Proposal to bring new generation cigarettes into the state management system

Mr. Nguyen Chi Nhan - Head of VTA Legal Department spoke at the Workshop

In his opening speech, Mr. Nguyen Chi Nhan - Head of the Legal - Information - Training Department of the Vietnam Tobacco Association said: Currently, new generation tobacco products (TLTHM) including heated tobacco products (TLLN) and electronic cigarettes (TLĐT) are developing strongly and becoming a trend in the world. However, there are still many inconsistent understandings about product lines, leading to the fact that consumers do not have access to complete and official information. Vietnam currently lacks a suitable legal framework to manage these products, leading to many economic and social consequences. Therefore, there needs to be a serious assessment from experts and representatives of state management agencies on this issue.

At the workshop, representatives presented their opinions to clarify the concepts of the two product lines TLLN and TLĐT, and at the same time referred to international practices and regulations for TLHM.

Dr. Le Dinh Phuong - Head of Internal Medicine and Family Medicine Department - FV Hospital, Lecturer at University of Medicine
Pham Ngoc Thach

In terms of health, Dr. Le Dinh Phuong - Head of Internal Medicine and Family Medicine Department - FV Hospital, Lecturer at Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, presented scientific bases for analyzing the trend of reducing the harmful effects of tobacco through the use of electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products.

The workshop made a special mark with a roundtable discussion between representatives of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Health, the General Department of Market Management, the Ministry of Justice and National Assembly Deputies, and experts in the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Group.

The representatives dissected in detail and frankly the current situation and experience of TLTHM management in the world, from which they made recommendations on management work in Vietnam.

Conference Scene

At the end of the discussion, the representatives agreed on a number of views on TLTHM in Vietnam:

1. Following the world trend, TLTHM products appearing in Vietnam are becoming more and more popular and tend to increase. Based on scientific evidence, the potential of TLTHM to reduce the harm compared to cigarettes has been recognized by many governments in developed countries and prestigious international medical organizations.

2. Vietnam has not yet issued a management policy, so all/most of the electronic cigarettes circulating on the market are smuggled goods, of unknown origin, posing many potential health risks to consumers. Illegal electronic cigarettes account for up to 90% of the electronic cigarette market in Vietnam. The recorded safety and health risks mainly occur to users of illegal open-system electronic cigarettes, not related to closed-system electronic cigarettes, legal electronic cigarettes produced according to the manufacturer's standards and regulations.

3. Heated tobacco products and electronic cigarettes containing nicotine are in line with the definition of tobacco products in the Law on Tobacco Harm Prevention, with the same mechanism of action to produce a vapor (aerosol) containing nicotine for consumers to inhale without combustion, but there are differences in the raw materials used. Heated tobacco products use tobacco materials heated by electronic devices. Electronic cigarettes use electronic devices to vaporize a solution containing nicotine extracted from tobacco materials. These products have been classified by the World Customs Organization under the new group HS code 24.04, different from the group of traditional cigarettes. At the COP 8 meeting on the accession to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), the World Health Organization determined that heated tobacco products are tobacco products, recommending that countries consider applying management and policy measures according to the FCTC and national laws (Source: WHO ).

4. Some countries have policies to convert traditional cigarette smokers to e-cigarettes, such as the UK, or recognize the potential for risk reduction and encourage switching to e-cigarettes, such as New Zealand. Specifically, the UK Government has implemented a national campaign in 2024 called “Swap to Stop”, the first in the world to provide free e-cigarettes to 1 million smokers to help them switch and quit smoking (Source: UK Government ). Meanwhile, the New Zealand Government publicly supports e-cigarette products on the official website of the country’s Ministry of Health with the message “Using e-cigarettes is less harmful than smoking”, and “E-cigarettes can help you quit smoking” (Source: New Zealand Ministry of Health ).

5. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also announced: allowing Philip Morris International (PMI) heated tobacco products to be marketed in the US with the designation of a tobacco product that “Reduces risk – Reduces exposure” (of the user’s body to harmful or potentially harmful substances in tobacco) is appropriate to improve public health and is expected to benefit the health of the general population (Source: FDA ).

6. Through practical research, it is not feasible for a few countries to apply a ban on TLTHM, in the context of many countries in the world that have legalized the product, and in the Vietnamese market there is no legal alternative product. Banning TLTHM will not solve all problems because when there is a need but cannot find a legal source, consumers have and will continue to seek illegal products with many health, economic and social consequences.

7. New generation tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products, are not on the list of prohibited business sectors according to the Investment Law. Therefore, Vietnam should study international experiences to come up with a comprehensive management direction for new generation tobacco products (including electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products) based on the consistency with the definition of the Vietnamese legal system, as well as on the basis of analyzing the impacts on consumers, businesses and state management agencies.

8. The Government needs to strengthen cooperation with tobacco industry entities, consumer associations, and independent, reputable scientific and research organizations to grasp the development trends of tobacco products, the structural characteristics and development of each type of product, update correct scientific evidence, continue to perfect the main framework for management, reduce harm, and raise real awareness among users.

9. A comprehensive legal framework will include regulations on quality standards, product standards, business conditions, production, import-export and product distribution, tax policies, regulations on product labeling, etc. Currently, Vietnam has a fairly complete and similar framework. Some adjustments need to be made to better suit practical requirements and gradually perfect a suitable management mechanism for TLTHM products.

The workshop once again affirmed the urgent need for a legal framework to effectively manage TLTHM in Vietnam, and expressed the hope that the information presented and discussed at the workshop will be a useful reference source for relevant parties, especially state management agencies in the process of researching, developing and perfecting legal policies on new generation tobacco in Vietnam.