New vape tax!

[DreamRJ]

I just wanted to hear peoples thoughts on the new vape tax the government announced?

So basically I have been vaping for over 11 years now when I quit smoking and drinking at the same time.

The new tax will basically be applied on all products related to e-liquid.

Breakdown:

A 10ml bottle of juice will have an extra £2.20 tax on top of the original cost. So for me currently I buy 100/120mil bottles and use 10ml 1 and a half bottles of 18mg nic shots to make my vape juice around 2mg strength.

I used to do DIY and it was so much cheaper I did DIY for many many years, but recently I switched back to pre made juice for convenience. I do RTA vaping though so I build my own coils and do my own wicks etc.

But after extensive reading and searching, I found yes the new tax will apply to all products/ingredients. So if you bought flavour concentrates you would have to pay the same £2.20 tax on every 10ml bottle, same for the base mix of VG/PG and then the nic shots themselves.

So I can not for the life of me find any way around it.

What is more scary is the fact they are taxing all those ingredients that make up the e-liquids as well but the thing that also worries me is the consequences on the food industry that also use flavourings/VG/PG in their products too.

Surely that will cause inflation to go up and the cost of so many food products/drinks will also go up drastically from October 2026 because of the tax on those products.

You also need to register to be able to buy/sell as well as far as I understood it.

So yeah for me the 100ml bottles cost me currently £10-15 and after the new £2.20 tax per 10ml will basically cost me about £32-37 depending on the brand. I also buy 4 or 5 100ml bottles at a time from my local vape shop. Lasts 4 or 5 weeks ish. So usually a bill between £40-65 again depending on brands I get. But from October 4 bottles would be £128-148 it is totally not affordable to me nor many other people.

If I went DIY then buying the base mix again would not be much cheaper either now because the tax of £2.20 would still be applied, so currently let me give you an idea, a 1litre bottle of VG/PG base mix costs on average £12 so that would be 10ml X100 X £2.20 = £220 + £12 original cost. So £232 then that does not include the cost of the nic shots or flavourings which again would have exactly the same tax on. So yes it is totally totally disgusting.

What is worse though if Labour did not introduce it, it would have been the tories anyway. I think everyone has been waiting for a tax on vaping products for a very long time.

But to tax the actual ingredients that make the e-liquid is a very very bad move because it will impact everyone who buys products that also have those ingredients in them.

I really got no idea what I will do now when it comes into force. If anyone can think of any solutions, please do let me know

Thank you

 

[DreamRJ]

I suppose I could buy 5litre of base mix before October 2026 comes in and switch back to DIY and stock up on flavourings. Then will just get the nic shots from my local shop which will only cost £3.20 a shot that will be much cheaper that way then I think.

I mean until October 2026 comes we will not know if the online shops that sell base mix will apply the tax to it, because the place I used was a wholesale. It was not a vape store at all. Lucemill was the name of it. So maybe we will see nearer the time.

 

[Webzcas]

Surely PG and VG will not be taxed? If they were then that is a big LOL right there and yet another massive own goal by this shambles of a Labour Govt.

Like you, I used to mix my own. I can still get hold of a litre of Nicotine at 72mg strength for around £60.

Will buy a couple of bottles and store in the fridge / freezer. 2 litres alone should last me approx 4 - 5 years.
Likewise, I will stock up on pg and vg along with a lot of my favourite concentrates before the tax comes in.

Then I can revisit the problem in 2031 or thereabouts

 

[slot_zombie]

No, they are not taxing the base ingredients at all. What they have said is that duty will apply to the finished product in all circumstances, including to home made liquids.

.....Good luck enforcing that one..

 

[Reelsoffun]

There is quite a bit of evidence now that vaping is just as bad as smoking if not worse?

I can’t help but feel just like smokers were duped into smoking cigarettes, that we going to see the same with vaping down the line that the long term health results are going to be similar with many realising too late.

So you could just stop vaping and save all the tax and ya health

 

[sufferinsilence]

There is quite a bit of evidence now that vaping is just as bad as smoking if not worse?

I can’t help but feel just like smokers were duped into smoking cigarettes, that we going to see the same with vaping down the line that the long term health results are going to be similar with many realising too late.

So you could just stop vaping and save all the tax and ya health

And have more money to gamble!

 

[DreamRJ]

No, they are not taxing the base ingredients at all. What they have said is that duty will apply to the finished product in all circumstances, including to home made liquids.

.....Good luck enforcing that one..

Yeah but what makes you think that is the case?

I have been googling and looking in reddits, forums etc and even after reading the actual government paper with all the clauses etc.

2.33 All vaping products will be within the scope of the duty including those produced at home from base ingredients, such as propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, flavourings and nicotine.

That is the clause that has got me thinking otherwise. So like I said it really does look like it will apply to those 3 ingredients.

