China Achieves Fundamental Transformation in E-cigarette Industry's Regulation

Today, on the 22nd, it was announced at a press conference held by the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau that China's electronic cigarette market has undergone a fundamental transformation from unregulated to rule of law, from disorderly to orderly, and from wild growth to strict management. The electronic cigarette industry is now on the path to legalization and standardization in terms of governance.

According to reports, since the electronic cigarette industry entered regularized regulation on October 1, 2022, a total of 1,848 administrative punishment cases related to all types of electronic cigarettes have been investigated and dealt with nationwide. Additionally, 398 criminal cases related to electronic cigarettes have been jointly investigated and handled with the public security department, resulting in the seizure of 25 counterfeit production sites and 36 warehouses with a total involved amount of approximately 2.1 billion yuan and the arrest of 1,323 individuals. In particular, to protect the physical and mental health of minors, special operations were organized to crack down on non-standard flavored electronic cigarettes disguised as milk tea cups, cola cans, and other items. A total of 775 cases have been investigated with an involved amount of 674 million yuan.

The Director of the Office of the Electronic Cigarette Supervision and Management Leading Group of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, Yuan Chao, stated that a "1+2+N" electronic cigarette regulatory system has been preliminarily formed, which is based on the "Tobacco Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China" and its implementation regulations as the fundamental, the "Electronic Cigarette Management Measures" and the national standards for electronic cigarettes as the basis, and supported by multiple policy documents. This establishes a legal and evidence-based regulatory foundation for electronic cigarette supervision work.

In addition, with China's electronic cigarette industry showing a clear external-oriented characteristic and the vast majority of domestically produced electronic cigarettes being sold overseas, a spokesperson for the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration said they will enforce relevant companies to fully comply with regulatory policies. They require that the packaging and domestic logistics of exported electronic cigarette products must meet relevant regulations, and the nicotine and aerosol used in duty-free imported electronic cigarettes and exported electronic cigarette products must be promptly recorded on the electronic cigarette management platform.