The Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024, known as Act 852, and its regulations set the rules every vape retailer in Malaysia must follow. Under them, a retailer must sell only registered products that are sealed and labelled as gazetted, keep products out of sight unless the premises is a specialised store, sell nothing online or through a vending machine, sell to no one under 18, and display the prescribed signs. The rules apply to specialist stores, convenience chains, petrol station kiosks and general retailers alike.
Under the Act, breaches of the main rules carry fines of up to RM20,000 for an individual’s first offence and up to RM300,000 for a company’s repeat offence. This vape shop compliance checklist for Malaysia is a plain-English summary of the rules as gazetted, not legal advice. Our For retailers page carries the same rules in more detail.
The position described here is as at 23 October 2026. On 15 May 2026 the Kuala Lumpur High Court declared the 2023 exemption of nicotine liquid and gel from the Poisons List irrational and ultra vires section 6 of the Poisons Act 1952. The court made declarations only: the 2023 order was not quashed and has not been repealed. The Government withdrew its appeal on 18 August 2026, so the ruling stands. The Health Minister said in August 2026 that he would call a media briefing on the ruling. CodeBlue reported on 11 September 2026 that the briefing had not taken place, and we have seen no report since that it has (CodeBlue, 11 September 2026). The Ministry of Health has not published what the ruling means for retail supply. In December 2025 the Health Minister said the decision had been made at Cabinet level to move towards a ban (The Star, 16 December 2025). As at 23 October 2026 no bill has been published or tabled. The Dewan Rakyat has been sitting since 5 October 2026 and runs to 8 December (Bernama, 5 October 2026). None of the bills read for the first time up to 21 October concerns vape (Dewan Rakyat Hansard). Where the law stands and our article on the Poisons List ruling carry the detail.
Before the checklist: there is no vape retailer licence
Act 852 registers products, not retailers. Section 3(1) says no smoking product “shall be imported, manufactured or distributed by any person unless registered under this Act”. There is no federal Ministry of Health vape retailer licence. A shop’s right to trade comes from its local authority business premise licence.
The regulations define a “specialized store” as a fixed place of business “licensed by the authority solely to sell” smoking products (P.U.(A) 260/2024, regulation 2). The regulation does not name the authority. In practice, the licence that matters is the local authority business licence.
Because business licensing is a state and local matter, seven states have been able to stop vape sales locally while Act 852 remains federal law. In Perak, no new licences or renewals have been issued from 1 January 2026, and traders with unexpired licences were given until October 2026 to stop (New Straits Times, 5 January 2026). We have not seen a report confirming that Perak sales have ended. The full list is on State restrictions and in our article State by state: where vape sales are restricted.
The checklist
Each item gives the obligation and its source. The Act’s scope is covered in What Act 852 actually covers.
- Licence. Your local authority business licence is valid, and your state has not stopped issuing or renewing licences for vape sales.
- Registration. Every product is registered. Enforcement of the registration rules began on 1 April 2025 (Ministry of Health FAQ on Act 852), and from 1 October 2025 unregistered products may not be on the market. There is at present no public register to check stock against. As at June 2025 the Ministry had approved no vape product registrations and was still evaluating, and no list has been published since (CodeBlue, 9 June 2025). An approved product receives a Ministry certificate, so ask your supplier for it.
- Packing and labelling. Products may be sold only as packed and labelled under P.U.(A) 261/2024, and not in an opened packet or in loose form (P.U.(A) 260/2024, regulation 5). That rules out decanting and loose sale. Health warnings cover 65% of the front panel and 65% of the back panel, measured from the top; trade guidance that says 50% is wrong. The pack carries the manufacturer’s or importer’s name and address (not a post office box), the manufacturing date and “Dilarang Jual Kepada orang belum dewasa”. Our consumer guide sets out the full label check.
- Nicotine. Nothing above 20 mg per ml. The cap fell from 35 mg per ml on 1 October 2025 (P.U.(A) 261/2024, regulation 9).
