Key Points
- UK Vaping Products Duty starts on October 1 at £2.20 per 10ml, or £0.22 per ml, and applies to nicotine and nicotine-free vaping liquids.
- DOJO now offers a 6ml BLAST7K Fresh below its 10ml BLAST10K Fresh, while PIXL sells both a 12ml PIXL 8000 and a 6ml PIXL 5K.
- Ninja Vapes says Hayati is preparing a 7ml 4K alongside its existing 12ml 6K, with expected device compatibility.
- Lower-capacity tiers are emerging, but the shift is not market-wide; ELUX Legend 8000 continues to use a 12ml configuration.
2Firsts
September 23, 2026
According to an article by Ninja Vapes published by Lancashire Business View on September 21, some vape brands are adding products with lower e-liquid capacity and correspondingly lower advertised puff counts ahead of the October 1 introduction of the UK's Vaping Products Duty.
Product information reviewed by 2Firsts shows DOJO, PIXL and Hayati have introduced, or been reported to be preparing, lower-capacity SKUs alongside larger products within the same brand portfolios.
HM Revenue & Customs will impose Vaping Products Duty at a flat rate of £2.20 per 10ml of vaping liquid, equivalent to £0.22 per ml, from October 1, regardless of whether the liquid contains nicotine.
Brands Add Lower-Capacity Tiers
DOJO launched BLAST7K Fresh in the UK on September 17 with a 6ml prefilled refill container and an initially empty 2ml pod, rated at up to 7,000 puffs.
BLAST10K Fresh, by comparison, is configured with 10ml of vaping liquid and carries a higher advertised puff count.
At HMRC's published rate, 6ml corresponds to about £1.32 in VPD, compared with £2.20 for 10ml, a theoretical difference of £0.88 per unit.
BLAST7K Fresh also retains compatibility within DOJO's existing BLAST pod ecosystem. DOJO has not stated that the 6ml format was developed in response to VPD.
PIXL is also offering different capacity tiers in the UK.
The PIXL 8000 uses a 2ml prefilled pod plus a 10ml refill container, giving 12ml of total e-liquid and an advertised capacity of up to about 8,000 puffs.
The PIXL 5K uses a 2ml prefilled pod plus a 4ml refill container, for 6ml in total and up to about 5,000 advertised puffs.
Ninja Vapes lists the PIXL 5K refill at 6ml, while multiple UK retailers list the PIXL 8000 at 12ml.
At the incoming duty rate, 12ml corresponds to approximately £2.64 in VPD, compared with £1.32 for 6ml.
Public product information does not establish that the PIXL 5K is a direct replacement for the 8000 or that its capacity was specifically designed around VPD.
Retailer Says Hayati Is Preparing a 7ml Option
Ninja Vapes founder Mohmed Patel said the existing Hayati 6K contains 12ml of e-liquid and is advertised at around 6,000 puffs.
He said a forthcoming Hayati 4K is expected to contain 7ml and deliver approximately 5,000 advertised puffs.
Patel also said the new 4K pods are expected to remain compatible with existing Hayati 6K devices, allowing consumers to choose between different capacity tiers without changing hardware.
At the VPD rate, 7ml corresponds to about £1.54 in duty, compared with £2.64 for 12ml, a theoretical difference of about £1.10.
Ninja Vapes estimates that if the full duty and associated VAT effect were passed through to consumers, the potential retail increase would be approximately £1.85 for 7ml and £3.17 for 12ml.
Those figures are retailer estimates rather than prices set by HMRC.
Hayati has not publicly confirmed the final 4K specifications or stated that the product was developed in response to VPD.
Capacity Differences Reach 40% to 50%
Across the three brand portfolios, the lower-capacity products contain roughly 40% to 50% less e-liquid than the compared higher-capacity products.
| Brand | Higher-Capacity Product | Lower-Capacity Product | Capacity Change | Theoretical VPD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOJO | BLAST10K Fresh: 10ml | BLAST7K Fresh: 6ml | -40% | £2.20 → £1.32 |
| PIXL | PIXL 8000: 12ml | PIXL 5K: 6ml | -50% | £2.64 → £1.32 |
| Hayati | 6K: 12ml | 4K: about 7ml | -41.7% | £2.64 → £1.54 |
Note: Duty figures are calculated using HMRC's published £0.22-per-ml rate and exclude VAT and other cost changes. Hayati 4K specifications are based on information from Ninja Vapes.
VPD is calculated on e-liquid volume rather than retail price, advertised puff count or nicotine concentration.
That creates different absolute excise liabilities for products within the same brand depending on how much e-liquid they contain.
The pattern is not universal across the UK market.
Ninja Vapes currently lists the ELUX Legend 8000 with a 2ml pod plus a 10ml refill container, for 12ml of e-liquid and up to about 8,000 advertised puffs. Its replacement pod retains the same 2ml-plus-10ml configuration.
Legacy Stock Can Remain on Sale Until March 2027
The UK retail market will also go through a six-month stock transition after VPD takes effect.
From October 1, vaping products manufactured in or imported into the UK for the UK market must be duty-paid and carry a Vaping Duty Stamp, subject to duty-suspension arrangements.
Eligible unstamped products manufactured or imported before October 1 can continue to be bought, stored and sold until March 31, 2027.
From April 1, 2027, all vaping products sold or supplied in the UK outside duty-suspension arrangements must carry a valid duty stamp.
HMRC, citing UK Treasury analysis, says VPD is expected to raise more than £550 million a year by 2030-31.
The government will also apply a one-off increase to tobacco duties from October 1 to preserve the price differential between vaping and tobacco products.
For several months, pre-duty legacy stock, newly duty-liable products and different e-liquid-capacity tiers are therefore set to coexist across UK retail channels.
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