Right now, you can only legally buy vapes at pharmacies.
The Coalition is promising to change that if it wins the next election.
The Coalition has said it wants to legalise, regulate and tax vapes and nicotine pouches for adults.
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor announced the plan on Thursday, alongside a proposal to cut the existing tax on tobacco by 80% if the Coalition wins Government at the next federal election.
It's a major shift away from Australia's current model where vapes can only be purchased from a pharmacy as a tool to help quit smoking.
Labor has already knocked the plan back, saying there's no evidence it would kill the black market.
Background
Right now, vapes are legal for adults, but only through pharmacies.
Since October 2024, most Australians aged 18 and over can buy a low-strength vape from a pharmacist with a prescription, or if the pharmacist agrees it's appropriate to help quit smoking.
Selling or buying vapes anywhere else, like a tobacconist or convenience store, is illegal.
The majority of vapes are purchased illegally, however, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data.
Nicotine pouches are banned altogether, no matter your age.
Other tobacco products, like cigarettes, can be purchased from licensed retailers.
Consumers pay a tax on all purchases, called the tobacco excise.
Australia's tobacco excise has risen consistently since 2016, meaning legal cigarettes are now among the most expensive in the world.
Critics say the price hikes have pushed smokers onto the black market.
It's also hit the budget.
Excise revenue peaked at $16.3 billion in 2020, but is expected to bring in $3.56 billion this financial year.
Coalition plan
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Under the Coalition's plan, adults would be able to buy vapes and nicotine pouches from regular retailers, not just pharmacies.
Vapes would be taxed at 50 cents per millilitre of e-liquid, plus GST.
Nicotine pouches would be legalised and taxed at 2.5 cents per milligram of nicotine.
Products would need plain packaging under Australian regulation, and kids would still be banned from buying either.
The proposal is part of a bigger package that includes an 80% cut to the tobacco excise that the Coalition says would encourage smokers to buy legal cigarettes.
It also included a $200 million law enforcement "surge" to "dismantle the criminal networks behind the trade".
Taylor said: "You don't bring organised crime to its knees by protecting its business model.
You have to destroy the business model, and that's what the Coalition's policy will do".
Response
Labor has rejected the proposal.
Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek told News24 there's no evidence that cutting tax or changing the law would end the illicit trade, saying: "It will kill people".
She pointed to record-low daily smoking rates as proof the Government's current approach is working.
The Australian Medical Association also warned that the Coalition's plan "would undermine decades of public health efforts" to reduce smoking.
Last month, One Nation announced a similar policy, including a proposed 75% cut to the tobacco excise.
What's next?
Without Labor's support, the proposal will not pass Parliament in the current term.
The Coalition will need to win Government at the next election to turn their policy into law.
The next federal election is expected to be held by May 2028, so any change is still years away.
