US import block on vapes could cut illegal sales by a third, BAT says 

By Emma Rumney

Thu, February 12, 2026 astatine 8:13 AM CST 2 min read

By Emma Rumney

LONDON, Feb 12 (Reuters) - A imaginable U.S. determination to artifact imports of immoderate disposable vapes could chopped the booming marketplace for ‌unregulated e-cigarettes by arsenic overmuch arsenic a third, British American Tobacco's ‌CEO told Reuters connected Thursday, though immoderate interaction is improbable earlier 2027.

Tobacco giants including BAT and ​U.S. Marlboro-maker Altria person spent years warring a flood of mostly Chinese-made vapes that deficiency U.S. authorisation for merchantability but person inactive travel to predominate the world's largest marketplace for smoking alternatives.

BAT estimates unregulated devices marque up astir 70% of U.S. e-cigarette ‌sales, hitting some its ⁠vape and accepted baccy businesses. The institution has 2 progressive cases astatine the U.S. International Trade Commission, seeking to artifact imports ⁠of unregulated devices.

Last year, an ITC justice ruled successful BAT's favour successful a patent quality and recommended a wide exclusion bid that would artifact disposable vapes infringing its ​patents. BAT ​said alongside yearly results connected Thursday that ​it expects a afloat ITC ‌determination successful March, followed by a 60-day statesmanlike review.

CEO Tadeu Marroco told Reuters that specified a artifact could person a meaningful interaction connected the market, which helium defined arsenic a driblet to beneath 50% of manufacture sales, oregon by astir a third. But the standard was hard to predict, helium added.

He besides warned ‌that a agelong U.S. proviso concatenation for specified ​devices and ample inventories would hold immoderate effect. "So ​even if you get the ​support from the ITC ... it volition not beryllium until aboriginal ‌next twelvemonth that you person a worldly ​impact connected that," ​he said.

Marroco besides said helium would not beryllium amazed if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration launched a programme to trial a antithetic attack ​to vapes, perchance including flavoured ‌vapes. After years of rejecting astir applications for caller nicotine products, ​the FDA has looked to velocity up oregon streamline its processes.

(Reporting ​by Emma Rumney. Editing by Mark Potter)