Russia vape ban reaches 17 regions with St Petersburg vote pending

Two more Russian regions adopted vape retail bans on 12 November, with sales to stop from 1 March 2027, while St Petersburg’s assembly left its own ban short of final passage.

Leningrad Oblast and Karelia adopt bans taking effect on 1 March 2027

Leningrad Oblast’s assembly passed its bill in all three readings at one sitting, with 43 members voting in favour, according to the regional legislature. The ban runs from 1 March 2027 to 1 March 2032.

The Republic of Karelia adopted its own legislation the same day, also starting 1 March 2027. Karelia’s head, Artur Parfenchikov, said the lead-in period gives businesses time to adjust and regulators time to prepare enforcement.

Mari El had already adopted a similar law on 10 November, covering the same five-year window between March 2027 and March 2032.

St Petersburg has approved the ban only in its first reading

All 50 lawmakers voted for the St Petersburg bill on 11 November, but the proposal has not finished the local legislative process. Lawmakers are due to consider it again on 18 November.

The bill would prohibit retail sales of electronic nicotine delivery systems and related liquids from 1 March 2027 to 1 March 2032, and would apply to buyers of every age rather than only to minors.

Denis Chetyrbok, who presented the measure, said its purpose is to cut access to vaping products, especially among minors and young adults. The proposal came from the assembly’s budget and finance committee and its social policy and healthcare commission.

More than 3,000 St Petersburg outlets sell vaping products

The city’s Committee for Industrial Policy, Innovation and Trade counts 615 specialist vape shops, about 0.6% of retail establishments. Chetyrbok put the number of other outlets selling vaping products alongside conventional tobacco at more than 2,400.

The bill’s sponsors estimated that lost budget revenue could reach tens of millions of rubles a year. That figure is a legislative estimate, not an observed fiscal loss.

If the ban passes, specialist vape stores would need to change their business model or close, while mixed retailers could drop the covered products and keep selling other goods. Leningrad Oblast speaker Sergey Bebenin said his region is coordinating with St Petersburg to keep rules consistent across the metropolitan area and limit cross-border purchases.

Federal Law No. 186-FZ sets the March 2027 start and five-year limit

The federal law, enacted on 26 June 2026, lets federal subjects ban retail sales of electronic nicotine delivery systems and related liquids between 1 March 2027 and 1 March 2032. No regional ban may run past that window.

Article 5 also reaches suppliers. Under Parts 5–7, holders of specified manufacturing, wholesale or other licences may not supply covered products to licensed retail premises in regions where a ban is in force, and violators risk losing the relevant licence.

Regional authorities must notify the relevant federal regulator after adopting a ban, and the regulator must publish and keep updated a list of regions where restrictions apply.

The regional bans cover electronic nicotine delivery systems and their liquids, not conventional cigarettes or heated tobacco. Separately, the same law bars nationwide distance sales of tobacco products, nicotine-containing products, hookahs and nicotine consumption devices from March 2027.

Kaliningrad is the next regional test on 18 November

Governor Alexey Besprozvannykh submitted a proposed ban on 11 November, with legislative consideration set for 18 November. Regional economic development authorities count 2,807 outlets selling tobacco products and 2,292 selling nicotine-containing products; the second figure is not limited to specialist vape stores.

Explanatory materials filed with the Kaliningrad proposal record 1,237 complaints and 594 identified violations involving electronic nicotine delivery systems between 2023 and 2026.

Seventeen regions have acted and 39 more are preparing laws

State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said on 7 November that 17 regions had adopted vape sales ban decisions and another 39 were preparing or considering legislation. Those counts reflect the position on 7 November and have not been recalculated for later regional votes.

The article’s source notes that some of the newer regional decisions may overlap with regions already counted, so the figures cannot simply be added to produce a revised national total. Readers should treat the 17-and-39 split as a snapshot rather than a running tally.

What changes for manufacturers and distributors

For suppliers in the Shenzhen chain and their Russian importers, the licence provisions matter more than the shop count. Once a regional ban is in force, licensed manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors cannot deliver covered products to retail premises in that region, and the federal regulator’s published list becomes the reference point for which territories are closed.

VapeBrief’s analysis: suppliers will need region-by-region shipment controls and records that match the regulator’s list, and any order timing tied to a March 2027 start should be settled before those restrictions bite. The law does not restrict conventional cigarettes or heated tobacco, so the effect falls on ENDS and liquid lines rather than on the whole nicotine portfolio.

Final votes and a federal list come next

St Petersburg’s assembly and Kaliningrad’s legislature both sit on 18 November. After each region adopts a ban, the notification and publication duties under Federal Law No. 186-FZ determine when the restriction appears on the federal list that suppliers must work from.

Questions readers ask

When do Russia's regional vape retail bans start?

The bans adopted so far in Leningrad Oblast, Karelia and Mari El begin on 1 March 2027. Federal Law No. 186-FZ allows regional bans only between 1 March 2027 and 1 March 2032.

Does the St Petersburg vape ban apply now?

No. The assembly passed the bill in first reading on 11 November 2026, and lawmakers are expected to consider it further on 18 November.

Can wholesalers still supply shops in a banned region?

Under Parts 5–7 of Article 5 of Federal Law No. 186-FZ, licensed manufacturers, wholesalers and other suppliers may not deliver electronic nicotine delivery systems or related liquids to licensed retail premises in regions where a ban is in force, and violations can lead to licence revocation.