Trading Standards' Tobacco and Vapes Act training: what vape businesses should prepare next

CTSI's June business training is a useful prompt for adult UK vape retailers to get their Tobacco and Vapes Act preparation in order, but it is not the legal source. The practical job now is to separate what is already confirmed in the Act, what has a stated intended date, and what still depends on regulations, guidance or nation-specific orders.

For retailers and operators, the main preparation areas are straightforward: age-verification processes, staff training, refusal records, promotions, website copy, evidence files and monitoring for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, according to GOV.UK, and the exact legal detail should be checked against the Act and official government updates rather than training summaries alone (GOV.UK).

The Chartered Trading Standards Institute scheduled a DHSC-funded business session for 26 June 2026 for businesses selling tobacco and vapes. CTSI describes the session as covering new offences, changes to existing offences and amendments to current legislation, with the focus on England while also highlighting Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (CTSI).

That matters because the Act is not one single switch-on moment. Some provisions are already in force, some point to autumn 2026, some to January 2027, and some need later regulations or guidance. A retailer that waits for every final detail before doing anything risks rushing staff training and record-keeping. A retailer that treats every power in the Act as an active duty today risks overcorrecting before the rules are settled.

The sensible middle ground is a readiness file: a living folder that records what the business has checked, what policies have changed, what staff have been told and which official sources are being monitored.

The first compliance risk is mixing the dates together. The Act received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026 (GOV.UK). Section 175 says Parts 1 to 4 generally come into force six months after Royal Assent, subject to listed exceptions, which points to 29 October 2026 for much of the sale and distribution framework (section 175). Section 175 separately brings the listed tobacco age-of-sale provisions fully into force on 1 January 2027 (section 175). DHSC has also said the Government intends the advertising and sponsorship restrictions to come into force across the UK from 1 June 2027, with secondary legislation and guidance to follow (DHSC).

If you need the wider context, read our broader explainer on UK vape laws in 2026. This article stays focused on retailer preparation.

For vape retailers in England and Wales, section 10 makes it an offence to sell a vaping product or nicotine product to someone under 18 (section 10). Section 175 points to 29 October 2026 for section 10 so far as it is not already in force (section 175).

That makes age verification the obvious starting point. Retailers should not rely on informal habits at the till. They need written procedures, staff training, refusal records and a simple way to show that the rule has been communicated consistently.

Section 15 also needs attention because it creates an England and Wales offence around giving away relevant products or coupons, or selling them at a substantial discount, where the purpose or effect is to promote relevant products including vaping products or nicotine products (section 15). Section 175 points to 29 October 2026 for section 15 so far as it is not already in force (section 175). The practical step is to audit offers and promotions now, especially free distribution, coupons, loyalty mechanics and heavy discounts.

1. Write or update the shop's age-verification procedure for vaping and nicotine products, including what staff should do when ID is refused or unclear.
2. Check till prompts, online age-gate flows and delivery procedures so the under-18 rule is reflected in each route to sale.
3. Refresh refusal logs and make sure staff know where to record attempted underage purchases or refused transactions.
4. Review giveaways, coupons, loyalty offers and substantial discounts for promotional risk under section 15.
5. Keep a training record showing who was briefed, when, and which version of the procedure they received.
6. Add section 10, section 15 and section 175 to the business readiness file so future checks can be traced back to primary legislation.

This is not about guessing future enforcement priorities. It is about making basic operational controls visible before the October window arrives.

The 1 January 2027 date should be kept separate from vape age-sale preparation. In England and Wales, section 1 makes it an offence to sell tobacco products, herbal smoking products or cigarette papers to a person born on or after 1 January 2009 (section 1). Section 175 says the listed section 1 tobacco provisions come fully into force on 1 January 2027 (section 175).

Do not describe that generational-sale rule as if it applies to vape products. For mixed retailers, the training point is the distinction. Staff need to understand that tobacco checks will involve a birth-date rule from 1 January 2027, while vape and nicotine product sales involve under-18 controls under section 10 (section 10).

A simple staff card can help, provided it is checked against final guidance: one line for tobacco products, herbal smoking products and cigarette papers; one line for vaping and nicotine products; one line for what to record when a sale is refused.

