The introduction of the Vaping Products Duty (VPD) on 1st October 2026 has been the biggest financial shift in the vaping industry since its official launch in the UK. Introduced by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to raise tax for the excise duty and to simplify the regulation of all e-liquids consumed in Great Britain, this new excise regime has a direct impact on retail pricing.

What is the Vaping Products Duty (VPD)?

The new single flat rate excise means that HMRC will charge £2.20 per 10ml of vaping liquid or £2.2p per ml.

The actual additional cost to the consumer shelves is calculated as £2.64 per 10ml bottle, which is £2.20 excise duty plus £0.44 Value Added Tax (VAT) (20%).

Key Policy Highlights:

Flat Rate Volume Tax: The finalized 2026 rate is just a flat rate by volume, as opposed to proposed tiered rates by nicotine strength.

No Charge for 0mg or DIY Ingredients: Zero nicotine shortfills, base liquids (Propylene Glycol and Vegetable Glycerin) and concentrated nicotine flavour shots are taxed at the same rate per ml as high strength nic salts.

Hardware Exemption: pods, replacement mesh coils, tanks, battery mod kits, and cables will continue to be exempt from excise duty, and will be subject to the standard rate of VAT only.

Vaping Duty Stamps Scheme: Legally duty-paid products come with mandatory physical/digital fiscal stamps to discourage counterfeit and/or illegal non-taxed imports.

The duty is to be paid per millilitre of liquid, not as a percentage of the retail price, which means that products with higher volumes will see the largest percentage increases in their retail prices:

E-Liquid FormatPre-Tax Retail PriceVPD Duty / VAT AdditionEstimated Shelf PricePrice Increase2ml Prefilled Pod (Single)~£2.50+£0.53 (2ml × 22p + VAT)~£3.03+21%10ml Nic Salt / Freebase~£3.99+£2.64 (10ml × 22p + VAT)~£6.63+66%50ml Shortfill (+1 Nic Shot)~£9.99+£15.84 (60ml total liquid × 22p + VAT)~£25.83+158%100ml Shortfill (+2 Nic Shots)~£14.99+£31.68 (120ml total liquid × 22p + VAT)~£46.67+211%

The law comes into effect on 1 October 2026, but the price hikes will not happen overnight, as it will not apply to all retailers.

The transitional grace period for non-stamped stock imported or manufactured before 1 October 2026 (known as the Sell-Through Window) has been extended to 6 months by HMRC.

Gradual Increases: Old duty free stock as it gets sold will be replaced by duty paid stamps. Prices are expected to fluctuate through the end of the autumn of 2026 and into the spring of 2027.

Hard Deadline (1 April 2027): All e-liquid sold in Great Britain from this date will be duty marked with a valid duty stamp, which will demonstrate full duty compliance.

Use Efficient Refillable Pod Systems to Save on Duty Costs:

High-resistance mesh pods (0.8Ω – 1.2Ω) at low wattage (10W – 14W) will use a much smaller amount of liquid daily, while increasing nicotine delivery and reducing duty costs.

Choose Nic Salts Over Freebase:

Nic salts are absorbed quicker and vapers tend to use fewer millilitres of liquid a day than lower strength freebase liquids.

Retailers will offer different prices on bundles to account for the additional £2.64 for every 10ml of compliant bottled liquid, but multi-buys will still be the most cost effective method of buying compliant bottled liquids.

Despite the duty, vaping is far cheaper than smoking—particularly as the duty rates were also increased in the same finance budget.