Vape Duty Stamps: What They Look Like and the April 2027 Deadline

A vape duty stamp is a yellow or red rectangular label, 18mm by 42mm, that seals the outer packaging of a vaping product to show the UK vape duty has been paid on the liquid inside. Stamped packs started reaching shops when the duty began on 1 October 2026, and from 1 April 2027 every vaping product sold in the UK must carry one.

This guide covers what the stamp looks like, each date in the changeover, how to check a vape is duty paid, and what happens to unstamped vapes after 31 March 2027. For what the duty adds to each bottle and pod, see our guide to the UK vape tax.

What is a vape duty stamp?

The stamp is the visible part of the Vaping Duty Stamps Scheme, which started on the same day as Vaping Products Duty. The duty is £2.20 per 10ml of liquid, with or without nicotine, with VAT charged on top. HMRC approved manufacturers, warehousekeepers and UK representatives of overseas producers buy the stamps from HMRC's appointed supplier and fix one to each retail pack before it goes on sale.

It is the same idea as the duty stamps already found on bottles of spirits. A pack with a valid stamp has come through the legal UK supply chain with the duty paid.

What does the vape duty stamp look like?

HMRC describes the stamps as yellow or red, tamper-evident and rectangular. Each one is 18mm wide and 42mm long and goes on the outermost retail packaging, placed so the pack cannot be opened without damaging the packaging or the stamp. HMRC's guidance does not give the two colours different meanings, so a yellow stamp and a red stamp are equally valid.

There are two versions of the stamp.

HMRC released example images of a red and a yellow transitional stamp on 1 September 2026, a month before the scheme started. The stamps shown in our own images on this page are illustrations, not the real design.

Vape duty stamp dates

The six months from October to March are a grace period. Unstamped products made or imported before the duty began carry no duty, so shops can keep selling them until 31 March 2027, which is why you will see stamped and unstamped packs side by side over the winter.

Our vape tax timeline covers the wider tax dates and why prices have risen gradually rather than overnight.

Can shops sell unstamped vapes after 31 March 2027?

No. From 1 April 2027 shops must not sell unstamped vaping products, whenever they were made. Packs that already carry a transitional stamp can stay on sale after April, because HMRC accepts either a transitional or a digital stamp from that date.

HMRC's civil penalties for selling or dealing in unstamped vaping products are set by the number of packs found, and they go up for repeat cases within 24 months.

HMRC can also seize the products, and in the most serious cases prosecute, with an unlimited fine, up to two years in prison, or both. The full detail is in HMRC's vaping duty stamps penalties factsheet.

Is it illegal to own an unstamped vape after April 2027?

The Finance Act 2026 makes it an offence, from 1 April 2027, to possess, transport, display or sell an unstamped vaping product, and that applies whenever the product was made or imported. The wording has no separate exception for personal use. HMRC's published guidance is aimed at businesses and has not said how it will treat a vaper with a few old bottles.

The safe approach is to use up any unstamped bottles or pods before 1 April 2027 rather than buying large amounts to keep past that date.

How to check a vape is duty paid

Look for a yellow or red stamp sealing the outer pack, check the product meets UK rules, and buy from a UK retailer. Step by step:

1. Find the stamp. It sits on the outermost retail packaging, measures 18mm by 42mm, is yellow or red, and seals the pack so it cannot be opened without tearing the stamp or the box.
2. Check the stamp is intact. A torn or peeled stamp, or one stuck over a pack that has clearly been opened, is a warning sign.
3. Check the product itself. Legal UK products are MHRA notified, carry UK health warnings, hold no more than 2ml in a tank or pod, and come in nicotine bottles of no more than 10ml. A sealed device promising many thousands of puffs is the classic sign of an illicit import.
4. Check the date. Until 31 March 2027 an unstamped pack in a UK shop can be legal pre-duty product. From 1 April 2027 no stamp means it should not be on sale.
5. Scan it when you can. Digital stamps carry a code, and HMRC says retailers and customers will be able to scan them to check they are authentic in due course. HMRC has not yet published how customers will do this.

Price is the other giveaway. Every legal 10ml bottle of e-liquid now carries £2.64 of duty and VAT on its own, so a 10ml nic salt selling for less than that has almost certainly skipped the tax.

Why vape duty stamps exist

The UK already had a large illicit vape trade before the duty, selling oversized devices with no age checks and no UK testing. We looked at the scale of it in our piece on the UK's illegal vape epidemic. Since October an illicit seller also skips 22p per millilitre of duty, which widens the price gap between legal and illegal products.

The stamp gives Trading Standards, Border Force, HMRC, shops and customers one quick visual check. The government is also putting £30 million a year until 2028 to 2029 into Trading Standards, Border Force and HMRC to tackle illicit and underage sales of tobacco and vapes.

Do nicotine free vapes and shortfills need a duty stamp?

Yes. The duty is charged on vaping liquid with or without nicotine, so 0mg shortfills, nicotine free pods and nic salts all need a stamp from 1 April 2027, the same as 20mg liquids. Our nicotine free vapes pay the same 22p per ml.

Hardware with no liquid in it is not charged. An empty pod kit, a coil or an empty refillable pod does not need a stamp, while a kit sold with a prefilled pod or a bottle of liquid in the box does.

How to report a vape without a duty stamp

HMRC says anyone who suspects a vaping product is illicit can report it. You can do that online through HMRC's report tax fraud service.

Shops selling illegal vapes, including to under 18s, can also be reported to your local Trading Standards office.

What we at Ecigone are doing

Everything we sell comes through the UK supply chain, MHRA notified and TPD compliant. Part of our range was produced before 1 October 2026, which the law lets us sell unstamped until 31 March 2027, so you will see stamped packs arriving alongside it over the winter. From 1 April 2027 every vaping product we sell will carry a duty stamp.

Our guide to UK vaping laws covers the rest of the rules that decide what can be sold in the UK.

What is still to be confirmed

HMRC has not yet said how customers will scan digital stamps, or which app or website will check them. We will update this guide when it does. The official detail on the scheme is on GOV.UK's how vaping duty stamps work page.

Vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking but it is not risk-free, and it is intended for adult smokers and existing vapers. If you do not smoke, do not vape. For free support quitting smoking altogether, visit the NHS stop smoking services.