DHSC said on 1 June 2026 that the Government intends the comprehensive advertising and sponsorship ban for vaping and nicotine products, herbal smoking products and cigarette papers to come into force across the UK from 1 June 2027 (DHSC). The same DHSC update says retailer websites should still be able to provide factual product information, while content designed to encourage or promote purchase may be captured (DHSC).

The Act's advertising provisions are broad enough that retailers should start auditing language before the final date. Section 119 covers designing advertisements in the course of business where the purpose or effect is to promote a tobacco product, herbal smoking product, cigarette papers, vaping product or nicotine product (section 119). Section 121 covers distributing advertisements in the course of business where the purpose or effect is to promote those products (section 121). Section 126 sets out a defence for certain public-health campaign advertising relating to non-branded vaping or nicotine product categories under public-authority arrangements (section 126).

For most retailers, the practical preparation is a content audit. Review product pages, homepage banners, category intros, email templates, paid ads, affiliate copy, window posters and in-store point-of-sale wording. Separate factual information from language that urges, glamorises or incentivises purchase. Our guides to factual vape website product information after 2027 and the UK vape marketing audit checklist for 2026 are useful follow-up reading.

This is also the right moment to tighten sign-off. A retailer should know who approves website changes, who signs off email copy, who can create discount campaigns and where final versions are stored.

Not every power in the Act is a final instruction to retailers today. Display and price restrictions are a good example. Section 13 gives the Secretary of State power to make England regulations imposing prohibitions, requirements or limitations on the display of relevant products, empty packaging and prices, and it includes consultation and procedure requirements (section 13). Section 14 gives Welsh Ministers equivalent powers for Wales (section 14). That means retailers should monitor and prepare, but should avoid treating a regulation-making power as if final display rules have already been published.

The same caution applies to product, packaging, contents, flavour and information changes. Section 176 says Part 5 came into force on Royal Assent (section 176), but many practical changes in this area depend on regulations made under those powers. The safe wording is that powers are now in place, not that every possible future rule is already an active retail duty.

Retail licensing and registers are also jurisdiction-specific. Section 175 says England retail licensing provisions come into force on a day appointed by Secretary of State regulations, Wales licensing provisions by Welsh Ministers' regulations, Scottish age-verification and retailer-register extensions by Scottish Ministers' regulations, and Northern Ireland register or licensing provisions by Department of Health in Northern Ireland order (section 175).

The operational answer is a four-nation watchlist. If a business trades online across the UK or operates stores in more than one nation, it should not assume one update answers every compliance question.

A useful readiness file does not need to be complicated. It needs to be current, source-based and easy for managers to use.

• Create or update a written age-verification procedure for vaping and nicotine products.
• Train staff on the October 2026 vape and nicotine product rules and the January 2027 tobacco generational-sale distinction.
• Keep refusal records, staff-training logs and supplier or product compliance evidence in one place.
• Audit free distribution, coupons, discount mechanics, loyalty offers and bundled promotions.
• Review website, email and in-store wording against the intended advertising restrictions and current marketing-compliance caution.
• Assign one person or role to monitor England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland updates separately.
• Keep primary-source links in the file, including GOV.UK updates, legislation.gov.uk sections and any later government guidance.
• Record decisions when no immediate change is made, so the business can show it considered the issue rather than missed it.

The key is discipline. A short monthly check against official sources is more useful than a one-off panic audit that is forgotten before the next commencement date.

CTSI's training is a useful reminder that the Tobacco and Vapes Act is moving from Westminster process into operational planning. The best preparation is calm and documented: know which dates matter, update staff processes, review promotions and website copy, and track the rules separately for each UK nation.

Retailers should not treat every power in the Act as an active duty today. Equally, they should not wait until the week before a commencement date to decide who checks ID, who signs off promotions or who monitors government updates. This article is general information for adult-sector operators, not legal advice. Store-specific decisions should be checked against the legislation, official guidance and qualified legal or Trading Standards advice.

• CTSI: Businesses Introduction to the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026
• GOV.UK: Tobacco and Vapes Bill becomes law
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 175
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 176
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 1
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 10
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 13
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 14
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 15
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 119
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 121
• Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, section 126
• DHSC Media Centre: Ending the advertising and sponsorship of vaping and nicotine products from 1 June 2027