Nicotine Pouches in India: Legal Status, Regulation and Health Concerns

Nicotine Pouches in India Latest News

• A new study led by the ICMR-National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research has found that nicotine pouches are reaching Indian cities through online platforms, hookah shops and gig delivery services. 
• The study follows a warning by the World Health Organization in May 2026 about the health dangers of these products. Yet it remains unclear which Indian law, if any, governs them.

About Nicotine Pouches

• A nicotine pouch is a small, tobacco-free, tea-bag-like sack. It contains nicotine, flavourings and plant-based fibres. 
• Users place it between the lip and gum for up to an hour. Nicotine is absorbed directly into the bloodstream. 
• There is no smoke, no vapour and no spitting. This makes the product discreet and easy to use, which adds to its appeal among young consumers.

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Why COTPA Does Not Apply

• The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA) regulates the marketing, advertising and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products. However, it does not cover every product containing nicotine.
  • COTPA’s definition of tobacco products is limited to items listed in the Act.
  • Nicotine pouches are not among the listed products.
  • Restrictions on the freedom of trade and commerce must be strictly interpreted. Courts cannot stretch the law to cover unlisted products.
• If Parliament wanted to cover every extract of the tobacco plant, it could have said so. Since it did not, nicotine pouches fall outside COTPA.

The Debatable Position under the Drugs Act

• The status of nicotine pouches under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 is unclear. There are arguments on both sides.

Argument for coverage

• Nicotine is not listed as a drug in any schedule of the Act. But nicotine patches and gums have been approved as drugs by the Drug Controller General of India for treating nicotine addiction. 
• Schedule K of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 exempts gums and lozenges containing less than 2 mg of nicotine from licensing and prescription requirements. 
• If nicotine were not a drug at all, there would be no need for such an exemption. 
• This suggests that all other nicotine products are meant to be regulated under the Act.

Argument against coverage

• Pouches are different from patches and gums. They make no therapeutic claim and do not aim to treat addiction. 
• They are simply a substitute for cigarettes. On this reading, they are not drugs.

Why the Vape Ban Does Not Cover Pouches

• The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019 (PECA) bans the import and sale of vapes. The very need for PECA shows that the Drugs Act did not give the government enough power to ban vapes. 
• Nicotine pouches differ from vapes in two important ways: they contain no electronic device, and they produce neither smoke nor vapour. Hence PECA does not apply to them.

Could Pouches Be Treated as Food?

• The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act and the Food Safety and Standards Act define food very broadly. 
• Food includes any processed, partially processed or unprocessed substance meant for human consumption. 
• Court rulings on supari and chewing tobacco have held that this definition covers items that are chewed rather than swallowed. 
• It is therefore arguable that nicotine pouches could fall within the definition of food.

The Import Framework

• Import restrictions in India flow from two laws:
  • Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992: Empowers the Central government to prohibit, restrict or regulate imports. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) administers this and publishes the ITC-HS classification, listing which goods are free, restricted or banned.
  • Customs Act, 1962: Section 11 allows the government to prohibit goods by notification, including on grounds of protecting human, animal or plant life.
• After the World Customs Organization updated the Harmonized System, new sub-categories were created for oral nicotine products that do not involve combustion. 
• Code 2404 91 30 covers tobacco-free single-use pouches (Zyn or Lyft type). Code 2404 91 90 covers other non-therapeutic oral nicotine products.
• Under the DGFT schedule and the rules of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, goods under 2404 91 30 are “restricted”. This means:
  • They cannot be cleared merely on payment of duty, unlike “free” items.
  • They are not banned outright, unlike “prohibited” e-cigarettes.
  • They require a specific licence or permission, for which the DGFT consults the health and other ministries.

The Duty-Free Shop Question

• Nicotine pouches are currently sold at a few duty-free stores at Indian airports. These stores are licensed under Section 58 of the Customs Act. 
• In Flemingo Duty Free Shop Pvt. Ltd. v. Shri Kaushik Bhattacharya (2024), the Calcutta High Court held that a duty-free store does not “import” goods into India, as it is deemed to be located outside India for customs purposes.
• However, this does not mean Indian law is absent from duty-free shops. If it were, such shops could stock arms and ammunition, and no court or police station would have jurisdiction over crimes committed there. That would be absurd. 
• Only specified goods such as cigarettes, alcohol, jewellery, watches, food and small electronics are permitted at duty-free shops. 
• Nicotine pouches are not on this list, unless they are classified as food. Given their “restricted” status, it is unlikely that any import licence has been granted.

The Way Forward

• The legal position is complex, but the solution is simple. 
• A notification under the Customs Act and the Foreign Trade Act banning the import and sale of nicotine pouches on health grounds can be issued within minutes. 
• The lesson from vapes is clear: the government acted slowly, demand became entrenched, and the eventual ban led to large-scale smuggling.

Source: TH