Vaping Products Duty: A UK Retailer Guide to Duty Stamps and Key Dates
Vaping Products Duty and vaping duty stamps started on 1 October 2026. This guide sets out what has changed for UK vape shops, convenience stores and online retailers, what to check when you buy stock, and how to plan for the end of the unstamped-stock grace period on 31 March 2027.
It is written for trade customers and summarises HMRC's published guidance in plain English. HMRC's own pages remain the official source, and links to them are listed at the end of this guide.
Last updated: . Based on HMRC guidance updated 7 October 2026.
Key Dates for UK Vape Retailers
The changes are phased. The date that matters most for retailers is 31 March 2027 — the last day you can sell eligible unstamped stock.
Vaping Products Duty applies at £2.20 per 10ml. Liable products released onto the UK market must carry a vaping duty stamp.
Approved manufacturers can no longer buy transitional stamps (stamps without the digital code).
Transitional stamps must not be applied to products from this date. New stamps carry the digital code.
Last day to sell unstamped stock that was produced or imported before 1 October 2026.
All vaping products outside duty suspension must carry a stamp. Unstamped goods can be seized and penalties apply.
How Vaping Products Duty Works
Vaping Products Duty is an excise duty on vaping liquid. It is a flat rate of £2.20 per 10ml — 22p per millilitre — whatever the nicotine strength, and it applies to nicotine-free liquid too. It covers liquid in bottles, cartridges and pods.
The duty is paid by the business that manufactures or imports the product, or releases it from duty suspension — not by the retailer. In practice, the cost is built into the price of duty-paid stock as it moves down the supply chain. VAT continues to apply as normal.
| Product example | Liquid | Duty (before VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| Single 2ml prefilled pod | 2ml | £0.44 |
| Pack of 5 × 2ml prefilled pods | 10ml | £2.20 |
| 10ml nic salt or nicotine e-liquid | 10ml | £2.20 |
| 10ml nic shot | 10ml | £2.20 |
| 50ml shortfill (nicotine-free) | 50ml | £11.00 |
| 100ml shortfill (nicotine-free) | 100ml | £22.00 |
| Trade pack of 10 × 10ml nic salts | 100ml | £22.00 |
What a Vaping Duty Stamp Looks Like
The physical stamp
- Rectangular, 42mm long and 18mm wide, printed on secure paper with multiple security features.
- Fixed to the outermost retail packaging — the box, or the bottle if it is sold without a box.
- Seals the packaging, so it cannot be opened without damaging the packaging or the stamp.
- Cannot be reused once applied.
Digital and transitional stamps
Digital stamps carry a scannable data matrix code used to authenticate products and trace them through the supply chain.
Transitional stamps have the same size and physical security features but no digital code. They could only be bought until 30 November 2026 and cannot be applied from 1 January 2027.
Both types show that duty has been accounted for.
Do Retailers Need to Register with HMRC?
No — not if you only sell duty-paid products. Retailers and wholesalers who only buy and sell duty-paid vaping products do not need HMRC approval for Vaping Products Duty or the Vaping Duty Stamps Scheme.
You may need approval if your business also manufactures vaping liquid, imports vaping products, stores products under duty suspension, applies duty stamps, or represents an overseas manufacturer. If you are not sure, use HMRC's checker linked in the sources section below.
What to Check When You Buy Stock
From 1 October 2026, check that new stock carries a vaping duty stamp where one is needed. HMRC asks retailers to take particular care if a supplier offers unstamped products after that date.
- The product carries a vaping duty stamp where one is required.
- The stamp is on the outermost retail packaging and seals it.
- You know where the products came from.
- If products are unstamped, you have evidence they were produced or imported before 1 October 2026.
- The supplier is credible and provides normal commercial records — invoices and delivery notes.
If anything looks wrong, unclear or inconsistent, resolve it before you buy or sell. If you cannot satisfy yourself that the stock is legitimate, do not buy, supply or sell it.
Grace period: 1 October 2026 – 31 March 2027
Clearing Unstamped Stock Before 31 March 2027
You can keep selling unstamped vaping products until 31 March 2027, as long as they were produced or imported before 1 October 2026. From 1 April 2027 you must not sell or hold them. HMRC can seize unstamped goods, charge penalties and, in the most serious cases, prosecute — and it can also remove legitimate stock from premises found holding unstamped products.
A simple plan for the next few months:
- Count it now. Note which lines on your shelves and in your stockroom are unstamped.
- Sell it first. Put unstamped stock at the front and rotate stamped stock behind it.
- Do not over-buy unstamped stock. Only take on what you can realistically sell before 31 March 2027, and keep the evidence of when it was produced or imported.
- Review in February. Check what is left with plenty of time to act.
- Deal with what remains. By 1 April 2027, any unstamped stock should be sold, returned to your supplier, exported, destroyed or otherwise lawfully dealt with.
Records to Keep
HMRC recommends keeping clear records for at least 6 years. Good records help you show where stock came from and why any unstamped stock could still be sold during the grace period.
Supplier and purchase records
- Supplier name, address and contact details
- Invoice numbers, delivery notes and dates received
- What you bought, held, supplied or sold
Compliance records
- When unstamped products were produced or imported
- What checks you made on the stock
- What you did about any stock that was unstamped, unclear or looked non-compliant
If a product looks wrong
If a stamp is missing when it should be there, or appears damaged, reused, altered or fixed to the wrong packaging, do not sell the product until the issue is resolved. Contact your supplier for an explanation and record the issue and what you did. You can report suspected illicit, counterfeit or wrongly unstamped vaping products to HMRC or to your local Trading Standards office.
Vaping Products Duty FAQs
Does the duty apply to nicotine-free shortfills?
Yes. Vaping Products Duty applies to all vaping liquid whether or not it contains nicotine, so a 100ml nicotine-free shortfill carries £22.00 of duty — the same rate per millilitre as a nicotine e-liquid.
Can customers still mix a shortfill with a nic shot?
HMRC's guidance says that mixing duty-paid liquids — for example a duty-paid shortfill with a duty-paid nic shot — does not count as manufacturing. Mixing liquids that are not duty-paid does.
Does the duty apply to vape kits and coils?
The duty is charged on vaping liquid. Where a kit includes prefilled pods, the liquid in those pods is duty-liable. For hardware sold without any liquid, check the exact product with your supplier or use HMRC's checker if you are unsure whether a stamp is needed.
I bought unstamped stock in September. Can I still sell it?
Yes, until 31 March 2027, provided it was produced or imported before 1 October 2026. Keep the invoices and any evidence of production or import dates in case HMRC asks.
Do I need to scan the digital stamps in my shop?
HMRC says digital stamps must be scanned at set points in the supply chain by the businesses responsible for the products at those points. HMRC's retailer guidance does not set out a scanning step for businesses that only sell duty-paid stock — follow any updates on HMRC's wholesale and retail guidance page.
What happens if I still have unstamped stock on 1 April 2027?
From 1 April 2027 it is an offence to hold or sell unstamped vaping products outside duty suspension. Goods can be seized, penalties charged and, in serious cases, a criminal investigation opened. HMRC can also remove legitimate stock from premises found with unstamped products.
Official HMRC Sources
This guide summarises HMRC guidance as at 16 October 2026. It is general information, not legal or tax advice. Always check the current HMRC pages:
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