Singapore is turning up the heat on vaping (especially drug-laced “K-pods”) with a sweeping crackdown that affects residents, visitors, and even transiting passengers.
Singapore’s New Vaping Rules: Fines, Caning, Deportation, and Jail Time
Vaping has been banned in Singapore since 2018, but starting September 1, 2025, enforcement is being dramatically stepped up. The government is responding to a surge in vapes laced with etomidate, known locally as “K-pods,” after tests revealed the anesthetic in one-third of confiscated samples. In response, etomidate has been reclassified as a Class C drug, triggering much harsher penalties.
- Possession & Use (Regular Vapes): Adults face a S$700 fine, youths under 18 pay S$500, and repeat offenders may face up to S$2,000 in fines, up to 10 years in prison, and mandatory rehabilitation.
- Etomidate Vapes (K-pods): Users may face fines, up to six months rehabilitation, and criminal charges. Importers risk 3–20 years in prison plus 5–15 cane strokes, while distributors face 2–10 years in jail plus 2–5 strokes of the cane.
- Foreigners & Pass Holders: Travel pass holders (short- or long-term) can lose their passes, be deported, and permanently banned from re-entering after multiple offences. Transit passengers entering via Changi may be subject to confiscation and local fines.
- Schools, Workplaces, & Uniformed Services: Students face detention, suspension, caning (boys), loss of scholarships, or expulsion. Civil servants risk dismissal and demotion, while SAF personnel may face penal costs under military law.
Public and high-visibility enforcement features prominently. Changi Airport is installing vape-disposal bins and issuing frequent transit announcements. Schools are deploying saliva test kits, and authorities are expanding campus patrols and community education campaigns like the “Don’t Toy With Your Life” initiative.
How This Impacts Travel
I mentioned above that there will be amnesty bins at Singapore Changi International Airport (SIN). I would take those seriously…
In Singapore, you go through security screening at the gate of your flight. Transiting passengers who never even enter Singapore may still face fines (or worse) simply for possessing vapes when transiting from one flight to another. Don’t risk it…dump the vape.
Health Minister Ong Ye Kung warned, “Now you have to listen to quite a few announcements. Drugs are very serious. Chewing gum is not allowed. And vapes, please dump them.”
But Singapore’s Home Affairs Minister Kasiviswanathan (“K.”) Shanmugam explained that going after transit passengers may not be a top priority:
“But if you are an abuser, and you are transiting through Singapore, and we notice… A question we’ll have to assess is, how much resources do we want to expend by arresting you, bringing you in(to) Singapore and then giving you rehabilitation? We’ll have to take a sensible approach on these things.”
But that doesn’t mean you should tempt fate by disregarding clear rules (as Kung mentioned, PA announcements in SIN will also remind passengers of the new rule).
CONCLUSION
Singapore’s crackdown transforms vaping from a health issue into a full-blown drug enforcement priority. The message is unambiguous whether you’re local, a visitor, or just transiting. If you’re thinking of carrying a vape device to or through Singapore, this should be your wake-up call…I’ll not comment whether I think this is sound public policy, but if it were going to come from any nation, it is no surprise it is coming from Singapore.
Hat Tip: One Mile At A Time
So they’ve actually outlawed the possession of vapes?
That’s ridiculous given that smoking is permitted in open air bars etc. I’m sure the second-hand smoke from the cigar I smoked while enjoying my drink at Mel’s Place was exponentially more harmful to those surrounding me than any kind of vapour.
My large cigars have never harmed anyone , said Groucho Marx and George Burns .
Vapes on the other hand , are clearly for morons , such as the total imbecile in the photo .
Unfortunately , Singapore is also home to the rapacious banks which despoil the jungles of Borneo for the evil palm oil plantations .
Post of the day!
Good luck enforcing this. Especially for transit passengers. The irony being that Changi is brimming with crowded smoking rooms for traditional cigarettes that are far more harmful.
Countries who have banned vaping saw huge increases in people returning to conventional cigarettes. The very practical approach is one suggested by the WHO which is to have them regulated as prescriptions for smoking cessation to adults.
As to these K Pods…have no clue what they are but it’s probably no more addictive or stimulating as some of the high potency energy drinks. And probably accounts for a tiny fraction of users.
The reality is that they will drive more people towards the black market or smuggling them in from Malaysia. The product will be questionable. Singapore will lose tax dollars. It will solve nothing and cost a fortune to enforce.
In Singapore, the screening of transit passengers is taken very seriously, it was only last year someone was executed for carrying drugs when stopped in the airport. If they have banned vapes, I would take it very seriously or face the consequences if you prefer because you will almost certainly be caught.
The solution is clear – it’s time to grow a pair, and quit nicotine.
Understanding these kpods are made laced with a variety of dangerous drugs ( ketamine amphetamines and aesthetics ) They indeed should carry a strong penalty. If they resemble traditional vapes it makes sense to eliminate both as we don’t want toy guns that look real. Good for Singapore.
That would be anesthetics not aesthetics. I need coffee.
This seems like a case of “it’s illegal because it’s illegal.” I personally think vaping is stupid, but if cigs and alcohol are permitted, I’m not sure what they’re trying to accomplish by banning vapes which really don’t harm anybody other than the user. I almost wonder if the intent is to keep people on cigarettes because they generate more tax revenue.
There is no provision for a foreign tourist to be caned for possession of token amounts. Zero. Won’t happen. The law provides for a fine.
In Singapore, about 2 years ago, it was big news that the police fired a gun while on the streets. I think it was the first time in 7 years that had happened.
Just another reason to avoid this 3rd world sh#thole, even if I think vapes are for losers.
But let’s face it, we all love to see a good caning of an American dumb enough to go there and break their laws.
Please visit and behave the way you do on here, they’ll soon have you over that frame in a prison and I’m sure 24 strokes might help you to mend your ways.
It’s actually a very smart place, unlike the third world dump you inhabit.
As mentioned to OMAAT (provided the tip since I learnt this 2 days ago). Officially, Singapore is the only country in the world, along with India and DPRK that actually confiscates tourist vapes interestingly. Heck, even Russia doesn’t care one bit as an American (weirdly)
I have no issues with this law, I think it’s great. It just makes no sense to enforce it on departure but not arrival. Same in India.
Agreed.
It’s pretty clear from the story that the ban is in response to vape juice that’s spiked with etodimate, an old-fashioned drug that was used for general anesthesia and IV sedation. The Singaporeans are probably aware that THC comes in vape form as well. The best was to fix the problem was to ban it all together, which is a typically Singaporean response. For all its economic prosperity, Singapore really is a tightly-controlled police state which lacks many of the freedoms that we in the West take for granted.
Good. Keep out the unsavouries.
I’d be careful with comments like “zero chance this will be enforced against foreigners”.
I used to live in Singapore and the government has a track record of enforcement. As soon as a new like this goes into effect, there will be a police sweep, a few locals will be caught & convicted to maximum fine; a few foreigners will loose their residency & be deported , it will be published all over the media as a message to everybody – and people will fall in line or suffer the consequences…
They did this with people not wearing masks during Covid, so I’d bet they won’t be lenient here…
Just a friendly reminder… even if a country allows you to transit without going through passport control, you’re still subject to that country’s laws. Being a transit passenger doesn’t give you diplomatic immunity.