Australia isn’t the easiest country to live in for a vaper. Vaping-related substances are heavily regulated, to the point where vape stores are prohibited from selling nicotine vape juices.
So, if I want it, where can I buy nicotine e-liquid in Australia? Thankfully there’s a safe and legal way to procure your vital supplies.
Terms To Know
In case you’re new to vaping, here are the key terms to be aware of:
- E-Cigarette: An electronic cigarette.
- Vaping: Inhaling vapour, sometimes containing nicotine, as an alternative to smoking.
- E-Liquid: The stuff you smoke/inhale when vaping.
- Nicotine/nic: The active ingredient in cigarettes that can be safely consumed outside the medium of smoking.
How to Get Nicotine Vape Juice in Australia
It’s actually pretty easy to get nicotine vape juice in Australia. All you need is internet access, a way to pay online and a bit of patience.
Right now, there’s no way for a customer to venture into a physical location, pick up the juice and skip away merrily. No nicotine liquids or e-liquids containing nic are currently sold in Australia, even in pharmacies and by prescription. You can get a prescription for e-cigarettes and e-liquid, but you still can’t get it in Australia.
You need to buy your nicotine e-liquid online from companies overseas. As strange as it may sound to import nic, this is perfectly legal. There are no current import laws against buying nicotine for vaping while in Australia; you just can’t buy it from within the country itself. It’s not sold anywhere within Australia’s borders, even online.
Once your nic e-liquid arrives, it won’t get taken away by customs, and nobody’s going to run up to you on the street, screaming, asking where you got the substance and threatening to put you behind bars. It’s a simple process, albeit a slightly unorthodox one compared to most countries.
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Jim Lawson, Editor
Can I Import Nicotine Based Liquid To Make My Own Vape Juice?
The importation of nicotine base liquid is the same as importing pre-mixed e-juice containing the substance. It’s fine to import it as long as you follow the rules, which we’ll discuss later in the article. It’s not nic e-liquid, specifically, that has these rules—it’s the nicotine to go in the liquid.
You can find a huge range of vape juice flavours in vape stores around Australia; they just won’t contain any nic. So here, you can use the undiluted nic you imported, add it to the juice and vape away without a problem.
You can buy your e-liquid online, too; it’s all about your preference and what’s most convenient for you.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWifXDGHZQg
How Much Nicotine E-Liquid Can I Order?
There are two rules when a vaper is importing liquid nicotine or e-liquid flavours containing nic. They’re easy to understand and follow and are in place for your safety and to ensure you’re not mass-purchasing and illegally selling the nic in Australia.
$1,000 GST Threshold
You should keep any order under $1,000—and that’s Australian dollars, even if you’re buying from another country with their own dollar currency. Over that figure, you will be charged 10% Goods and Sevices Tax (GST).
This price should reflect the base price of your order. If you have a coupon, discount code, or there’s a sale on, and your order comes to $800, but it’s worth $1,200, you’re out of luck. Customs only cares about what the order is worth.
Three and 15-Month Supply
While staying under budget, you have to be sure you’re not buying more than a 3-month supply of nic vaping liquid. Once you acquire that, you can’t buy more than a 15-month supply in a year.
So, while technically you could order five 3-month orders back to back—one arrives, and you place the next order—that’s all you can do for the year. You have to be careful about your usage because it’s 12 months before you can import nic again if you go over.
How Will the Law Changes From 1 Oct 2021 Affect Me?
On October 1st, 2021, you’ll no longer be able to do anything mentioned above with such ease in Australia. There’s no mention of the quantity you can buy changing—the 3-month supply or $1,000 rule—but you won’t be able to decide how much nic you buy.
Instead, you’ll only be able to acquire flavours containing nic in Australia, online or otherwise, with a valid prescription from your registered doctor. This is to stop people who’ve never been into smoking cigarettes, particularly younger people, from vaping without need.
Vaping nic-containing liquid flavours will only be allowed if you’re a regular smoker who’s trying to quit. Then your doctor will prescribe you what they see fit, and that’s the end of it.
If you’re already started smoking and are trying to quit, this won’t impact you too much. You can make an appointment, talk to your doctor, and get that prescription ready. In fact, your life will be easier as this law states that e-liquid with different nicotine strengths will now be available in pharmacies all around Australia.
Non-smokers who became dependent on vaping may also acquire nic with a prescription, although the law mentions nothing about it. Talk to your doctor and see what they think—they may recommend another nic treatment, like patches or gums, which will remain available over-the-counter.
Regular e-liquid flavours without nicotine will still be available without a prescription in Australia, too.
Frequently Asked Questions
| Question | Answer |
| Is vaping 0 nicotine bad for you? | Vaping with no liquid nicotine isn’t bad for you, and some experts consider it safer than vaping with nic—so if you enjoy vaping but can cut out nic, it would be wise to do so. |
| Does Amazon sell e-liquid with nicotine? | No, Amazon doesn’t sell anything containing nicotine as it’s prohibited. |
| Does Amazon have vape juice? | No, Amazon doesn’t sell e-liquid even when the liquid doesn’t contain nicotine. |
Final Words
It’s easy to buy e-liquid in Australia when you know how, but it’s about to become much more difficult for non-smokers. You can still vape when the new law passes; you just won’t be able to vape nic.
If you really need your nic fix in Australia, consider switching to gum or patches. If not, visit your physician and discuss a prescription if you think it’s what you need and get flavours containing nic at your local pharmacy.
