KUALA LUMPUR: New tobacco control law that covers regulations on all tobacco-related products must be first introduced before implementing taxation on electronic and non-electronic cigarette devices and vape liquids.
Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said without such law, it would be difficult to regulate and impose excise duty on vape liquids.
"This is because e-liquid for e-cigarettes that contains nicotine are under the control of the Poisons Act 1952," he said, commenting on the 2021 Budget announcement yesterday.
Under the 2021 Budget, the government would impose excise duty on electronic, non-electronic cigarette devices and vape liquids beginning January next year.
Dr Noor Hisham said the Health Ministry would need to conduct further research on the matter before any form of taxation could be implemented effectively.
"We need to identify any areas that are overlapped, whether there are any conflicting or contradicting laws from the existing ones (Poisons Act, in regulating non-nicotine vape liquids).
"The new act for tobacco control must be urgently completed and presented (to the Parliament). This Act is currently being reviewed by the Attorney-General's Chambers," he said.
"What is important for us now is to look at this (new) Act. Our focus now is on nicotine (regulation) and we need to study and refine how we can implement the tax."
In his Budget 2021 speech yesterday, Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said e-cigarette liquids would be subjected to excise duty at the rate of 40 sen per ml starting Jan 1.
He also said the government would impose excise duty at a rate of 10 per cent ad valorem on all types of electronic and non-electronic cigarette devices, including vapes.
Similarly, licence renewal for importing cigarettes would be tightened by revising the licence terms, including introducing an import quota.