Over MVR 200K in vape fines in October

In October, a total of MVR 226,000 was imposed for violations related to vaping and e-cigarettes.

According to police statistics released on Thursday, 35 people were fined last month for vape-related offences:  

• 15 people were fined for using vape and e-cigarettes.  

• 19 people were fined for possession of vape and e-cigarettes.  

• One person was fined for buying or selling vape and e-cigarettes.

Police said the total amount of fines imposed was MVR 226,000. Of this, MVR 104,000 was for usage. MVR 97,000 was for possession, and MVR 20,000 was for buying and selling. The remaining MVR 5,000 was fined for other vape-related offences.

The government decided to ban vaping at a time when many Maldivians, including schoolchildren, were affected by the growing trend. It is now illegal to import or trade vape products in Maldives, and action is being taken against those who do so.

Vape-Related Statistics | 1–31 October 2025

In October, total of 25 vape/ e-cigarettes related incidents were reported, and 35 individuals were fined for offences involving the use or possession of vapes and e-cigarettes. pic.twitter.com/6Nc8JLDaiE

— Maldives Police (@PoliceMv) November 6, 2025

According to the Tobacco Control Act, a person can be fined MVR 10,000 for giving a vape for free. Anyone who uses vape is fined MVR 5,000. Selling vape products carries a fine of MVR 20,000, with an additional MVR 10,000 for each vape sold.

Vaping was officially banned in Maldives on December 15 last year.

After the import duty was increased and vape was banned, cigarettes and vape products began to be smuggled in. As a result, the state loses revenue from import duties, Deputy Speaker of Parliament and Dhuvaafaru MP Ahmed Nazim said recently.

However, compared to the past, vape sticks are found in fewer schools in the city, Minister Ismail Shafiu had noted recently.

Maldives has also made global headlines for its bold move to implement a generational smoking ban, the first of its kind in the world. Under the new regulation, anyone born on or after January 1, 2007 is permanently prohibited from purchasing or using tobacco products. The policy has been praised by international health experts as a historic step toward building a tobacco-free generation, placing Maldives at the forefront of global anti-smoking reform.