Can I Bring a Vape to Vietnam? No — And Here’s Exactly What Happens If You Try
What the Law Actually Says
The instrument is Resolution 173/2024/QH15, passed by Vietnam’s National Assembly on 30 November 2024 and in force from 1 January 2025. It prohibits six things in relation to e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products:
There is no carve-out for travellers, no allowance for personal quantities, and no declaration process that legitimises bringing one in. Since 1 January 2025 Vietnamese customs will not process import formalities for any e-cigarette or heated tobacco goods at all — a rule that extends to components, coils and e-liquid, not only complete devices.
Carry-On or Checked Baggage — Does It Matter?
No, and this question comes up constantly because of how liquid and battery rules usually work.
With most restricted items, the bag matters. Lighters must be on your person. Power banks must be in the cabin. Liquids over 100ml must go in the hold. So travellers reasonably assume there is a correct bag for a vape too.
There isn’t. The device is barred from import. Which compartment of the aircraft it travelled in has no bearing on that — the restriction attaches to bringing the item into the country, not to how it was carried during the flight.
What Actually Happens at the Border
The device is identified
Either at X-ray screening or during a bag inspection. Officers at Vietnam’s international airports are familiar with these devices — this is a routine find, not an unusual one.
It is confiscated on the spot
You do not get it back. There is no bonded storage arrangement letting you reclaim it on departure, and no option to pay a duty and keep it. Confiscation and destruction of seized products is written into the enforcement framework.
An administrative penalty may follow
How this is handled at the border varies with quantity and circumstances. Someone carrying a single personal device is in a very different position from someone carrying twenty — the latter looks like trading, which is where criminal exposure begins.
You continue your trip
For a single personal device, this is generally an administrative matter that ends there. It is not a ground for refusing entry. The realistic cost is the device, the delay, and an unpleasant start to the holiday.
Fines for Using a Vape in Vietnam
Enforcement against users was formalised by Decree 90/2026/ND-CP, which took effect on 15 May 2026. Before that date the ban existed but the administrative penalty framework for individual use did not, which is why older guides give vague or contradictory numbers.
| Conduct | Fine | Approx. USD |
|---|---|---|
| Using an e-cigarette or heated tobacco device | 3–5 million VND | $114–190 |
| Venue owner allowing use on their premises | 5–10 million VND | $190–380 |
| Person aged 16 to under 18 using tobacco products | 200,000–500,000 VND | $8–19 |
| Trading or smuggling at scale | Up to 3 billion VND | Plus up to 15 years imprisonment for organised smuggling |
Seized products are confiscated and destroyed in addition to the fine. Note the second row: this is not only a rule for smokers. A bar, café or hotel that permits guests to vape on its premises carries its own liability, which is why venues that once turned a blind eye no longer do.
Does the Ban Cover IQOS and Heated Tobacco?
Yes. Resolution 173/2024/QH15 names heated tobacco products alongside e-cigarettes and treats them identically. IQOS, glo, Ploom and equivalents are in exactly the same position as a refillable vape.
This catches people out because heated tobacco occupies a separate regulatory category in many countries — often taxed differently, sometimes permitted where vaping is not. In Vietnam that distinction does not exist. Switching devices before your trip achieves nothing.
| Product | Allowed in Vietnam? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Disposable vape | 🚫 No | Banned — import, possession and use |
| Refillable vape / pod system | 🚫 No | Including coils, pods and e-liquid |
| Heated tobacco (IQOS, glo, Ploom) | 🚫 No | Named in the same resolution |
| Heated tobacco sticks / HEETS | 🚫 No | Consumables are covered too |
| Conventional cigarettes | ✅ Yes | 200 cigarettes duty-free — see the limit |
| Cigars | ✅ Yes | 20 cigars duty-free |
| Nicotine patches, gum, pouches | ✅ Yes | Not covered by the ban |
Unsure whether something in your bag is allowed?
