By Timothy S. Donahue
Top Takeaways:
- The government invoked Article 49.3 on Jan. 20 to advance the “revenue” portion of France’s 2026 budget.
- In the compromise, Article 23 — a vaping provision that proposed an e-liquid tax and tighter controls — was abandoned.
- Bureaucrats and vape-industry groups criticized the withdrawal and urged clearer oversight and a tailored regulatory framework.
France’s government dropped a key vaping provision from its draft 2026 finance bill after invoking Article 49.3 of the Constitution on Jan. 20 to advance the “revenue” section of the state budget.
Defence Minister Sébastien Lecornu, acting for the government, invoked the government’s responsibility for the budget text — a mechanism that allows adoption without a vote unless a no-confidence motion succeeds — and the final package of amendments excluded Article 23, a contested clause regulating vaping products.
According to CNEWS, Article 23 would have revisited tobacco taxation and introduced a new excise-style tax on nicotine e-liquids, while also imposing tighter rules on vape products, including enhanced health-safety and traceability measures and steps to reduce youth access.
France’s tobacconists’ group, the Confédération des buralistes, said the withdrawal was “another incomprehensible disappointment” for a retail network that has called for a secure distribution framework for certain categories, including CBD and vaping products.
It warned that sales remain available through channels such as vending machines, fairs, and late-night grocery outlets, arguing that weak oversight could pose risks to consumers and public health.
France Vapotage, representing French producers and distributors of e-liquids, also criticized the move, saying the government set aside a revised version of Article 23 that the group said was broadly adopted by the National Assembly on Jan. 15.
The group argued that the parliamentary version would have supported consumer safety and product quality while protecting the economic sustainability of the French vaping sector, and urged policymakers not to treat vaping products as tobacco products.
