New Zealand Lifts Removable Battery Rule for Vapes
The New Zealand government is revoking a regulation that would have required all vaping devices and heated tobacco products to have removable batteries. The decision, announced by Associate Health Minister Casey Costello, is a direct response to a court challenge from Mason Corporation, the owner of the Shosha vape retail chain. The change will take effect from September 1st.
“Cabinet was advised that taking this step was the best way to resolve the case,” Costello said in a statement, adding that the legal proceedings can now be withdrawn. The removable battery requirement was introduced by the previous Labour government in June 2023, with then-Health Minister Ayesha Verrall citing safety improvements as the rationale. The current coalition government had already delayed its implementation until October 2024 before now revoking it entirely.
The regulation had created a significant roadblock for the government’s controversial plan to trial a tax cut on heated tobacco products (HTPs) as a smoking cessation tool. Philip Morris had previously pulled its IQOS HTP from shelves due to non-compliance with the rule, though it has since released a new version with a removable battery. Costello stated the move is not expected to increase smoking or vaping rates and clarified that it does not affect the separate, recently implemented ban on disposable or single-use vaping devices, which took effect on June 17th.
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