Medication that resembles a vaporiser, professional equipment, unusual quantities — send us a photo on WhatsApp and we will tell you before you fly, not after.
Can You Buy Vapes in Vietnam?
Not legally. Trading is prohibited by the same resolution, so licensed retail does not exist. What does exist is an informal market, and buying from it puts you on the wrong side of a ban that covers possession as well as sale.
There is a second, more practical problem. Unregulated supply means no product standards and no accountability for what is inside the liquid. Vietnam’s ban was driven substantially by adulterated products found in circulation before 2025. Buying from a street seller on holiday is a poor way to test that market.
What About Transiting Through Vietnam?
If you are connecting through Tan Son Nhat, Noi Bai or Da Nang without clearing immigration — staying airside for an international-to-international connection — you are not importing anything into Vietnam, and customs rules for entry do not engage in the same way.
Two cautions apply. First, if your itinerary requires you to collect checked baggage and re-check it, you pass through customs, and at that point you are importing. Second, a domestic connection always means entering Vietnam. Our airport transfer guide explains which connections require you to exit and re-check in — most Vietnamese airports have no airside transit corridor.
Before You Fly: Vape Checklist
- Device left at home — not in the hold, not in hand luggage, not in a travel companion’s bag
- Spare pods, coils and e-liquid removed from all bags as well
- Heated tobacco device and sticks left behind too — same ban, same treatment
- Nicotine patches, gum or pouches packed instead if you need them
- Bag checked for a device forgotten in a side pocket from a previous trip
- If travelling with a medical vaporiser or nebuliser, prescription and documentation packed — and message us in advance
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Vietnam banned e-cigarettes outright under Resolution 173/2024/QH15, in force since 1 January 2025. The ban covers import, storage and use, and there is no personal-use exemption for tourists. Devices found at the border are confiscated and not returned. It makes no difference whether the device is in your carry-on or your checked bag.
Yes, completely. This is a total prohibition rather than a restriction on where you can vape. Manufacture, trading, import, storage, transport and use are all banned. Using a device carries a fine of 3–5 million VND (roughly USD 114–190) under Decree 90/2026/ND-CP, effective 15 May 2026, plus confiscation and destruction of the product.
At the border, the device is confiscated on the spot and you continue your trip — it is not a ground for refusing entry to someone carrying a single personal device. If you are caught using one inside the country, the fine is 3–5 million VND and the device is destroyed. Carrying a large quantity is treated differently, because it looks like trading, and that is where criminal liability starts.
No. The ban applies to importing the device, not to how it travelled, so checked and carry-on are treated the same. Checked bags are X-rayed on arrival and vape devices are readily identifiable. There is no bag that makes it lawful.
No. Heated tobacco products, including IQOS, glo and Ploom, are named in Resolution 173/2024/QH15 alongside e-cigarettes and are treated identically. The consumable sticks are covered as well. Switching from a vape to heated tobacco is not a way around the ban.
Not legally — trading is prohibited under the same resolution, so there is no licensed retail. Anything offered to you is being sold illegally, and buying it exposes you to a ban that also covers possession. Nicotine patches, gum and pouches remain legal and are widely available.
No. Use is banned throughout Vietnam, and a private room does not change that. There is an additional consideration: under Decree 90/2026/ND-CP a venue owner who allows e-cigarette use on their premises faces a fine of 5–10 million VND. Hotels have a direct financial reason to report or intervene.
Staying airside on an international-to-international connection means you are not importing anything, and entry customs rules do not engage the same way. But if your itinerary requires collecting and re-checking baggage, or if you have a domestic connection, you clear customs and you are importing. Using a device airside is banned regardless.
Legal basis: Resolution 173/2024/QH15 (in force 1 January 2025); Decree 90/2026/ND-CP (in force 15 May 2026). Information current as of 14 August 2026. Full customs overview: Vietnam Customs Rules 2026.