Australian Health Minister Mark Butler has unveiled the federal government’s timeline for new vaping laws that are set to sweep the country, dramatically reducing legal access to nicotine vaping products for vapers in Australia. The changes are set to kick in by the end of the month, starting with an import ban on disposable vapes that contain nicotine — a type of e-cigarette seen as particularly problematic in the country due in part to its popularity with the country’s youth.
Vapers in Australia are already required to have a prescription from a licensed Australian physician to purchase any nicotine vaping products. Since the Australian Government began requiring vapers in the country to have a prescription to access nicotine vaping products such as e-cigarettes and vape juice that contain nicotine, around 74,192 patients have used their prescriptions to access nicotine vaping products legally. Nicotine vaping products have been prescription-only in Australia since October 1, 2021.
With a valid prescription from a licensed doctor, Australians can legally purchase nicotine vaping products from overseas suppliers. To purchase nicotine vaping products from overseas suppliers, vapers in Australia typically turn to the Internet to order their vaping supplies from online vape shops like Vaper Empire. Using the Personal Importation Scheme, prescription holders can legally import nicotine vaping products into the country for personal use.
Mr. Butler told ABC News that the government plans to “put in place an import regulation” by the end of this year. He also indicated that it will likely arrive sometime in December.
“We’re going to put in place an import regulation in by the end of this year, probably next month, that bans the import of all disposable vapes and all other vapes that don’t comply with those standards.”
The Health Minister’s statements come in the wake of an announcement from the Australian Border Force (ABF) that it had seized 35 tons of vaping products suspected of or largely suspected of containing nicotine. After testing the 287 samples of seized vapes at government laboratories, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) found 85% of the vapes to contain nicotine. The entire haul is estimated to have a current street value of AU$11 million. The vapes were seized in Queensland, Western Australia, Victoria, and New South Wales.
Outlining the process through which vapes will remain legally accessible, Mr. Butler explained that “the only way” vapes will be legally accessible in Australia “is through a pharmacy on a prescription from a doctor or a nurse practitioner.” Convenience stores, vape shops, tobacconists, and other retailers in Australia will not be allowed to sell vapes once the new restrictions have been put in place.
“The only way you will be able to legally get a vape in this country is through a pharmacy on a prescription from a doctor or a nurse practitioner.”
