Vietnam's government has introduced legislation that would ban online tobacco sales, prohibit most retail tobacco displays, and strengthen enforcement of the country's existing ban on vaping products. The proposed changes would reach beyond complete devices to include components and e-liquids, making an already sweeping prohibition harder to work around.
Health Minister Đào Hồng Lan presented the amendments to the National Assembly on Oct. 21. The proposal revises Vietnam's Law on Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harms and would take effect July 1, 2027, if approved. It has not yet become law.
Vietnam's National Assembly adopted a resolution banning e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products in 2024. The new bill would more precisely define prohibited activities and products, including manufacturing, selling, storing, transporting, importing, and exporting banned products. The restrictions would also cover electronic devices, loose components, and liquids used to assemble vaping products.
The government says these details are needed to make the prohibition enforceable. When authorities encounter separate components or e-liquid rather than a finished vape, it can be difficult to determine which rules apply. A September legislative review described the effort to bring devices, parts, and ingredients explicitly within the law. The proposed framework also addresses nicotine pouches, shisha, and other products.
Conventional tobacco retailers would face additional restrictions. Tobacco sales through e-commerce websites and other electronic channels would be forbidden. Retailers would generally be prevented from displaying tobacco products in stores, a measure supporters describe as a way to reduce advertising and young people's exposure to tobacco. Sellers could also refuse transactions when customers cannot establish that they are old enough to purchase tobacco.
The National Assembly's Committee on Culture and Social Affairs wants cigarette-pack health warnings enlarged to cover at least 85 percent of both principal faces of packs and cartons. The committee has also suggested a timetable for increasing warning coverage to 100 percent. It also wants health warnings integrated into the packaging and unobstructed by tobacco tax stamps.
The committee's recommendations are not identical to the government's original proposal. The committee's Oct. 21 review supported the retail-display restriction and called for the larger warnings, but lawmakers still must decide the final wording.
The amendments would further restrict adults' access to tobacco and nicotine products in Vietnam, while strengthening enforcement of the vaping ban already adopted. If lawmakers approve the bill, the remaining questions will concern implementation and how authorities distinguish prohibited vaping supplies from other goods.
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