International - TobaccoIntelligence

10th December 2024: Thailand: A parliamentary committee is finalising its report on measures to regulate e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs) in an effort to protect youth, following discussions that started in September 2023, press reports. The committee, comprising 35 members from government agencies, academics, medical representatives and stakeholders, has reviewed three policy options: maintaining the ban on e-cigarettes and HTPs with increased enforcement, banning e-cigarettes while regulating HTPs, or regulating both products. The final report will incorporate diverse perspectives, including those of e-cigarette users, to ensure balanced and comprehensive recommendations. The release date of the report is unclear, and e-cigarettes and HTPs remain banned in the country.
9th December 2024: 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, specifically targeting the use of e-cigarettes, vapes, and heated tobacco products among Indian youth. Yadav, a BJP leader from Uttar Pradesh, highlighted issues surrounding the rising prevalence of these products, praising civil society initiatives like Mothers Against Vaping. Similarly, BJP national spokesperson Poonawala highlighted the need for urgent measures to stop the spread of such products. These statements reflect a strong stance by the incumbent party against novel nicotine devices and underline the ruling party's commitment to enforcing the 2019 vaping ban to safeguard public health.
5th December 2024: 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 December 2024. The accompanying Tax-Free Limit Table for Items in Inbound Luggage specifies the tax-free limits for tobacco products: regular travellers are allowed 400 cigarettes (including heated tobacco consumables). Hong Kong or Macau travellers are limited to 200 cigarettes (including heated tobacco consumables). Frequent cross-border travellers (those who enter the country more than once within 15 days) may bring 40 cigarettes (including heated tobacco consumables), limited to once daily.
5th December 2024: 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 devices. The import and sale of these products were already banned through a decree introduced by former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador in May 2022. However, some companies that appealed at court were given permission to sell them, as the ban was considered unconstitutional. With this amendment, the government aims to prevent any of these companies from selling vaping products.
4th December 2024: Indonesia: Cashtry Meher, a health practitioner and member of the National Democratic Party (NasDem), which currently holds 69 seats in the parliament, has advocated for a pragmatic approach to harm reduction in making policies to curb the surge of non-communicable diseases, press reports. Meher has suggested that providing lower-risk alternative tobacco and nicotine products could result in a step towards reducing smoking habits in the country.
3rd December 2024: India: The Group of Ministers (GoM) on Goods and Services Tax (GST) has proposed raising the GST on tobacco products from 28% to 35%. Currently, tobacco products are taxed at 28% GST – except for tobacco leaves, which are taxed at 5% under a special mechanism. In addition, an extra tax (compensation cess) is already applied to tobacco products on top of the 28%. The GoM is a committee of state-level ministers formed by the GST Council to focus on specific GST-related issues. Its role is to study these issues and recommend changes, but it does not have the power to make final decisions. The final authority on GST policies rests with the GST Council.
3rd December 2024: Philippines: Senator Sherwin Gatchalian from the majority bloc Nationalist People’s Coalition party has filed Senate Resolution 1243, calling for an investigation into revenue erosion due to the smuggling of excisable items, such as vapes and tobacco products. Citing a Department of Finance report, the senator showed the government is losing PHP52bn (€844m) annually in potential revenue from the smuggling of vape and tobacco products alone.
3rd December 2024: Taiwan: The application and review status for the health risk assessment of heated tobacco products (HTPs) published by the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MHW) shows that no HTPs have been approved so far. The MHW’s director-general Wu Chao-chun stated that while health risk assessments are progressing as planned and results were initially expected by the end of the year, applicants are still submitting supplementary documents – with the shortest remaining processing time just over a month. Once all documents are submitted, the MHW will complete discussions within the given timeframe and announce the review outcomes, which may result in either approval or rejection, press reports.
2nd December 2024: Global: The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) on the international plastics treaty, which was supposed to be the last one, was held in Busan, South Korea, and closed yesterday, 1st December. The main goal was to finalise the text of an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution. During the previous session of INC-4 in Ottawa, Canada, several countries urged for a ban on cigarette filters to be included in the treaty – a call that was also supported by the World Health Organization. Action on Smoking & Health (ASH) US, an independent public health charity, reported that yesterday it was announced that consensus on the text was not reached and that negotiations would continue at a subsequent session, the date of which will be announced later. A revised draft text was also released, with cigarette filters made of plastic remaining in an optional annex.
2nd December 2024: Vietnam: The National Assembly unanimously agreed to ban the production, trading, import, storage, transportation, and use of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco from 2025. It has requested that the government implement the ban and raise awareness about the harmful effects of products, especially among young people.
29th November 2024: Global: The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) on the international plastics treaty is currently taking place in Busan, South Korea, and will run until 1st December. The main goal is to finalise the text of an international legally binding instrument on plastics pollution. During the previous session of INC-4 in Ottawa, Canada, several countries urged for a ban on cigarette filters to be included in the treaty – a call that was also supported by the World Health Organization.
27th November 2024: New Zealand: The minister of health has published an action plan “Getting to Smokefree 2025: The final push to achieve the Smokefree 2025 goal”, which sets a target of a smoking prevalence of less than 5% for all population groups (with a smoking rate now of 6.9% in 2023/24). The document states that there are other products on the market aside from vapes that could help achieve the smoke-free goals, and the government will work to determine which products could be introduced. The expansion option is expected to take place between January and March 2025. Although not specifically mentioned, this could potentially mean the legalisation of oral products, including nicotine pouches.

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