Author: Ash / Category: News / Date: 2/8/2021

TPD, namely Tobacco Products Directive or European Tobacco Products Directive (EUTPD), is a directive of the European Union which puts limits on the sale and transaction of tobacco and nicotine related products in the EU, formulated by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and updated to the version that we are subjecting to in the May 2017.

The TPD aims to standardize the tobacco/vape market and protect consumers' right. As an overview, the policies for the Tobacco Products Directive(TPD) are: the regulation of tobacco/vape products on the EU market (e.g. packaging, labelling, and ingredients), advertising restrictions for tobacco/vape products, the creation of smoke-free environments, tax measures and activities against illegal trade.

For a compliant vape manufacturer, its products should meet the following regulations enacted by the TPD, implemented in 2017.

1. The e-liquid container namely tank(cartridge), cannot have the capacity for e-liquid over 2ml.
2. Each bottle of e-liquid containing nicotine, shall not be more than 10ml.
3. E-liquid containing nicotine, nicotine strength shall not be above 20mg/ml.
4. E-liquid cannot contain certain ingredients like: colouring, caffeine, taurine and other ingredients deemed unsafe by the directive.
5. Packaging should be child-proof and tamper-evident.
6. All labeling must meet certain requirements. For example, in the package of a nicotine content vape juice, there is always a warning out there: “WARNING: This product contains nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive chemical.”Just like you can see the copywriter on a tobacco cover, “Smoking is bad for health.”

There are more detailed regulations for the vape manufacturers if they want to launch some new vaping products or make promotions.

1. Six months in advance notification for new product. All companies that producing vape products have to notify their country’s regulatory agencies six months before selling new product.  
2. Emission test of e-liquid. This test definitely is a good thing for consumers but maybe troublesome for those e-liquid companies for the testing fee could be high. While this test also builds confidence for the e-liquid companies who have passed the it. In the same way, consumers are more willing to purchase a “tested”
3. Restrictions. In most EU countries, TV and radio advertising are not allowed. Product placement, newspaper/magazines/periodicals, display advertising on the internet, marketing emails and text messages, social media marketing, the above promotions are prohibited. Nevertheless, there are some ways for vape product(non-nicotine) promotion in the UK:
4. Trade shows or trade magazines;
5. Blogs and non-paid reviews;
6. Leaflets;
7. Posters;
8. Billboards;

Want learn more? There are more about vape ads rules on GOV.UK.

Now do you get the meaning of TPD and how do you think of it? Welcome to leave your comments and discuss with us for more details!