The Malaysian Health Coalition is extremely concerned and disappointed with the decision to collect excise taxes on nicotine liquids and gel used in e-cigarettes and vaping devices beginning 1 April 2023. This decision was announced on March 31, 2023, in the Federal Gazette.
We note current Malaysian laws do not explicitly allow or explicitly ban e-cigarettes or vaping devices. Therefore, e-cigarettes and vaping devices exist in a legal “no-man’s land”, without any regulations to govern their use or reduce their harm on vulnerable segments of the population like children and teenagers.
In order for this excise tax to be legally possible, the health minister had to exempt nicotine liquids and gels from the Poisons Act 1952 (also announced on March 31, 2023).
We regret that this exemption was administratively necessary because there is a glaring absence of a decision on whether vaping should be allowed or banned in Malaysia, or how vaping should be regulated.
We are deeply concerned about the public health implications of vaping and tobacco use, especially among children and teenagers. We support the generational end game, and we favour an outright ban on vaping. Strict regulations will bring Malaysia in line with increasingly prevalent international norms.
Countries that have partially or completely banned vaping include Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Qatar, Singapore, Thailand, and many states in the United States.
We urge the government to delay the implementation of the excise tax collection and the removal of nicotine from the Poisons List until the Tobacco Smoking and Control Bill is passed, and to debate and decide on the legal status of vaping in Malaysia as part of the Bill.
We further urge the government to gradually impose stricter regulations on tobacco as a whole, with an ambition to achieve the status of a zero smoking nation. No amount of taxes collected is worth the health of Malaysians, the health of our children, and the health of our health system.
- This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of CodeBlue.