@Reelsoffun - Yes I quit smoking and drinking overnight, but that was not as hard because I turned to vaping at the same time, yes I only started on those actual vapes that was the same size as a cigarette but they helped some what but it was not the easiest thing to do. I struggled for about a month, until I no longer craved a cigarette.

It is not that easy just to quit for me when it comes to getting nicotine into my system. I have already slowly reduced the strength I vape. I have been Sub Ohm for about 8 years now and I was on 6mg at first now I am down to 1.5mg strength.

And honestly I do not get why you think that vaping is harmless when the main 3 ingredients that I just mentioned that goes into the vapes is also in food and drink products.

The only thing that is a risk is the combustion aspect because the coils still burn the liquid to produce the hit as you inhale. That can produce very very very tiny amounts of formaldehyde. That has been extensively tested for years now and the levels are at acceptable levels, compared to smoking which is far far higher. And the vapour from them that you breath out contains next to none because it is basically like water vapour.

I do not know if you are one of those people that does not vape or not or just hears about stuff or reads comments that people make to scare people or not but vaping is 95% safer than smoking and even doctors say that as well.

Only thing doctors are worried about is when people vape THC. That is what causes problems with the lungs.

I never vape THC and never will.

 

[justdoit]

There is quite a bit of evidence now that vaping is just as bad as smoking if not worse?

I can’t help but feel just like smokers were duped into smoking cigarettes, that we going to see the same with vaping down the line that the long term health results are going to be similar with many realising too late.

So you could just stop vaping and save all the tax and ya health

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[DreamRJ]

Surely PG and VG will not be taxed? If they were then that is a big LOL right there and yet another massive own goal by this shambles of a Labour Govt.

Like you, I used to mix my own. I can still get hold of a litre of Nicotine at 72mg strength for around £60.

Will buy a couple of bottles and store in the fridge / freezer. 2 litres alone should last me approx 4 - 5 years.
Likewise, I will stock up on pg and vg along with a lot of my favourite concentrates before the tax comes in.

Then I can revisit the problem in 2031 or thereabouts

Yeah I think that is the only options we will have. I will buy some a month before October then check again the same sites I bought the base mix from Lucemill and see if they increased the price with the tax, if they did not, then we will know we will be fine to do DIY then.

Like I said the only actual cost is the nic shots. I do not like to buy the 72mg bottles of nicotine I just prefer to buy the 18mg strength because then it is easy to do the maths.

Fingers crossed it will not apply to the 3 ingredients but at the moment all signs are pointing that it is including that clause I just posted about above.

 

[Webzcas]

There is quite a bit of evidence now that vaping is just as bad as smoking if not worse?

I can’t help but feel just like smokers were duped into smoking cigarettes, that we going to see the same with vaping down the line that the long term health results are going to be similar with many realising too late.

So you could just stop vaping and save all the tax and ya health

Really? I have been vaping since 2014, some ten years now since I stopped smoking. I can attest to the fact that:

• My cardio is the best it has ever been
• No longer have smokers cough
• No longer smell like an ashtray
• Do not wake up every morning having to hack up half a lung
• I am no longer polluting my body with carcinogens

I am not saying that vaping does not come with some risks. But seriously it is far far far far far more safer than smoking and I also do not pollute the people around me.

Vaping was the only thing that stopped me smoking. There is a reason why health services have advocated its use to help people give up smoking.

The ONLY reason the govt are looking at taxing it into the stone age, is to be able to get back lost tax revenues as a result of people giving up smoking due to it.

 

[mulven]

I think vaping is bad for you but all I'll say is I far prefer walking past someone whos just puffed a very pleasant fruity smelling vape than someone smoking.

 

[Webzcas]

I think vaping is bad for you but all I'll say is I far prefer walking past someone whos just puffed a very pleasant fruity smelling vape than someone smoking.

No one is saying it is 100% safe. But other than those that sub ohm chucking clouds everywhere they go which is annoying to those around them, there is absolutely no risk to those who are in the vicinity of people vaping. The same cannot be said for smoking.

My life, my choice. I am not harming anyone and it got me off a killer product that is tobacco. Yet, now plans for punitive taxation.

 

[DreamRJ]

I think vaping is bad for you but all I'll say is I far prefer walking past someone whos just puffed a very pleasant fruity smelling vape than someone smoking.

Yep that's the thing I hated the most as soon as I quit too, walking past or stood around outside and someone sparks up and you instantly walk away from it because of how disgusting it smells I hate the smell of it since I quit.

It is actually very strange that for years as a smoker I had no issues but as soon as I quit I hated it.

I totally understood why none smokers always complained now and it is 100% understandable, the amount of deaths that occurred due to passive smoking is insane as well.

