The High Court ruled on May 15, 2026, that the Malaysian government's 2023 decision to remove nicotine vape liquids and gels from the Poisons List under the Poisons Act 1952 was irrational and made without proper consultation with the Poisons Board [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. The court granted a judicial review application filed by three NGOs in July 2023: Malaysian Council for Tobacco Control, Malaysian Green Lung Association, and Voice of Children [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
Judge Datuk Aliza Sulaiman said the exemption was primarily motivated by economic considerations to enable taxation of nicotine vape products, as announced in the 2023 Budget, with revenue intended for health initiatives. She added, "If I can put it rather crudely, it was almost like a done deal," and that "The consultation under the law must be conscious, meaningful, purposeful and effective. In this case, there was no physical meeting between the minister and the board, nor any further discussions after the board unanimously rejected the proposal... The alleged consultation by the first respondent was merely formal compliance" [1, 2, 4, 5].
The exemption allowed nicotine vape liquids to be sold unregulated for about 17 months, from March 1, 2023, until the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 came into force on October 1, 2024 [1, 2, 4, 5]. This created a legal loophole during which vape products escaped Poisons Act controls. The 2024 Act now regulates vape products including nicotine liquids and bans sales to minors [1, 2, 6, 7, 8].
The Ministry of Health and former Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa defended the 2023 exemption as a necessary step to regulate, tax, and control a widespread vape market that was previously unchecked, saying, "The exemption was intended to bring the multi-billion-ringgit vape industry into a regulated framework so authorities could monitor, tax and control the products more effectively instead of allowing the trade to continue unchecked underground." She also said, "The decision taken in 2023 was a bold step that ultimately succeeded in protecting public safety under Act 852, which is currently in force" [6, 7, 9, 8].
The Health Ministry announced plans to appeal the High Court ruling at the Court of Appeal [6, 7, 9, 8].
The Malaysian Pharmacists Association supported the High Court ruling, urging the government to accept it and re-regulate nicotine liquids as poisons to protect public health and youth. Chairman An Lasee said, "Public health safeguards must never be compromised for administrative convenience or fiscal objectives. Nicotine is a pharmacologically active, addictive substance that requires proper regulation" [10, 8].
At the time of the exemption, enforcement under the Poisons Act was ineffective in curbing illicit vape sales, especially black market nicotine vapes [6, 7].
Media were initially barred from covering the judicial review ruling despite the court being open, but the ban was lifted after media intervention and a directive from the Chief Judge of Malaya [11, 12].
