The president has ratified the amendment on imposing duty on cigarettes and vapes, which has been banned.

The People’s Majlis recently greenlighted the bill, approving to increase cigarette prices starting from Friday.

The bill to amend the Export-Import Act of Maldives was submitted on behalf of the government by MP for North Mahchangoalhi constituency Ibrahim Mohamed. The bill was passed during Monday's parliament sitting with 71 votes from the parliamentarians present. Eight members voted against passing the bill. The bill on imposing duty on vapes and cigarettes was accepted by parliament in mid-October with the votes of 65 lawmakers.

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu ratified the 19th Amendment to the Export-Import Act of the Maldives on Thursday.

The amendment introduces significant changes to the import duties on tobacco and electronic devices.

As per the amendment, Section 5 (m)(1)(i) of the Export-Import Act has been revised to modify the import regulations for tobacco products, including prepared tobacco, tobacco alternatives, electronic cigarettes, vaping devices, heated tobacco products, and their parts.

Further, Chapter 24, as mentioned in Section 7 (a) of the Act, has also been amended.

Following ratification, the new import duty rates on tobacco and related products have been publicized as well.

As such, 200 percent duty on all items in the general tobacco and prepared tobacco products category will be imposed, excluding specific items.

50 percent duty will be taken on cigarettes, with MVR eight to be charged per cigarette.

50 percent duty will be taken on Beedi, with MVR eight to be charged per Beedi.

50 percent duty will be taken on flavored chemicals used in electronic cigarettes and other tobacco products, with MVR eight to be charged per milliliter.

50 percent duty will be taken on heated tobacco products and consumable tobacco sticks, with MVR eight to be charged per stick.

The President’s Office went on to reveal that a revision was made to Chapter 85 (s) of Section 7 (a) regarding electronic machinery, equipment, and parts, including electronic cigarettes, vaping devices, and tobacco heating products, which now incur a 200 percent import duty.

Among the other significant amendments introduced in Section 8(1) of the act includes mandating all relevant rules and regulations to be established or updated within 30 days of the enactment of the amendment and published in the government gazette.

The 19th amendment to the Export-Import Act of Maldives officially took effect on 1 November 2024.

This marked a new regulatory landscape for the import of tobacco products and electronic smoking devices in the Maldives.

Some have raised questions about whether increasing the price of tobacco products alone could stop tobacco use, while others have questioned if increasing the duty on vapes and tobacco would reduce the number of users.

It was decided to increase the duty on vapes as well, despite the decision to ban their use, import, and sale. As a result, the public has been raising questions about the submission to the parliament to increase import duty on tobacco products and vapes.

In a post on social media platform ‘X’, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu announced that he has ordered the ban on importing vaping devices and their individual components to the Maldives.

The ban will be effective from 15 November 2024.

The president has instructed relevant authorities to initiate the necessary actions to prohibit the import of vape devices, accessories, and parts, in a bid to take concrete steps to ban vaping.

Further, the president has instructed relevant authorities to take all necessary measures to prohibit the use, possession, production, sale, advertising, and free distribution of vaping devices in the Maldives from 15 December 2024 onwards.

The president’s decision to ban vaping has come at a time several associations have been calling to implement a ban on vapes.

The Maldivian Medical Association (MMA), the Nurses Association, and 21 national sports associations have also called on authorities to ban the import of several tobacco products and vapes into the country.