Profits from illegal vape sales to go up in smoke under Qld crackdown

Shops selling illegal vapes are in the Queensland government’s sights as it moves to financially disrupt the booming underground market and add to the impact of a federal crackdown.

Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls revealed the government was looking at more extreme measures to interrupt supply chains by imposing greater fines on retailers.

Queensland Health officers can currently issue a $3200 fine for individual retailers, and $10,000 for corporations.

Shops selling nicotine vapes illegally could face bigger fines under a state government crackdown.Credit: Brook Mitchell

“At the rate they’re selling these vapes and illicit tobacco, that is just a drop in the ocean, that is like a flea bite to some of these operators,” Nicholls said.

“We currently have 350 to 400 stores under surveillance ... by the time we get to court, where the bigger penalties are ... they have already recouped the funds.”

However, Nicholls did not provide any details about the increase in fines or when to expect the legislative reform.

“I think we want to make sure that they’re right, and we want to make sure that we’re not just sort of having multiple bites at the cherry,” he told reporters.

“The aim is to take away the financial incentive and make it more expensive to carry out the business than the profits generated.”

In October 2024, the federal government made sweeping changes to the sale of vapes, making it illegal to buy them from anywhere other than pharmacies.

Small retailers and corner stores, which have traditionally sold cigarettes, lost a significant market when pharmacies became the only place to sell vapes containing nicotine.

However, Nicholls said the laws have not gone far enough to provide a deterrent.

“A closure for 72 hours means someone just gets a long weekend,” he said.

“What we want to be able to do is hit them in the hip pocket, so if they’ve got a long weekend, they’re not using it to go to Hampton Island.”

AAP