IEVA: Позиция срещу пълната забрана на вейп продуктите в България

IEVA’s Position on the Bulgarian Government Project to Ban Vaping Products
IEVA - the Independent European Vape Alliance - would like to express its strong concerns regarding the Bulgarian government's bill proposing a complete ban on vaping products in the country.

Независимият Европейски вейп алианс (IEVA) изрази сериозни опасения относно предложената от българското правителство пълна забрана на вейп продуктите. Според организацията тази мярка ще доведе до значителни негативни последици, включително:

• Разрастване на черния пазар с нерегулирани и потенциално опасни продукти;
• Ръст на тютюнопушенето в страна, която вече има най-висок процент пушачи в ЕС (37%);
• Затваряне на легални бизнеси и загуба на стотици работни места;
• Нарушение на правото на ЕС, тъй като България не е изпълнила задължението си да уведоми Европейската комисия.
Основни аргументи на IEVA:
• Вейпингът е доказано по-малко вреден от тютюнопушенето – Доклади на Public Health England и Institut Pasteur потвърждават, че електронните цигари са значително по-безопасни от традиционните цигари и помагат на пушачите да откажат тютюна.
• Пълната забрана няма да спре достъпа на младите хора до забранени вещества – IEVA подчертава, че легалните вейп продукти нямат нищо общо с разпространението на незаконни вещества, а реалният проблем е липсата на ефективен контрол върху нелегалната търговия.
• Черният пазар ще се разрасне – В страни като Дания, Унгария и Нидерландия, където бяха въведени ограничения върху вейп продуктите, се наблюдава бум на нелегални продажби, а потребителите преминават към некачествени и опасни продукти без никакъв регулаторен контрол.
• Забраната е в противоречие с европейското законодателство – България не е нотифицирала Европейската комисия за законопроекта, което нарушава Директива 2015/1535 и принципите на свободния вътрешен пазар в ЕС.
• Според IEVA, пълната забрана на вейпинг продуктите е крайна мярка с тежки последици за общественото здраве, икономиката и сигурността на пазара.
Организацията призовава българските власти да преразгледат предложената забрана и да въведат разумни регулации, които ще:
• Защитят общественото здраве, без да увеличават броя на пушачите;
• Запазят легалния бизнес и работните места;
• Съответстват на регулаторните изисквания на ЕС.

Прочетете пълната позиция на IEVA тук:

IEVA believes that a ban on vaping products runs several risks:

