TPD Compliance

The European Tobacco Products Directive 2014/14/EU (TPD) is a complex piece of legislation which became law 20th May 2016. The directive featured regulations relating to vaping products as these may contain nicotine or be designed to deliver nicotine. Most nicotine is derived from tobacco leaves. The regulations applied to the manufacture, retail and display of eliquids and vaping hardware. A transition period of one year enabled manufacturers and retailers to continue offering non-compliant products in order to exhaust the stocks that they held. But from 20th May 2017, it was mandatory for all products sold to consumers to be compliant with the TPD.

The regulations contained in the TPD remain in force. Those that relate to vaping products can be summarised as follows:

  • The nicotine strength of eliquids must not exceed 20mg/ml
  • The capacity of vape tanks, vape pods and cartridges must be limited to 2ml
  • Vaping devices must be leak-free
  • It must be possible to refill tanks and pods without leakage
  • Eliquids and devices must have child-resistant packaging
  • Manufacturers must notify the regulatory body (MHRA) of all ingredients in eliquids
  • Manufacturers must notify the MHRA of all components in devices together with their refilling mechanisms
  • Vaping devices must deliver a consistent dose of nicotine per puff

TMB Notes and TPD Compliance

At TMB Notes, we make every effort to confirm that the products we offer are all TPD compliant. Here’s how we ensure that tmbnotes.co.uk remains compliant with all regulations governing vaping:

  • Our advertising and marketing messages do not encourage non-smokers to start using electronic cigarettes and are never targeted at children.
  • All eliquids which contain nicotine together with the nicotine shots sold by tmbotes.co.uk are available only in bottles with a capacity of 10ml or less.
  • All eliquids containing nicotine together with the nicotine shots sold by tmbnotes.co.uk feature a nicotine concentration of 20mg/ml or less.
  • We only sell tanks, pods and cartridges with an eliquid capacity of 2ml or less.
  • Before offering any eliquid or device for sale, we check that the product features on the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Submitted Products List. This contains the details of all products which have been notified to the MHRA as TPD compliant.
  • In cases where we cannot find a product on the Submitted Products list, we will seek confirmation from the manufacturer concerned that the product is TPD compliant and that it has been notified to the MHRA.
  • We do not sell eliquids containing taurine, caffeine or diacetyl.
  • The ingredients are stated on the packaging of all eliquids sold by or manufactured by TMB Notes.
  • All eliquids and nicotine shots sold by TMB Notes feature a nicotine warning on the packaging.
  • We keep up to date with all new legislation and any amendments to existing legislation and then act accordingly.

The laws governing vaping may change in the future. It is uncertain how the UK’s departure from the European Union will impact vaping. For the time being, the TPD will remained enshrined in UK law. However, the UK government could choose to repeal this legislation and to introduce new regulations which are specific to the UK. TMB Notes will always abide by UK law and will only ever manufacture and retail compliant products.

Click here to learn more about the TPD.