What Is the UK Vape Tax and When It Is Expected to Start
What Is the UK
Vape Tax and When
It Is Expected to Start
A flat £2.20 per 10ml of e-liquid duty. Starts 1 October 2026. Paid by producers and importers at source. Passed through to retail with 20% VAT on top. Here is everything UK adult vapers need to know about the incoming excise duty.
The UK vape tax is a new excise duty on vape e-liquid that starts on 1 October 2026. The rate is a flat £2.20 per 10ml of liquid regardless of nicotine strength, format or brand. Producers and importers pay the duty at source. The cost is passed through the supply chain to retail. Standard 20% VAT applies on top of the duty plus the retail margin. A typical 10ml nic salt bottle moves from £3.99 to around £6.63. A 100ml shortfill moves from £14.99 to around £37. Stock acquired by retailers before the start date can be sold at pre-duty prices during a short transition window.
Three numbers behind
the 2026 UK vape duty
Start date, flat rate plus VAT application. The three anchors of the new duty framework.
Duty start date
1 October 2026. The date from which the new UK vape excise duty applies to every 10ml of e-liquid placed on the market.
Flat duty rate
Fixed in legislation. Applies to every e-liquid regardless of strength, flavour or format. Paid by producers or importers.
VAT on top
Standard UK VAT rate applied to the full retail price including the duty. Compounds the total increase for consumers.
What the UK vape tax is and how it works
The vape duty has been consulted on, legislated plus scheduled across two budget cycles. This is a proper excise duty structured in the same way as beer, wine plus spirits duty rather than a bolt-on VAT rise. Here is what it looks like in practice.
What the tax is
A flat excise duty charged per ml of vape e-liquid placed on the UK market. The headline features:
- £2.20 per 10ml of liquid. Equivalent to 22p per ml.
- Single rate applying to all e-liquid regardless of nicotine content or format.
- Duty paid at source by the UK producer or importer.
- VAT applied on top of the post-duty price at the standard 20% rate.
- Tobacco duty unchanged. Cigarette duty continues at its existing rate.
When it starts
The duty takes effect on 1 October 2026. Key dates in the timeline:
- March 2024. Spring Budget announcement of the forthcoming duty.
- April 2024 to July 2024. HM Treasury consultation on rate plus structure.
- Late 2024. Consultation response plus draft legislation published.
- 2025. Primary legislation passed through Parliament.
- 1 October 2026. Duty enters force. Every new production batch duty-paid from this date.
Who pays the duty
The legal duty liability follows the supply chain from top to bottom:
- UK manufacturer. If the e-liquid is produced in the UK the manufacturer pays duty on release from the factory.
- UK importer. If the e-liquid is imported the UK importer pays duty at the point of import clearance.
- Retailers do not pay directly. Duty-inclusive wholesale prices reach retail already duty-paid.
- Consumers pay indirectly. The retail shelf price builds in duty plus VAT plus retail margin.
What it applies to
Scope is broad by design. The duty applies to:
- Every e-liquid regardless of nicotine content including 0mg zero-nicotine liquids.
- Nic salts, shortfills, longfills and pre-mixed formats. All at the same flat rate per ml.
- Pre-filled pods by volume of contained e-liquid.
- Domestic production plus imports. No origin-based differentiation.
The transition window
Retailers carrying pre-duty stock at 1 October 2026 can continue to sell that stock at pre-duty prices during a short grace period. Features of the transition:
- Grace period runs for the sell-through of existing stock. Typically a few weeks in practice.
- New deliveries post-1 October are duty-paid. Price rises apply immediately to those.
- No retrospective duty on pre-existing stock. The stock position at the start date is frozen for pricing purposes.
- Trading Standards oversight. Retailers will be checked on the pricing split during the transition.
Four practical points
for UK adult vapers
Mark the date
1 October 2026. New-build stock is duty-paid from that date. Pre-duty stock sells through in the following weeks.
Consider bulk buying
Stocking up on favourite flavours at pre-duty prices before October 2026 is a legitimate option for personal use.
Review your format
Longfills plus nic shot mixing keep per-ml costs lower post-duty than pre-mixed nic salts. Worth a look for regular users.
Vapes still cheaper than smoking
Even post-duty vapes remain substantially cheaper than an equivalent cigarette habit. Harm reduction incentive preserved.
Pre-duty UK vape pricing vs
post-1 October 2026 pricing
Illustrative pricing on common UK vape products. Actual prices will vary by retailer. Rates shown reflect the £2.20 per 10ml duty plus 20% VAT on the full retail price.
Current UK pricing
- ✓10ml nic salt. Typically £3.99. No duty. 20% VAT included.
- ✓3 for £10 deal. Common multi-buy on popular flavours.
- ✓100ml shortfill. Typically £14.99. No duty.
- ✓120ml longfill kit. Typically £7.99 concentrate plus £1 nic shots.
- ✓Pre-filled pod. Typically £5.99 per 2ml.
- ✓Starter kit. Typically £10 to £20 one-off.
Post-duty pricing
- ✗10ml nic salt. Approximately £6.63. £2.20 duty plus higher VAT base.
- ✗3 for £17 deal. Multi-buy maths no longer works at £10.
- ✗100ml shortfill. Approximately £37. £22 duty on the liquid.
- ✗120ml longfill kit. Approximately £30 to £33.
- ✗Pre-filled pod. Approximately £6.50 per 2ml.
- ✗Starter kit unchanged. Duty applies to e-liquid only.
The duty connects to every other recent UK vape policy move. For the full picture visit our vaping FAQs hub. Every major UK vape regulation question sits inside.
Back to the Vaping FAQs hub
This article sits inside our complete FAQs knowledge base. Head back to the hub for the full index covering MHRA rules, TPD, the 2025 disposable ban, the 2026 vape tax plus retailer compliance.
More on the UK vape tax
The policy reasoning sits behind the mechanics. Our deep dive on why the UK government is introducing a vape tax unpacks the four stacked objectives. For the numbers in more detail our breakdown on how much the vape tax could increase prices shows the shelf-price impact across formats. For the structural comparison our guide on how the vape tax is different from tobacco duty sets out how the two regimes differ.