● It will lead to a boom in black market activities with dangerous, non–compliant products;
● It will lead to a rise in smoking rates, in the country with the highest smoking rate in Europe;
● It will put numerous jobs in the Bulgarian vaping industry at risk and will reinforce the tobacco industry.
In addition, IEVA considers that this ban constitutes a quantitative restriction in the internal market and is therefore unjustified under EU law.
Overall, we respectfully call on the government and Parliament to refrain from imposing a ban on vaping products, in the light of the information we provide in this contribution.
1. A vaping products ban will lead to an increase in smoking rates and will threaten public health
Many independent and publicly funded studies have highlighted the harm reduction potential of vaping products: a report commissioned by Public Health England found that vaping is 95% less harmful than smoking combustible cigarettes, and a study financed by the prestigious Institut Pasteur confirmed that vaping is significantly less carcinogenic than smoking and constitutes an acceptable replacement for traditional tobacco. Other sources pointing to the harm reduction potential of vaping can be found in studies by the Royal College of Physicians or published in the British Medical Journal. Overall, vaping products reduce the risk of cancer for smokers.
Vaping products also play a critical role in helping adult smokers to quit traditional tobacco. Peer-reviewed studies by the American Journal of Public Health and research led by the University of Oxford highlight the smoking cessation potential of vaping. The European Parliament considered in two separate reports - the report on strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer (2022) and the report on non-communicable diseases (2023) - that “electronic cigarettes could allow some smokers to progressively quit smoking”.
For these reasons, implementing a ban on vaping products will deprive smokers of a safer alternative and mechanically lead to a dramatic rise in tobacco smoking rates: current smokers will lose an effective tool to quit, and vapers will revert to smoking. This rise in smoking rates will be accompanied by a higher rate of tobacco-related diseases (cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, etc.). This would be particularly worrying, as Bulgaria has the highest smoking rate in all EU Member States (37%). This decree will therefore do more harm to Bulgarian public health than good.
2. A ban on vaping products will disable the vaping industry, cause immense financial losses and lead to a black market boom
A complete ban on vaping products is an extreme measure that would lead to the end of numerous vape shops and SMEs in Bulgaria. This measure will make a product that has legally been sold for over a decade illegal, a move that will force numerous local manufacturers, distributors, and specialised retailers to close down. At the same time, non-specialised retailers will suffer great financial losses. Concretely, hundreds of Bulgarians will lose their jobs. The Bulgarian state itself will be losing a source of fiscal revenues, as e-liquids are subject to high excise duties.
IEVA also notes that the Bulgarian government’s bill will keep traditional tobacco (cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco, etc.) legal, products that are considerably more harmful than electronic cigarettes. The ban will therefore strengthen the foreign tobacco industry (“Big Tobacco” companies are all based in non-EU countries) and undermine European competitiveness — a reckless move in the current economic climate.
It is necessary to highlight that banning vaping products will only make legal products disappear. Beyond the economic consequences for Bulgarian SMEs and for European competitiveness, the ban will create a rise in black markets selling non-compliant and potentially dangerous products. EU Member States that have introduced restrictions on vaping products, such as Denmark, Hungary or the Netherlands, saw a boom of illegal and unsafe vaping products. In Estonia, the Parliament introduced a bill to roll back such a restriction, stating that “the reduction of consumer choice and the growth of the clandestine market have led to a reduction in compliance with the law and a loss of trust in the state” and due to the use of black market products, “the health risk of consumers has increased significantly, which was until then mitigated by the mandatory laboratory control of electronic cigarette liquid established in the EU Tobacco Product Directive”.
The Bulgarian government’s bill runs a real risk to vapers’ health, all while strengthening the big tobacco industry and undermining European competitiveness. Its consequences are therefore not consistent with the public health goals that the government intends to reach.
3. Banning vaping is an extreme measure that will fail to protect Bulgarian citizens from drugs-
The Bulgarian government has justified this ban by using tragic accidents involving young people vaping substances containing synthetic drugs as examples. IEVA would like to point out that such products were already banned in the first place, and that the legal vaping industry is therefore neither responsible for their sale nor for their use.
Bulgaria, like all 27 EU Member States, prohibits the sale of vaping products to anyone younger than 18 years old and must follow the European Tobacco Products Directive (TPD), which sets a strict regulatory framework for e-cigarettes (ban on specific substances, notification requirements, ban on advertising, etc.). As the use of synthetic drugs is illegal, the issue with youth uptake and drug-containing vapes stems from a lack of adequate enforcement of this prohibition. IEVA's position on the matter is clear: non-smokers should not start vaping, and underage people should not have access to vaping products. IEVA members strictly follow European and
national legislation and are not involved with any type of narcotics (THC, CBD, synthetic drugs, etc.).
Rather than protecting citizens from dangerous drug-containing electronic cigarettes, banning legal vaping products will boost their sales, as vapers that no longer have access to legal vapes will turn to illegal dealers.
4. Legal justification of the measure and failure to comply with the EU notification legislation
IEVA would also like to express serious doubt regarding the legal justification of the measure:
a. IEVA believes the unilateral ban on vaping products will amount to a quantitative restriction in the sense of article 34 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), as the banned products can legally be sold in other Member States. This would lead to inequalities for Bulgarian customers, as it would breach the principles of the European single market.
b. The measure seems moreover unlikely to be justified under article 36 TFEU which allows for restrictions in imports or exports of goods justified on grounds of protection of health and life of humans. According to the article, the European Commission initially requires that Member States demonstrate they have genuine health concerns regarding the products, i.e. scientific evidence for the harmful effects of vaping, and a seriously considered health policy. To introduce such an exception, the suggested alternative needs to be proportionate, which entails that the national provision must be:
● Appropriate, i.e. a suitable means to attain the end with a reasonable connection between the aim and the measure;
● Necessary, i.e. Member States should choose the means which least restrict the free movement of goods if it has a choice between various measures to attain the same objective.
The Bulgarian ban bill therefore appears disproportionate. In addition to constituting a quantitative restriction on trade between Member States, the justification of protecting public health is unfounded and provides no real added value to the ban
on narcotics, as set in national legislation, which the Bulgarian authorities have a duty to enforce. This proposed law is all the more damaging in that it discredits public opinion on the effectiveness of vaping products in smoking cessation and the responsibility of marketers. It is clear to underline that vaping remains a harm-reduction tool that deserves a central place in the fight against tobacco.
Finally, the European Directive 2015/1535 requires Member States to notify the European Commission before adopting any technical regulation that could affect the internal market. Banning a product that is legal in all the other Member States constitutes an unjustified trade barrier under EU law, as it restricts the free movement of goods. The Bulgarian government must therefore notify the European Commission before it adopts this ban, which it has failed to do so far.
Conclusion
The proposed ban by the Bulgarian government presents severe risks to public health, the economy, and market fairness. By eliminating a key incentive for adult smokers to transition to less harmful alternatives, the measure risks increasing smoking rates. Additionally, it disproportionately impacts SMEs in the Bulgarian vaping industry, threatening hundreds of jobs, while favouring large foreign tobacco companies. The ban could also drive the growth of a dangerous black market, undermining public trust and regulatory compliance. For these reasons, we respectfully urge the Bulgarian government to reconsider this measure and explore more effective and proportionate alternatives to protect public health and youth.

About IEVA

The Independent European Vape Alliance (IEVA) is a European trade body that unites small and medium-sized producers and retailers of vaping products, as well as European countries’ national vaping associations. The vast majority of vaping companies are run by self-funded entrepreneurs who saw a problem in society - cigarette smoking - and created vaping products as part of the solution. We are independent and not influenced by tobacco companies.

https://eurovape.eu/bulgarias-proposed-vaping-ban-threatens-public-health-and-misconstrues-harm-reduction/