Malaysia vape ban sparks legal and financial fallout

KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia’s sudden restriction on nicotine vape products has escalated from a regulatory dispute into a wider legal and financial crisis, according to the Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA), which is urging the Ministry of Health to resolve the issue within days.

The dispute follows the government’s withdrawal of an appeal against a High Court ruling, a move that returned liquid nicotine to the Poisons List. As a result, lawful adult supply of vape products is now effectively barred under Act 366, despite the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852) having been designed to regulate such products. Members of Parliament have called on the government to refund an estimated RM354 million in excise duties collected from the vape industry.

Industry representatives say the uncertainty is already affecting insurers, banks, manufacturers and retailers, with some warning that continued taxation under Act 852 while sales remain prohibited under Act 366 could expose the government to future litigation.

Nancy Loucas, CAPHRA’s Executive Coordinator, said the situation reflected the risks of making nicotine policy through legal inconsistency rather than evidence-based regulation. “Malaysia now risks a hole in its own budget, a paralysed legitimate industry, and a black market with no reason to fill the gap responsibly,” she said.

Samsul Kamal of the Malaysian Organization of Vape Entity (MOVE), which represents more than 55,000 members, said the ban should concern public health officials as well as businesses. “This ‘accidental ban’ is a critical threat to public health and consumer safety,” Kamal said. “History and international evidence show that prohibition does not eliminate demand; it simply surrenders the market to illicit actors.”

Professor Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh of the Malaysian Society for Harm Reduction (MSHR), a confirmed speaker at October’s Asia Forum on Nicotine (AFN26) in Manila, said the crisis could have been avoided through earlier regulation. She said tighter controls, adult-only access and technology-based safeguards could help limit illicit markets and reduce underage use. CAPHRA is calling on the Malaysian government to align the Poisons Act with Act 852, allow regulated adult supply, and focus enforcement on drug-laced illicit products such as Piu Piu, which advocates say resemble the Kpod-adulterated vape issue seen in Singapore.