Honestly as I stated above the only potential harmful chemical that gets produced from the burning of the coils is very very tiny amounts of formaldehyde and as I said above the amounts are far far far lower than a cigarette and is in acceptable levels.

And yes the fruity flavours are my fav.

My all time fav flavour right now is Pear Drops. Reminds me of when I was a kid.

 

[andysbetting1187]

I just wanted to hear peoples thoughts on the new vape tax the government announced?

So basically I have been vaping for over 11 years now when I quit smoking and drinking at the same time.

The new tax will basically be applied on all products related to e-liquid.

Breakdown:

A 10ml bottle of juice will have an extra £2.20 tax on top of the original cost. So for me currently I buy 100/120mil bottles and use 10ml 1 and a half bottles of 18mg nic shots to make my vape juice around 2mg strength.

I used to do DIY and it was so much cheaper I did DIY for many many years, but recently I switched back to pre made juice for convenience. I do RTA vaping though so I build my own coils and do my own wicks etc.

But after extensive reading and searching, I found yes the new tax will apply to all products/ingredients. So if you bought flavour concentrates you would have to pay the same £2.20 tax on every 10ml bottle, same for the base mix of VG/PG and then the nic shots themselves.

So I can not for the life of me find any way around it.

What is more scary is the fact they are taxing all those ingredients that make up the e-liquids as well but the thing that also worries me is the consequences on the food industry that also use flavourings/VG/PG in their products too.

Surely that will cause inflation to go up and the cost of so many food products/drinks will also go up drastically from October 2026 because of the tax on those products.

You also need to register to be able to buy/sell as well as far as I understood it.

So yeah for me the 100ml bottles cost me currently £10-15 and after the new £2.20 tax per 10ml will basically cost me about £32-37 depending on the brand. I also buy 4 or 5 100ml bottles at a time from my local vape shop. Lasts 4 or 5 weeks ish. So usually a bill between £40-65 again depending on brands I get. But from October 4 bottles would be £128-148 it is totally not affordable to me nor many other people.

If I went DIY then buying the base mix again would not be much cheaper either now because the tax of £2.20 would still be applied, so currently let me give you an idea, a 1litre bottle of VG/PG base mix costs on average £12 so that would be 10ml X100 X £2.20 = £220 + £12 original cost. So £232 then that does not include the cost of the nic shots or flavourings which again would have exactly the same tax on. So yes it is totally totally disgusting.

What is worse though if Labour did not introduce it, it would have been the tories anyway. I think everyone has been waiting for a tax on vaping products for a very long time.

But to tax the actual ingredients that make the e-liquid is a very very bad move because it will impact everyone who buys products that also have those ingredients in them.

I really got no idea what I will do now when it comes into force. If anyone can think of any solutions, please do let me know

Thank you

I started DIY for vaping about 7 years ago and have not looked back. Garage is stocked with 72mg nicotine kept in a deep freezer (enough to last at least 5 years)

I get my concentrates from the same company that provide my nicotine (getting hold of 72mg nicotine in the UK can be difficult but not impossible - comes from a pharma lab in Europe to get around the restrictions). I currently pay £40 for a litre of 72mg nicotine, and £6.50 for 500ml concentrate. I vape a 50/50 mix at 3mg - works out (roughly) I am paying around £8-12 per 1 litre of eliquid which I am happy with

Going to buy another chest freezer for the garage and put a big order in - nicotine won't freeze so will theoretically last forever in the freezer so will stock up again next year so i can swerve the vape tax

 

[andysbetting1187]

Surely PG and VG will not be taxed? If they were then that is a big LOL right there and yet another massive own goal by this shambles of a Labour Govt.

Like you, I used to mix my own. I can still get hold of a litre of Nicotine at 72mg strength for around £60.

Will buy a couple of bottles and store in the fridge / freezer. 2 litres alone should last me approx 4 - 5 years.
Likewise, I will stock up on pg and vg along with a lot of my favourite concentrates before the tax comes in.

Then I can revisit the problem in 2031 or thereabouts

They won;t directly tax PG and VG mate - its a base ingredient for lots of different products the knock on effect across industries would be horrendous.

 

[Webzcas]

@andysbetting1187 please send me a DM with the details of the company you get your nic from

 

[mulven]

@andysbetting1187 please send me a DM with the details of the company you get your nic from

webzcas boutta become the walter white of the UK vape industry

 

[Webzcas]

Haha not quite

 

[DreamRJ]

I started DIY for vaping about 7 years ago and have not looked back. Garage is stocked with 72mg nicotine kept in a deep freezer (enough to last at least 5 years)

I get my concentrates from the same company that provide my nicotine (getting hold of 72mg nicotine in the UK can be difficult but not impossible - comes from a pharma lab in Europe to get around the restrictions). I currently pay £40 for a litre of 72mg nicotine, and £6.50 for 500ml concentrate. I vape a 50/50 mix at 3mg - works out (roughly) I am paying around £8-12 per 1 litre of eliquid which I am happy with

Going to buy another chest freezer for the garage and put a big order in - nicotine won't freeze so will theoretically last forever in the freezer so will stock up again next year so i can swerve the vape tax

Ok yeah but how do you do the maths on how much 72mg strength you use to take it down to 3mg?

