With new legislative changes coming into effect from December 21st, there will be some changes to disposable vape devices, as we have come to know them, from this date going forward. 

So what are these changes, and how will they affect you? 

A thorough summary of the regulation changes can be found here.

Are Disposable Vapes Being Banned?
Recently we've been asked if Disposable Vapes are being banned from sale in New Zealand. No, disposable vapes are not being banned in NZ. Single-Use and ready-to-use vape products will still be available over the counter at VAPELAB!

They will, however, need to meet a few regulatory requirements to be fit for sale from December 21st. These include;

• Built-in Child Safety Mechanism
• Fully-removable battery 
• Nicotine Limit of 20mg/mL
• Updated Flavour Names, from a pre-determined list of Government approved names

Child Safety Mechanism?
To be fit for sale in New Zealand, Single-Use vapes will require a mechanism or a combination of mechanisms, to activate and deactivate the device for use. These requirements include;

• At least 2 simultaneous, or 5 sequential, operations to activate the device for vaping. 
• The device must automatically deactivate no more than 10 minutes after vaping has stopped.

In short, this means that Single Use vapes will require you to complete a series of actions, such as 5 quick button presses, in order to activate the device for vaping.

After ten minutes, the device will automatically deactivate before requiring that same series of actions to reactivate.

Removable Battery?
From December 21st, Single-Use vapes will require a fully-removable battery. The regulations define a removable battery as;

• A battery that can be easily removed, inspected and replaced without damaging the battery or the device, using no more than a screwdriver. The device itself does not qualify as a battery.

This change will likely not affect the way vapers use their device, but will help to address the amount of inaccessible Lithium Ion batteries being cast into landfills. With this change, we encourage vapers to remove their batteries and recycle them through the appropriate channels once their single-use device is depleted of e-liquid.

New Nicotine Limits
The most notable change to Single-Use vapes from the December 21st cutoff is the newly defined nicotine limit of 20mg/mL. 

This ultimately means that high-strength disposable vapes will no longer be available in a ready-to-use format. Vapers wanting nicotine strengths higher than 20mg/mL will still be able to continue their quit-smoking journey with a reusable device.

Updated Flavour Names
This change will largely affect the packaging of vape products, rather than the flavour of the product itself. To make vaping less appealing to younger generations, the name of all vaping products must be chosen from a select list of names specified by the Ministry of Health. 

It’s important to note that the flavour of the product itself is not changing. It is only the name of the flavour that is changing. Some real-world examples of what this will look like include;

• Solo Gummies ➞ Solo Sweet
• DRAGBAR B5000 Grape Ice ➞ DRAGBAR ICZ 5000 Grape 
• Bud Blue Razz ➞ Bud Blueberry Raspberry

If you have any enquiries or worries about these incoming regulatory changes and how they might affect your favourite vape products, don’t hesitate to reach out! Our amazing team are kept current with the latest regulation changes and product updates, and are at the ready to assist with any vape-related questions you may have!

Until next time!
VAPELAB

Frequently Asked Questions:

Are disposable vapes being banned in New Zealand?
No, disposable vapes will still be available for sale in New Zealand.

When are Disposable Vapes being banned in New Zealand?
Disposable vapes are not being banned.

What is happening to disposable vapes in New Zealand?
Disposable vapes are undergoing regulatory changes to make vaping less appealing to a younger audience.

When are these changes happening to Disposable Vapes?
The regulation changes will take effect from 21st December 2023.

What is the biggest change to Disposable Vapes?
The most notable change is the new nicotine limit. The new nicotine limit has been set to 20mg/mL. 

Who do the regulation changes affect most?
Vapers who are using Disposable Vapes at nicotine strengths higher than 20mg (2%) and wish to continue vaping strengths higher than 2% may want to consider switching to a reusable vape device.

The new Child Safety Mechanisms that single-use devices will have can be fiddly, and vapers struggling with fine motor skills may have issues activating these new single-use devices.