When is a vaping product compliant in Switzerland?

The Tobacco Products Act (TabPG) and the Tobacco Products Ordinance (TabPV) have been in force since 1 October 2024. Before that, electronic cigarettes were not separately regulated under Swiss law and reached the market via the Cassis de Dijon principle — provided they complied with EU technical requirements and were lawfully on the market there.

That indirect route no longer applies. Products can now be placed on the market directly under Swiss law. But that also means Swiss requirements apply, and these only partly coincide with those of the EU.

This article sets out what a product has to meet. It does not replace a case-by-case assessment, but it names the points at which imports fail in practice.

What is covered

The TabPG covers not only conventional tobacco products but also electronic cigarettes with and without nicotine, as well as heated tobacco products. The definition of the electronic cigarette is set out in Art. 3 lit. f TabPG and distinguishes between the device and the refill material for that device.

The TabPV extends the scope to what it calls similar products: herbal products for heating, nicotine products for nasal use and tobacco-free products for water pipes. These too must comply with the TabPG.

Anyone assuming that a nicotine-free liquid or a flavour concentrate falls outside the Act is mistaken. Being nicotine-free exempts a product from individual requirements, not from the scope of the law.

Requirements for the product itself

Art. 9 TabPG governs the supply of nicotine-containing liquids to consumers. Three limits matter above all:

• Refill containers may have a volume of no more than 10 ml.
• For disposable electronic cigarettes and disposable cartridges, a tank volume of no more than 2 ml is permitted (Art. 9 lit. b TabPG).
• The nicotine content may not exceed 20 mg/ml.

The 2 ml limit has now been settled at the highest judicial level. In ruling 2C_353/2025 the Federal Supreme Court held that a tank volume exceeding 2 ml in disposable electronic cigarettes is incompatible with the Tobacco Products Act. Hybrid devices in which an additional connected cartridge extends the volume do not meet the requirement.

For importers this is the most expensive point in this article: what was affected was not a single product but an entire category.

Added to this are the requirements as to design: child-resistant and tamper-evident closures, a leak-proof refill mechanism and consistent nicotine delivery under normal conditions of use.

Labelling

This is where most objections arise, and it is also where the most common misconception lies: importing an EU-compliant product does not give you a Swiss-compliant pack.

In Switzerland the statutory health warning for electronic cigarettes containing nicotine reads «Dieses Produkt kann Ihre Gesundheit schädigen und macht stark abhängig». Its wording differs from the EU version. An adopted EU pack is therefore non-compliant regardless of how it is designed.

The mandatory particulars under Art. 10 TabPG comprise the product designation, the company name or importer registration number (Reversnummer) of the importer, and the country of production. Under Art. 9 and Art. 11 TabPV they must be applied indelibly, clearly visible and easily legible. Separate requirements govern the language, area and design of the health warning; the requirements as to area and border follow from Art. 15 TabPG in conjunction with TabPV Annex 1.

Under Art. 12 para. 2 TabPG, any reference to curative, alleviating or preventive properties is prohibited — on the product as well as on the packaging.

Exemptions apply to devices without tobacco and without liquid. We have described which ones in a separate article.

Notification requirement

Manufacturers and importers must notify their products to the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH). Notification is made via tabacinfo.ch, within one year of market launch.

Notification is not an authorisation. It says nothing about whether a product may lawfully be sold — it merely discharges a separate obligation. A notified product with defective labelling remains a product open to objection.

What applies alongside the TabPG

Tobacco products law is only one of several regimes that apply at the same time. In practice the others are regularly overlooked:

• Chemicals law. Nicotine-containing liquids are subject to classification. A safety data sheet is required, together with the corresponding labelling with hazard pictogram, signal word and H and P statements, and depending on classification a UFI code.
• Electrical equipment. Evidence of conformity must be held for battery-powered devices.
• Advance disposal fee. The fee is payable for devices containing a battery. In a market campaign by the Cantonal Laboratory of Basel-Stadt, half of the importers checked had not paid it.
• Customs and import. An importer registration number and complete import documentation are prerequisites for clearance.

Self-monitoring

Anyone offering tobacco products or electronic cigarettes on the market is obliged to verify compliance independently. If a supplier establishes that a product poses a health risk under Art. 6 para. 1 TabPG, it must take measures — up to and including withdrawal and recall.

This duty cannot be delegated. It falls on the person placing the product on the market, regardless of who is instructed to carry out the checks. What can be delegated is the checking itself — and the documentation with which due diligence can later be demonstrated.

Why this fails in practice

In 2025 the Cantonal Laboratory of Basel-Stadt carried out a market campaign on disposable e-cigarettes and e-liquids, after the one-year transitional period had expired. Of 32 samples, three were compliant. In 29 samples, that is 91 per cent, at least one deviation was found: 107 non-conformities in total, on 19 different grounds. Twenty-one sales bans were issued.

What stands out is the spread of the grounds. Failure is rarely down to a single provision, but to the fact that several regimes apply simultaneously and a product must satisfy every one of them. Resolve the labelling cleanly but overlook the disposal fee, and you still have an objection.

The order of checks

Anyone bringing a product to the Swiss market is well advised to check in this order:

• Is the product permissible at all in terms of its design? Volume, nicotine content, safety features. What fails here cannot be rescued by any packaging.
• Is there a sound safety data sheet, and is the classification correct?
• Does the labelling satisfy the TabPG, the TabPV and chemicals law at the same time?
• Have notification, importer registration number, disposal fee and import documentation been dealt with?
• Is self-monitoring documented in a way that would withstand an inspection?

The order is not arbitrary. Developing artwork before it is clear whether the product is permissible costs twice.

This article reflects the position as at 1 September 2026 and does not replace a case-by-case assessment. It is compliance information and not legal advice; binding information is given only by the competent authorities. Statutory provisions and enforcement practice may change.