18B.5 Legal status in Australia

Last updated: March 2018         

Suggested citation: Greenhalgh, EM. 18B. Heated tobacco (‘heat-not-burn’) products. In Scollo, MM and Winstanley, MH [editors]. Tobacco in Australia: Facts and issues. Melbourne: Cancer Council Victoria; 2018. Available from: http://www.tobaccoinaustralia.org.au/chapter-18-harm-reduction/indepth-18B-non-combustible-cigarettes/18B-5-legal-status-in-australia

In Australia, although there are no specific laws pertaining to heated tobacco products, products that contain nicotine and/or tobacco are regulated by a number of existing Acts. Under the Standard for the Uniform Scheduling of Poisons (Cth) (‘the Poisions Standard’), nicotine is classed as a schedule 7 ‘dangerous poison ’, except where it occurs (1) in tobacco products prepared and packed for smoking or (2) in preparations for human therapeutic use. The Department of Health has indicated that these exceptions would be unlikely to apply to heated tobacco products, effectively prohibiting them. The Department has also stated that Australia’s comprehensive tobacco control measures, including the Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 and the Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act 1992, would likely apply to heat-not-burn products.1  

 

 

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References

1. Wright T. Philip Morris's 'smoke-free' cigarette seems unlikely to ignite in Australia. The Sydney Morning Herald, 2017. Available from: https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/philip-morriss-smokefree-cigarette-seems-unlikely-to-ignite-in-australia-20170215-gudjx5.html