For me buying the 18mg shots is much much easier maths for a 100ml bottle. 15ml nic shots(18mg) 15ml flavour 90ml base mix, the bottles I have are actually 120ml but I just call them 100ml the extra 20ml space in the bottles is for the nic shots.

So that takes mine down to around 2mg strength. It is easier because the nic shots are 10ml so you know that that 10ml has 18mg strength in it etc.

EDIT: 2/72 X100 = 2.5ml of nicotine - I answered it myself was just lazy lol

 

[andysbetting1187]

@andysbetting1187 please send me a DM with the details of the company you get your nic from

Done sir

Really good company - they have just increased their prices but even at £60 quid a litre, its a steal because to make 3mg at 50/50, you only need 30ml of nicotine to 970ml of base to 1 litre will make up 33 litres of 3mg base mix

 

[andysbetting1187]

Ok yeah but how do you do the maths on how much 72mg strength you use to take it down to 3mg?

For me buying the 18mg shots is much much easier maths for a 100ml bottle. 15ml nic shots(18mg) 15ml flavour 90ml base mix, the bottles I have are actually 120ml but I just call them 100ml the extra 20ml space in the bottles is for the nic shots.

So that takes mine down to around 2mg strength. It is easier because the nic shots are 10ml so you know that that 10ml has 18mg strength in it etc.

I do it over a litre - so for 1 litre of base mix (no concentrate), you need 30ml of 7.2mg nicotine and 970ml of base mix (works out at not a true 3mg, more like a 2.8) but ive been using it for years and its decent. Then use the 1 litre of base mix (with the nicotine) to add to concentrates

 

[DreamRJ]

I do it over a litre - so for 1 litre of base mix (no concentrate), you need 30ml of 7.2mg nicotine and 970ml of base mix (works out at not a true 3mg, more like a 2.8) but ive been using it for years and its decent. Then use the 1 litre of base mix (with the nicotine) to add to concentrates

That is actually a very efficient way of doing it. I will consider that myself then. Thanks

 

[andysbetting1187]

Ok yeah but how do you do the maths on how much 72mg strength you use to take it down to 3mg?

For me buying the 18mg shots is much much easier maths for a 100ml bottle. 15ml nic shots(18mg) 15ml flavour 90ml base mix, the bottles I have are actually 120ml but I just call them 100ml the extra 20ml space in the bottles is for the nic shots.

So that takes mine down to around 2mg strength. It is easier because the nic shots are 10ml so you know that that 10ml has 18mg strength in it etc.

EDIT: 2/72 X100 = 2.5ml of nicotine - I answered it myself was just lazy lol

I used to use 18mg nic shots but when making a 1 litre base mix, I would use 500ml PG, 350ml VG and 150ml of nicotine at 18mg (so 15 VG nic shots)

When I moved to 72mg nicotine I now use 500ml PG, 470ml VG and only 30ml nicotine so the long term cost savings from moving to 72mg was insane (especially with the amount i vape) when buying nic in 1 litre or 5 litre bottles instead of shots

Once I have the base liquid made, I then usually make up a load of different flavours (100ml bottle, 15% concentrate and the rest the base liquid). Thats why my 3mg is more like a 2.8 becuase I don't factor in the conentrate dilution in a 100ml bottle but I vape a freemax mesh pro quad coil at 90w so don't really want anything above a 2.8/3mg anyway - been on this latest setup for years now and wrorks well (for me)

Only thing i would say is that if you are buying 1 litre+ of 72mg nicotine keep it somewhere safe in the house/garage, especially if you have kids etc. don't want them mistaking it for water and drinking it by mistake - at that strength its literally lethal if not mixed properly

 

[andysbetting1187]

That is actually a very efficient way of doing it. I will consider that myself then. Thanks

Just works out really cost effective if you are a heavy vaper/cloud chaser. I work from home all day so I couldn;t ;afford retail prices so buy in bulk instead. Currently I have the following at home:

5 litres of 72mg nicotine
20 litres of premixed 50/50
1 litre concentrates of the following:
Red Energy
Blackcurrant and liqourice
Hesinberg
Red Astaire
Creme Egg
Chocolate Milk

If the zombie apocalypse every happens, as long as i can charge my batteries I will have enough to see the next few years out lol

 

[Webzcas]

Ok yeah but how do you do the maths on how much 72mg strength you use to take it down to 3mg?

There are loads of mix calculators online. Here is one:

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I dare say AI can also help as well.