The Tobacco and Vapes Bill has completed its passage through Parliament, paving the way for a major overhaul of how tobacco, vapes and nicotine products are sold and regulated across the UK.

The bill has now passed both the Commons and the Lords and is awaiting Royal Assent, after peers agreed the final Commons amendments on 20 April. Once that final step is completed, it will become law.

The headline measure is the creation of a “smoke-free generation”. The legislation makes it an offence to sell tobacco products, herbal smoking products and cigarette papers to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009, meaning those customers will never legally be sold tobacco.

The bill also goes wider than tobacco. It gives ministers powers to regulate the sale, packaging, flavours, display and product standards of vapes and other nicotine products, while also banning the advertising and sponsorship of vapes and nicotine products such as nicotine pouches.

It also closes loopholes by banning the sale of all vapes and nicotine products to under-18s.

That is particularly significant for nicotine pouches, which have until now sat outside much of the existing nicotine rulebook.

In a recent parliamentary answer, the Department of Health and Social Care said there are currently no legally established nicotine limits for pouches, with products on the market ranging from 2mg to 50mg or more per pouch.

The department said the bill will introduce an age-of-sale restriction of 18 for nicotine pouches and ban their advertising and sponsorship, with further consultation on product limits and other future regulations still to come.

The legislation also hands government broader enforcement powers.

According to the government’s factsheet, it enables a future licensing scheme for the retail sale of tobacco, vapes and nicotine products in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, strengthens Scotland’s retail register, and provides for fixed penalty notices of up to £200 for offences including underage tobacco and vape sales.

Markus Lindblad, head of legal and external affairs at Haypp, said one of the most important parts of the bill was that it finally gives government the power to regulate nicotine pouches properly.

He said: “A critically important element of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill is that it gives the government the power to regulate nicotine pouch products.

“Nicotine pouches do not contain tobacco nor produce vapour, so they fell outside the scope of existing nicotine product laws. Introducing regulations such as an 18+ age-of-sale and an upper limit of 20mg of nicotine per pouch will help send the message that these products are for adult nicotine users only.”

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