If you're planning a trip to Vietnam, you might want to think twice about packing your trusty vape pen. Agenzia Nova reports that foreign tourists who bring e-cigarettes into the country now face some pretty hefty fines, thanks to new regulations that went into effect earlier this year.
The rules, which ban the possession, sale, and use of e-cigarettes and their liquids, are no joke. Get caught using an e-cigarette in Vietnam, and you could be slapped with a fine of up to 2 million dong (roughly $78.50). But that's just the tip of the iceberg.
Those who are caught importing, trading, transporting, or producing e-cigarettes and materials for cigarette alternatives could face fines of up to a whopping 3 billion dong or even up to 15 years behind bars, depending on the amount they're caught with.
Vietnam isn't the only country cracking down on e-cigarettes, either. Australia, Turkey, Singapore, Mexico, India, Brazil, the Maldives, and Thailand are just a few of the other nations that have banned travelers from bringing vaping devices into their borders, primarily due to health concerns over the risk of irreversible lung damage.
Hong Kong has also recently jumped on the e-cigarette ban bandwagon, and it looks like this trend is only going to continue. Kyrgyzstan is set to ban vapes and e-cigarettes starting in 2025, and Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a law banning e-cigarettes in April 2024. The Kazakh law also prohibits the sale and distribution of non-tobacco cigarettes, vapes, fluids, and flavorings for them, as well as their advertisement, and it's set to take effect 60 days after its official publication.
So, if you're a vaping enthusiast with wanderlust, you might want to do your homework before packing your bags. Otherwise, you could find yourself facing some serious consequences for your favorite nicotine fix.