- Volume. No cartridge or disposable pod above 2 ml, down from 3 ml, from 1 October 2026 (P.U.(A) 261/2024, regulation 9(4)). The regulation took effect on that date by its own terms. We have seen no Ministry statement or enforcement report on it. Bottled liquid is capped at 15 ml, and disposable pods must not be shaped like toys or food.
- Display. Products may not be displayed except at specialised stores, and even there they must not be seen conspicuously from outside (P.U.(A) 260/2024, regulation 6). The Ministry required enclosed cabinets rather than cloth or canvas coverings, and said over 51,000 shops would be affected from 1 April 2025 (Malay Mail, 25 March 2025). Warning letters were used until 1 October 2025 (Malay Mail, 8 April 2025). Full enforcement has applied since the warning-letter phase ended on that date, as our For retailers page sets out.
- Channels. No online sale and no vending machines (regulation 3).
- Location. No sale inside an educational institution (which includes a kindergarten) or a higher educational institution; within 40 metres of its outer boundary or fence; within 3 metres of its entrance where it sits in a commercial building; or at any road, stall or market that is temporary in nature, such as a pasar malam (regulation 4).
- Promotion. No advertising, promotion or sponsorship, and no sale together with a coupon, gift, prize or other goods (Act 852, sections 7, 9 and 12).
- Age. No sale to anyone under 18 (section 13(1)). Every seller, specialised store or not, must display the prescribed warning sign conspicuously at all times: 50 cm by 60 cm, white, with a red circle and crossbar, “<18”, the word “AMARAN” and the gazetted Malay warning (P.U.(A) 260/2024, regulation 7).
- Premises. An air-conditioned shop, a shopping complex or a workplace is almost certainly a no-smoking place. The proprietor must display the prescribed no-smoking sign, which carries a QR code (P.U.(A) 258/2024), provide no smoking equipment or facilities, and take reasonable measures to stop anyone smoking (section 18(1)). In practice that means no ashtrays and no trying products in store.
Checking age at the counter
The offence under section 13 is the sale itself. Neither Act 852 nor the Control of Sale Regulations sets out an ID-check procedure. Checking identity is the practical way to stay clear of the offence, and it is MOVE’s position: we call for rigorous age verification at every physical point of sale. If in doubt, verify: “Jika Sangsi, Minta IC”.
The counter is also the owner’s responsibility. Under section 49(2), a person is liable to the same punishment for an employee’s act in the course of employment, so a sale to a minor by staff is also the owner’s liability.
MOVE has argued consistently, in public and in engagement with government agencies, for strict age checks at every point of sale, whatever kind of shop it is.
Penalties under Act 852
These figures follow our For retailers page and the Act.
- Importing, manufacturing or distributing unregistered products, section 3(2). Individual: first offence up to RM20,000 and/or 1 year; repeat offence up to RM30,000 and/or 2 years. Body corporate: first offence RM20,000 to RM100,000 and/or up to 2 years; repeat offence RM50,000 to RM300,000 and/or up to 3 years.
- Breach of the Control of Sale Regulations (display, online, vending, location), section 10(2): the same ranges.
- Sale to a person under 18, section 13(2): the same ranges.
- A proprietor failing to display the required warning sign, section 18(2): up to RM5,000. This offence is compoundable. Under section 48(2) a compound may not exceed 50% of the maximum fine and needs the Public Prosecutor’s written consent.
On top of any fine, a product’s registration can be suspended or cancelled, with no compensation and no refund of fees (section 5(3)). That falls on the registrant rather than the retailer. Where a company commits an offence, its directors, managers and similar officers may be charged with it under section 49(1). If the company is convicted, they are treated as guilty too, unless they prove it was committed without their knowledge, or without their consent or connivance and despite all reasonable precautions and due diligence on their part.
Where to read the rules yourself
The primary texts are Act 852, P.U.(A) 260/2024, P.U.(A) 261/2024 and the Ministry of Health’s enforcement FAQ, all linked in this article’s sources list. Act 852 explained sets out the regulations side by side.
This is published guidance. We update it when a date moves, and retailers can join our mailing list from the For retailers page. We do not sell any products. We lay out the facts so that you can make informed decisions.