The territory of e-cigarette added another country again, and another country was allowed to sell e-cigarettes officially!
According to Ecigintelligence, Iceland passed a new law to regulate and tax e-cigarettes for the first time at the legislative session last week. Under the law, e-liquid and electronic cigarettes can be legally sold in Iceland, whether or not it contains nicotine. But advertising is prohibited.
Iceland will also impose taxes on electronic cigarettes at least 0.9% of its sales, and donate this tax to public health funds to monitor and study the health effects of e-cigarettes.
Notification system
Iceland adopts a notification system similar to that already implemented by the European Union. Manufacturers and importers of nicotine-containing products must notify Icelandic consumer agencies six months prior to listing. The company must also monitor and report the sales of e-cigarettes and vape oil. However, nicotine-free e-cigarette products can continue to be sold in Iceland without the need of performing this notification process.
Health warning
E-cigarettes sold in Iceland must comply with legal sales conditions. The e-cigarette must have a health warning about the use of the product and mustn’t use pictures or text that attract children. The product must be child-proof, non-leaking and refillable. E-cigarette products cannot add “healthy” additives such as vitamins, nor can they contain caffeine and other additives related to energy or vitality.
It is reported that originally the law copied the European Union’s Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) directly but later revised it. The nicotine content limit is 20 mg/ml now, but the restrictions on the size and tank size of e-cigarettes and e-liquids are not included in the final text of the law, and a regulatory and monitoring method will be implemented later.
Charge the manufacturer
The act states that the Icelandic government can charge manufacturers or importers for the required product testing fees and the cost of processing the notified products. In addition, all e-cigarettes are prohibited from advertising, and e-cigarettes cannot be placed on display stands, except in e-cigarette stores.
The ban also includes the prohibition of sales to children under the age of 18 and the prohibition of sales where children gather or provide health services. The ban on the use of public places is largely similar to traditional cigarettes.
Execution date
The law will come into force on March 1, 2019 (which has been postponed from the initial implementation date of December 1, 2018). Manufacturers and importers of nicotine-containing e-cigarette products can begin to inform the Icelandic consumer agency form September 1, 2018, so as to release the products on the market legally; nicotine-free e-cigarette products can continue to be sold in Iceland without the need of enforcing the terms.
Penalties include fines and imprisonment for up to two years for those who commit seriously or violate the law repeatedly.
The Icelandic Parliament estimates that the bill will only cost 71,000 euros to meet its regulatory obligations. The propaganda task for this law is obviously very heavy – Icelandic parliamentarians say they have received a lot of e-mails to protest against e-cigarette legislation, and many members have to set filters on their mailboxes to filter out these e-mails.
Iceland followed the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) when drafting e-cigarette regulatory laws, but its regulation is more moderate than the European Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) jurisdiction.
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