Flowers
Nationwide Ban on the Shipment Vape Products
The e-vapor industry has hit a new speed bump. But this time it doesn’t have anything to do with selling to minors, health risks, or knock-off products. It has to do with putting its products in the hands of consumers.
Then
Last December President Donald Trump signed a 5,000-page spending bill that included a law called the “Preventing Online Sales of E-Cigarettes to Children Act”. Language in the act mandated that the Postal Service ban all shipments of vaping products with limited exceptions. The Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act of 2009 targeted the vaping industry as well. Designed to combat online sales of untaxed cigarettes. This law prohibited the mailing of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco. Online sellers had to register with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). As well as the tax administrators of each state. The PACT Act established standards for private carriers shipping tobacco products to residences and businesses, and created stringent tax collection and reporting rules, with heavy penalties for noncompliance.
The postal ban on vaping products was originally to go into effect at the end of March. However, the process was delayed after the agency was deluged with thousands of comments to the then-proposed rules. In March, FedEx said it would exit the vaping-delivery business. A month later, UPS followed suit, telling affected customers it would no longer ship vaping products within the U.S., or internationally to and from the U.S., because of the “increased complexity” of shipping those goods.
Now
On Thursday, the U.S. Postal Service banned the shipping of all vaping products. Their exit, combined with existing delivery bans by FedEx, UPS, and DHL, leaves the vaping industry with limited options to get its goods to market. The prohibitions imposed by the four carriers affect online sales to consumers as well as business-to-business transactions between manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. The Postal Service will allow a limited number of vaping transactions between consumers. As long as they are not commercial in nature. Businesses can apply to the agency for permission to sell to other businesses. However, the vaping industry will be governed by the same onerous requirements that apply to cigarette and smokeless tobacco companies in the B2B space.
