“Is it true they’re putting a tax on the juice?”
Yes, and it starts on 1 October 2026. We wrote about this back in June when it was still months away. Now it is only weeks away, so here is a plain explanation of what it means for the shelves.
£2.20 per 10ml, nicotine or not
The Vaping Products Duty is charged on the liquid at £2.20 for every 10ml. The nicotine strength does not matter. A 0mg shortfill is charged the same as an 18mg bottle because the duty is on the liquid volume, not the nicotine content.
So, before anything else is added:
- A 10ml bottle carries £2.20 of duty
- A 50ml shortfill carries £11
- A 100ml shortfill carries £22
Then VAT is added on top, because VAT applies to the total price including the duty. In real terms that is about £2.64 on a 10ml and around £26.40 on a 100ml shortfill. There is no way to dress that up. It is a big number.
What is not affected
Hardware is not affected. Kits, tanks, coils, pods, batteries and chargers do not carry the vaping duty. Neither do nicotine pouches, because there is no liquid in them. It is the bottles that take the hit.
Who actually pays it
The duty is paid by whoever makes or imports the liquid, not by the shop at the till. That does not help much, because the cost comes through in what we pay for stock and shows up again in the shelf price. Anyone telling you their prices will not move in October is either sitting on a mountain of old stock or has not read the notice yet.
Stock that was already made and bought before 1 October is not taxed retrospectively, so there is a short window where older stock remains older stock.
The stamps come later
From 1 April 2027 every bottle of e-liquid on a shelf in this country must carry a duty stamp, the same idea as the stamp on a bottle of spirits. Shops can sell through eligible unstamped stock until 31 March 2027, and after that it is over. After that date, a bottle with no stamp is not a bargain, it is contraband, and it says everything about the shop selling it.
What we are doing about it
We will have new prices up in the shop and on the website as we run out of stock made before the 1st October so nobody gets a surprise at the counter. If you go through a flavour by the crate, it is worth having a word with us this month rather than the week before.
Come and ask. We are at 287 Dickson Road, open Monday to Saturday, 12 to 7, and we have been explaining stuff over that counter since 2013.
Related: What the new vaping duty means for your prices from October 2026 and Meet DNA Eliquids.
