A New “Transport Code” for Vaping Devices in Russia and Other Eurasian Regions?

Today, “Atomization New Forces” learned from overseas sources that the Eurasian Economic Union will adopt a “unified cargo code” to track the transportation of e-cigarette products, meaning there will be new rules for vaping product transport.

According to information obtained from the official website of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), the Eurasian Economic Commission has established a unique numbering structure for cargo transportation using navigation seals. These rules apply to goods transported by road or rail under customs transit procedures, including goods subject to special economic measures in one or more member states, such as alcohol, cigarettes, and tobacco products (including vaping products). Cargo information will be tracked through telecom operators in each EAEU member state.

This is a new change developed under the Agreement on the Use of Navigation Seals for Tracking Transportation in the Eurasian Economic Union.

This “transport code” will help participants in information exchange automatically identify the unique identifier of each specific shipment during data processing, without manual intervention. At the same time, the numbering rules ensure there is no possibility of duplication. Approval of the agreement will improve the efficiency of using navigation seals, enable tracking at every stage of transportation, eliminate additional control measures by authorities in EAEU member states, and remove other commercial and administrative barriers.

This measure affects vaping transport rules in Russia and other countries, because the main member states of the EAEU include Russia, as well as Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Armenia.

In fact, on the labeling side, Russia will officially implement the “Honest Label” system starting in April. At that time, e-cigarettes without an “Honest Label” will not be able to pass through local customs, and products without the label will not be allowed to circulate in the market. At the same time, in September last year, Decision No. 152 of September 23, 2022, of the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission established separate import dates and marking procedures for e-cigarettes and atomization devices within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). At that time, the European Economic Commission (ECE) stated internally that the procedure would be completed and announced within six months.

Therefore, this development deserves special attention, particularly from Chinese companies exporting vaping products to Russia. As the world’s fourth-largest consumer market, Russia is also drawing significant attention from the industry.