Vaping packaging rules effective July 1, 2020

Summary#

This Order sets July 1, 2020 as the day subsection 75(3) of An Act to amend the Tobacco Act and the Non-smokers’ Health Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts comes into force. In practice, that ends a temporary exemption and allows new vaping labelling and packaging rules to take effect on the same day.

What it does#

• Fixes July 1, 2020 as the coming-into-force date for subsection 75(3).
• Repeals subsection 4(4) of the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act (CCPSA), which had temporarily exempted vaping devices and their parts from the Consumer Chemicals and Containers Regulations, 2001 (CCCR, 2001).
• Aligns this repeal with the start date for the Vaping Products Labelling and Packaging Regulations, so the new labelling and packaging rules and the end of the exemption take effect together.
• The Order itself is an administrative step to set the date; the specific labelling and packaging requirements are in the separate regulations.

Who's affected#

• Manufacturers, importers and retailers of vaping devices, refillable cartridges and parts.
• Parents and caregivers concerned about child safety around vaping products.
• Anyone who needs to buy or source child-resistant packaging for vaping products.
• Health Canada is the federal department overseeing these rules.

If it is unclear who will be affected in a particular case (for example, a specific kind of device), the source material does not give more detail.

Why it matters#

• It ends a temporary exemption that delayed child-resistant container rules for refillable vaping devices and parts. That means safer packaging requirements can begin to apply.
• It coordinates when packaging and labelling rules start, so companies face both sets of requirements at once rather than at different times.
• For consumers, the change is aimed at reducing the risk that children will be harmed by access to vaping liquids or devices.
• For businesses, it signals a firm compliance date so they can plan to source compliant packaging and update labels.