Regarding IQOS, Ploom, Glo, Revo and other Heat not burn tobacco products, what is the attitude of the China Tobacco Monopoly Bureau?
Heat not burn cigarettes is a kind of new type of tobacco product. It has the characteristics of “heating cut tobacco or tobacco extract instead of burning cut tobacco”. Heating equipment and “smoke” are required for smoking. Through the special heating source of the device, the “smoke bomb” is heated to remove the nicotine and flavoring substances from the smoke, thus the smoke produced to meet the needs of the smoker.
Image from: vaping360.com
At present, the most common Heat not burn cigarettes include cigarette Philip Morris International iQos, Japan Tobacco Ploom, British-American Tobacco Glo, and American Reynolds Tobacco Revo.
In 2017, the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau issued the “Notice on the Implementation of the Identification and Inspection of New Cigarette Products”, and four types of new tobacco products including iQOS, Glo, Ploom and Revo are included in the tobacco identification test catalog. Also in 2017, the China Tobacco Quality Supervision and Inspection Center conducted a differential test on the components of the iQOS “smoke” sample sent by the relevant units, Among them, nicotine, n-nitrosamine specific to four kinds of tobacco, and the proportion range of right nicotine-optically active isomers consistent with general tobacco and tobacco products, and the secondary alkaloid species consistent with general tobacco and tobacco products were detected. Finally, the “smoke bomb” sample was determined to contain characteristic components of tobacco, and the filler was made from tobacco leaves. Therefore, the iQOS cartridge belongs to tobacco products and it belongs to the regulatory object of the Tobacco Monopoly Law.
| Serial number | 1 | Representative picture | |
| Cigarette brand | Malboro/Heets/Parliament |  |
 |
| Smoking brand | iQOS | ||
| Product nature | Typical cigarette | ||
| Material properties | Cut tobacco (made of tobacco sheets) | ||
| Raw material form | Silk strip |  |
 |
| Packaging Materials | Cigarette paper | ||
| Package shape | Cylindrical | ||
| heating method | Inner core electric heating | ||
| Intake route | Oral inhalation | ||
Philip Morris International IQOS
| Serial number | 2 | Representative picture | |
| Cigarette brand | Kent |  |
 |
| Smoking brand | iQOS | ||
| Product nature | Typical cigarette | ||
| Material properties | Cut tobacco (made of tobacco sheets) | ||
| Raw material form | Silk strip |  |
 |
| Packaging Materials | Cigarette paper | ||
| Package shape | Cylindrical | ||
| heating method | Peripheral electric heating | ||
| Intake route | Oral inhalation | ||
British-American Tobacco Glo
| Serial number | 3 | Representative picture | |
| Cigarette brand | Revo/Core |  |
 |
| Smoking brand | Smokeless (carbon rod) | ||
| Product nature | Typical cigarette | ||
| Material properties | Cut tobacco (made of tobacco sheets) | ||
| Raw material form | Silk strip |  |
|
| Packaging Materials | Cigarette paper | ||
| Package shape | Cylindrical | ||
| heating method | Charcoal heating | ||
| Intake route | Oral inhalation | ||
American Reynolds Tobacco Revo
| Serial number | 4 | Representative picture | |
| Cigarette brand | Ploom |  |
 |
| Smoking brand | Ploom | ||
| Product nature | Atypical cigarette | ||
| Material properties | Cut tobacco (made of tobacco) | ||
| Raw material form | Last shape |  |
 |
| Packaging Materials | Aluminum alloy | ||
| Package shape | Can | ||
| heating method | Peripheral electric heating | ||
| Intake route | Oral inhalation | ||
Japanese Tobacco Ploom
According to the “Tobacco Monopoly Law”, the term “tobacco monopoly” as used in this Law refers to cigarettes, cigars, cut tobacco, re-cured tobacco leaves, tobacco leaves, cigarette paper, filter rods, tobacco tows, and tobacco-specific machinery. Cigarettes, cigars, cut tobacco, and re-roasted tobacco are collectively referred to as tobacco products.
According to the “Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate on Several Issues Concerning the Specific Application of Laws in Handling Criminal Cases of Illegal Production and Sale of Tobacco Monopoly Products”, Violation of the China Tobacco Monopoly Management Laws and Regulations, without the permission of the tobacco monopoly administrative department, no tobacco Licenses for monopoly production enterprises, tobacco monopoly wholesale enterprises licenses, tobacco monopoly retail licenses, etc., operating tobacco monopoly products illegally, if the circumstances are serious, in accordance with the provisions of Article 225 of the Criminal Law, conviction and punishment for illegal business operations.
In summary, since Heat not burn cigarette is a tobacco product, it is illegal to operate without permission. The number of operating cigarettes sold illegally to 50,000 yuan is a “serious situation” and constitutes an offense of illegal business. Anyone who purchases from abroad illegally for sale and if the crime is characteristic of smuggling ordinary goods and articles, the crime of smuggling ordinary goods and articles may be determined.
In addition, operating counterfeit heat not burn cigarettes, if the circumstances are serious, it is suspected of selling counterfeit products or selling counterfeit registered trademarks. If the perpetrator commits crimes of illegal production and selling tobacco monopoly commodities, and at the same time he also constitutes the crime of producing or selling fake and inferior products, the crime of infringing intellectual property rights and the crime of illegal business operations, he shall be convicted and punished according to the provisions of heavier punishment.
