UK Vape Tax 2026
Longfills after the vape tax: the cheapest way to keep vaping in 2026
When the UK Vaping Products Duty starts on 1 October 2026, it adds 22p per millilitre plus VAT to every e-liquid. You cannot vape around the duty, but you can change how much you pay for the liquid it sits on. That is why longfills and DIY mixing are set to be the big value format after the tax: the duty is the same on everything, so the winner is whatever has the lowest pre-tax cost per ml, and nothing beats a concentrate plus your own base. Use the mixing calculator below to build a recipe, then see exactly how the tax applies and how to stock up.
Longfill mixing calculator
Set your bottle size, concentrate, nicotine and PG/VG ratio. The calculator gives you the exact recipe: how much base, VG, PG and nicotine to add.
Your bottle
Flavour concentrate
Flavour concentrates are treated as 100% PG (the industry norm).
Nicotine
PG / VG ratio
Mix in this order: flavour, nicotine, then VG and PG to top up. Shake well and steep a few days for best flavour. Amounts are by volume.
Why longfills win once the tax lands
The duty is a flat charge on liquid volume, not on how the liquid is made or how strong it is. A 0mg shortfill, a 20mg nic salt and a longfill mix all pay exactly the same 22p per ml plus VAT. So once the tax is in, the only lever left is the pre-tax price of the liquid, and that is where longfills and DIY have always been cheapest: a small concentrate turns into a big bottle once you add your own base. The tax does not change that ranking, it sharpens it.
Illustrative
What you pay per 10ml after the tax
The duty is the same on every format, so the pre-tax price is where longfills win.
Example figures, retail prices vary. The point is the format, not the exact price.
Shop the value formats now: longfills, 50/50 base, high-VG base and nic shots.
How the tax applies to a DIY mix
It is worth being straight about this, because some guides are not. The duty follows the liquid, so every vaping-grade part of a home mix is taxed: the flavour concentrate when you buy it, the VG and PG base, and any nicotine shots. There is no part of a normal longfill build that escapes the duty. A 60ml bottle made from a 20ml concentrate plus base and a nic shot is taxed on the full 60ml, the same as a 60ml premixed bottle.
Every vaping-grade part of a mix is taxed
A 60ml longfill, all bought as vaping products. Nothing here is duty-free.
Duty plus VAT on the full 60ml:
£15.84
Concentrate, base and nic shots bought for vaping all carry the duty. Source: HMRC.
So longfills are not a way to dodge the duty. They are simply the cheapest way to carry it, because the liquid underneath the tax costs less per ml than any premixed bottle.
What the duty covers
The Vaping Products Duty applies to substances intended for vaping, whether or not they contain nicotine. HMRC names VG, PG, flavour concentrates and nicotine base as constituent parts of a vaping product, so all of them carry the duty when sold for vaping. Products sold for other purposes sit outside the duty, but for safety we only recommend inhalation-grade base and nicotine bought as vaping products from a UK retailer.
Longfill vs shortfill vs premixed
All three now carry the same duty per ml. The difference is the pre-tax cost and how much control you get.
A small concentrate makes a big bottle. You set the strength and PG/VG. Best value after the tax, a little effort to mix.
Add one nic shot to a ready base. Cheaper per ml than premixed, less fiddly than a full DIY mix.
Ready to vape in 10ml bottles, but the highest pre-tax cost per ml, so the most expensive once the duty is added.
Stock up before 1 October 2026, at today's prices
There is a built-in sell-through window: stock produced before 1 October 2026 can be sold without the new duty until 31 March 2027. Longfill concentrate and unflavoured VG/PG base both keep well when stored cool and sealed, so this is the one format where buying ahead genuinely pays off. Nicotine shots have a shorter life than plain base, so buy those to a sensible level rather than years ahead.
Ecigone will hold enough pre-duty stock to cover the window, so you can build up your longfill and base supply now while prices are lower.
How to mix a longfill
It is simpler than it looks. Add your flavour concentrate, then your nicotine, then top up with VG and PG to your chosen ratio. Shake well and let it steep for a few days for the best flavour. The calculator above gives you the exact ml of each, and the equivalent in 10ml nic shots, so there is no guesswork. For a fuller breakdown of the tax itself, read our companion guide on how much e-liquid is going up and when.
Longfill and DIY FAQs
Duty facts confirmed from HMRC guidance: Introduction of Vaping Products Duty from 1 October 2026, and the Vaping Products Duty and Vaping Duty Stamps manual (constituent parts of a vaping product). This page is general information, not tax or medical advice.