Retailers Urged to Prepare for New Tobacco, Vape And Nicotine Product Rules
Retailers selling tobacco, vaping, nicotine or herbal smoking products are being urged to prepare now for significant regulatory changes coming into force on 29 October 2026, as part of the next phase of changes under the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026.
From 29 October 2026, it will be illegal to:
Sell nicotine products and herbal smoking products to anyone under the age of 18. This is in line with existing age of sale rules for tobacco and vaping products and comes ahead of further changes in January 2027 to create a rising age of sale for tobacco products.
Buy or attempt to buy these products on behalf of someone under 18. Retailers are expected to refuse sales where they suspect proxy purchasing is taking place.
New restrictions on free distribution and nominal pricing will prohibit the use of promotional incentives. Retailers will no longer be permitted to give away vaping or nicotine products free of charge, offer substantial promotional discounts, or distribute heavily discounted or free coupons intended to encourage sales, replicating existing rules for tobacco products and cigarette papers.
Retailers should also be aware of changes to registration requirements for businesses selling herbal smoking products or nicotine products.
From 29 October 2026, businesses will be able to register to sell these products, bringing them into the same retail registration framework as tobacco and vaping retailers. They will have until 29 April 2027 to do so, before offences related to registration in respect of herbal smoking and nicotine products come into force.
Retailers who are already registered to sell tobacco and/or vaping products will also need to to ensure their registration includes nicotine products and/or herbal smoking products if they plan to continue to sell these products after 29 October 2026. Existing registrations will not cover retailers selling these products. The corresponding enforcement regime will apply to all registered product categories.
To support enforcement, Scotland’s existing fixed penalty notice scheme for tobacco and vaping offences will be widened to cover nicotine and herbal smoking product related offences, as well as additional offences.
Businesses are encouraged to review their age-verification procedures, staff training and registration details now to ensure they are fully compliant ahead of the October coming into force.
Detailed guidance to support implementation has been published and can be found in the following links:
Selling tobacco, herbal smoking products and cigarette papers:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/selling-tobacco-herbal-smoking-products-and-cigarette-papersSelling vaping and nicotine products:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/selling-vaping-and-nicotine-productsTobacco, vaping and nicotine products – fixed penalty notices:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tobacco-vaping-and-nicotine-products-fixed-penalty-noticesTobacco and vaping product vending machine ban:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tobacco-and-vaping-product-vending-machine-ban.
