South Korea synthetic nicotine law shifts imports to unregulated nicotine-free vapes

South Korea’s revised Tobacco Business Act, which brings synthetic nicotine inside the legal definition of tobacco, took effect last April, and importers have shifted toward nicotine-free liquids that fall outside that definition. At a Seoul forum on 10 November, a tobacco-control researcher reported that nicotine-free liquid imports from January to August this year were more than double last year’s full-year import value.

Synthetic nicotine imports fell after the amended act took effect

Lee Seong Gyu, director of the Korea Tobacco Control Research and Education Center, told the sixth Media Forum that imports of synthetic nicotine liquids dropped sharply once the revision applied. The forum was held by the Korean Association of Medical and Bio Journalists and the National Academy of Medicine of Korea at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, under the theme of new tobacco trends and cessation policy direction.

Lee said nicotine-free liquids are being sold online with test reports and in large-capacity devices. He said government testing found nicotine and nicotine analogues in some liquid inhalation products marketed as nicotine-free, and that their harmfulness needs sufficient verification.

Schools and testing labs lack a clear standard for “nicotine-free” claims

Lee said on-site response standards are unclear when students claim at school that liquid e-cigarettes are nicotine-free. He said urine testing for cotinine, a nicotine metabolite, makes it difficult to confirm whether nicotine was used.

Kim Ji Eun, director of the Smoking Cessation Policy Planning Division at the Korea Health Promotion Institute, said smoking rates for conventional cigarettes have fallen while e-cigarette use has risen, with dual use adding to the variety of patterns. She said the expanded tobacco definition and harmful-substance testing under the Tobacco Harmfulness Management Act have created a regulatory basis, but that new products and regulatory blind spots for similar and nicotine-free products remain to be addressed.

Tax campaign targets frozen 4,500 won pack price

Park Eun Cheol, vice president of medical policy at the National Academy of Medicine of Korea, called for raising the current 4,500 won cigarette price to 8,500 won and for an automatic adjustment system for tobacco taxes and the National Health Promotion Levy tied to inflation and income growth. He said the pack price has been frozen at 4,500 won since 2015.

Park said South Korea’s adjusted cigarette price is 5.51 international dollars at purchasing power parity, which he described as low among OECD countries. He put the country’s average score in the WHO MPOWER assessment at 3.563 out of 5.

Park said policy needs supplementing on secondhand exposure to e-cigarettes, public understanding of harmfulness, and online and offline sales with attention to geographical access.

Pouches and strips sit at the edge of the domestic market

Lee said the 2025 US National Youth Tobacco Survey found exclusive liquid e-cigarette use among adolescent users declined while dual and exclusive nicotine pouch use rose, as cited at the forum. He said nicotine pouches held by KT&G and Korea Philip Morris are awaiting entry into the domestic market, and that nicotine strips and nicotine toothpicks could soon become common. The forum’s second session was a panel discussion with Jo Hong Jun of Ulsan College of Medicine, Lim Hyun Jung of the National Health Insurance Service, Yonhap reporter Kim Jan Di and Jeon Eun Jung of the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Health Promotion Division.

What changes for exporters and distributors

VapeBrief’s analysis: the shift reported at the forum moves demand from liquids legally defined as tobacco toward products positioned as nicotine-free, where operators face fewer registration obligations but more exposure if testing finds nicotine. Any supplier marketing a liquid as nicotine-free into South Korea should expect test reports cited in the market to face comparison with government testing. Clearance time and documentation needs for synthetic nicotine liquids now differ from those for nicotine-free liquids, which affects order timing and labelling decisions.

Price and tax proposals remain proposals

The 8,500 won price and the index-linked tax and levy mechanism were presented as recommendations at the forum, not as adopted measures. Min Tae Won, president of the Korean Association of Medical and Bio Journalists, said the forum confirmed the need for a new approach suited to the changing market and that follow-up policy measures must be developed. No ministry decision on the tax proposals has been announced in the material available.

Questions readers ask

Does South Korea's tobacco law cover synthetic nicotine?

Yes. The revised Tobacco Business Act included synthetic nicotine in the definition of tobacco and took effect last April, according to the forum discussion.

Are nicotine-free vapes regulated in South Korea?

Products marketed as nicotine-free liquid inhalation products remain outside the tobacco definition, which the forum identified as a regulatory blind spot. Government testing found nicotine and nicotine analogues in some products sold as nicotine-free.