How Strict Is Singapore's E-cigarette Ban? Nearly 18,000 People Have Been Arrested For Possessing And Using E-cigarettes in The Past 15 Months.

On May 16, the Ministry of Health and the Health Sciences Authority of Singapore stated that after the government stepped up law enforcement efforts, nearly 18,000 people had been arrested for possessing and using e-cigarettes from January 2024 to March 2025.
During the past 15 months, the Singapore police have seized e-cigarettes and related components worth over 41 million Singapore dollars (approximately 230 million yuan, with 1 Singapore dollar ≈ 5.58 yuan).
The Health Sciences Authority has also led 50 operations against large-scale e-cigarette smuggling groups, prosecuting 27 offenders, including 20 men and 7 women aged between 20 and 46, for failure to pay fines, and has taken another 60 e-cigarette sellers to court.
Authorities said that those who fail to pay e-cigarette fines on time will face harsher penalties, such as higher fines or longer imprisonment.
Among the 60-person criminal gang, two were involved in a large-scale e-cigarette smuggling case worth over 5 million Singapore dollars. One of them, Ivan Sin, was fined 16,000 Singapore dollars and sentenced to 10 months in prison, while the other, Toh Wee Leong, was fined 14,000 Singapore dollars and also sentenced to 10 months in prison. Authorities said this was the harshest sentence ever imposed on e-cigarette smugglers.
The mastermind of another smuggling group involving over 6.5 million Singapore dollars was arrested in October 2024, and the investigation is ongoing.

During the 15-month period, officials from the Health Sciences Authority and the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority inspected 20,800 travellers at air, land and sea checkpoints and found 101 people carrying e-cigarettes. The Health Sciences Authority also stepped up cooperation with local e-commerce and social media platforms, removing over 6,800 online product listings offering e-cigarettes. Another 15 people were fined for posting photos or videos of e-cigarettes on their social media accounts.
The Health Sciences Authority reminded those caught vaping to pay their fines on time and added that failure to do so and being prosecuted in court would result in more severe consequences.
Under Singapore's laws, the import, sale, possession and use of electronic cigarettes are completely prohibited. Those who possess, use or purchase electronic cigarettes can be fined up to 2,000 Singapore dollars. Those who import, distribute, sell or provide electronic cigarettes and related components for others to sell can be fined up to 10,000 Singapore dollars or imprisoned for up to six months for the first offense, or both.