: The director general of the Anti-Smuggling Directorate of Jordan Customs, Jalal Al-Qudah, told the press that the agency’s efforts resulted in the
Hong Kong: The Hong Kong Council on Smoking and Health, a government-funded statutory body, has called for banning e-cigarette possession due to their
New Zealand: The minister of health has published an action plan “Getting to Smokefree 2025: The final push to achieve the Smokefree 2025
