How to quit vaping in Australia: rules, pharmacies and Quitline

The rules, as the TGA sets them#

From 1 July 2024, therapeutic vapes for quitting can only be sold at participating pharmacies, and not at other retail outlets.² Tobacconists, vape shops and convenience stores cannot sell any kind of vape. You also can't buy one from an overseas retailer or website for personal use.³

The pharmacist-only route has conditions. Before supplying a therapeutic vape for quitting, a pharmacist has to:

• be satisfied that supply is clinically appropriate for smoking cessation or managing nicotine dependence
• request and sight evidence of your identity and age
• tell you the product is not included in the ARTG, and get your informed consent
• give professional advice on registered alternatives, dose and frequency, and interactions with other medicines
• make sure the quantity does not exceed one month's supply in any one month
• give you contact details for cessation support services²

The prescription route covers the rest. A prescription is needed for people under 18, for nicotine above 20 mg/mL, and where state or territory law requires one.⁴ Pharmacies also choose whether to stock vapes at all: "Pharmacists cannot be compelled to stock or supply therapeutic vapes, regardless of whether a patient holds a prescription."² That is the main reason to ring ahead.

The products themselves are a separate question. The TGA says "There are currently no vapes for smoking cessation or the management of nicotine dependence included in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG)."⁵ The products that can be supplied are on the TGA's notified list, and the TGA notes they "have not been assessed by the TGA for quality, safety and efficacy or performance."⁶

Where your state changes things#

The national pathway only applies "where state and territory laws allow."⁴ Two examples are clear from official sources. In Western Australia, nicotine vapes can only be supplied with a prescription from a registered medical practitioner, and pharmacists there cannot supply them over the counter, whatever the nicotine concentration.⁷ In Tasmania, the state health department says adults still need a doctor's prescription to buy e-cigarettes, e-liquid and vaping devices from pharmacies.⁸

For every other state and territory, check your state health department before you go. The pharmacy route applies only where state and territory law allows it.

Your options in Australia that don't depend on a vape#

Quitting doesn't have to start at the pharmacy counter. The government and Quit sites list these options, and each one can be reached without a vape purchase.⁹¹⁰¹¹

The RACGP guidance for doctors says the aim for anyone who vapes should be the same: "Advise all patients who vape that the aim is to become nicotine free." It also says Quitline counselling "is available Australia-wide," and points to quit.org.au for digital tools such as My QuitBuddy.¹²

If you have an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander background, or you use a local service, ask about it when you call. The Quit page for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities says you can "call 13 7848 and ask to speak with a counsellor for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities," and that a callback usually comes "within 2 business days."¹⁰

What to say at the pharmacy#

Ring first and ask whether the pharmacy supplies therapeutic vapes at all. If it does, this short script covers what you need. Adapt the words, but keep the questions.

1. "I'm 18 or over and I'm trying to quit vaping. Can I talk to a pharmacist about a therapeutic vape?"
2. "Do you supply therapeutic vapes at 20 mg/mL or less, and is the one you have on the TGA notified list?"
3. "Would you say that's clinically appropriate for me, or would nicotine replacement or a prescription suit me better?"
4. "What do you need from me? I have my ID with me."
5. "What advice do you give on dose, frequency and any medicines I take?"
6. "Can you give me the number for a cessation service, such as the Quitline?"

Expect the pharmacist to do the checks listed above before anything is supplied. If the answer is no, ask why, and ask your GP about the prescription route.⁴

Where to go next#

Nicotine replacement is available without a prescription, but it works differently from a vape, and the evidence for vaping is thin. Nicotine replacement therapy for vaping compares the types and lists what to ask your pharmacist. If you want to cut the nicotine in your vape first, how to lower your vape nicotine strength step by step is the practical version. The full plan, including the parts that have nothing to do with pharmacies, is in how to quit vaping.

Run your daily quit plan in ExHale

We built ExHale to run the day-to-day side of this plan, whichever Australian route you take: the Quitline, your pharmacist or your GP. A short quiz sets your personal quit plan, with one calibration week and then weekly nicotine step-downs that adapt to what you actually log. You log each puff and craving with one tap, and when a craving hits, the craving SOS opens box breathing, 4-7-8 breathing, quick minigames or a turn-based battle with Reddington, your pixel quit buddy. Open your Stats screen before a Quitline call or a pharmacy visit, and you can give the counsellor or pharmacist your real daily numbers instead of a guess.

Questions about quitting vaping in Australia#

References#

1. TGA. Therapeutic vapes available without a prescription following consultation with a pharmacist (media release, 1 Oct 2024). www.tga.gov.au/news/media-releases/therapeutic-vapes-available-without-prescription-following-consultation-pharmacist
2. TGA. Vapes: information for pharmacists (last updated 6 Nov 2025). www.tga.gov.au/products/unapproved-therapeutic-goods/therapeutic-vaping-goods/vaping-hub/vapes-information-pharmacists
3. TGA. Vapes: information for individuals and patients (last updated 1 Oct 2024). www.tga.gov.au/products/unapproved-therapeutic-goods/therapeutic-vaping-goods/vaping-hub/vapes-information-individuals-and-patients
4. Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing. Vaping laws. www.health.gov.au/vaping/new-laws
5. TGA. Access pathways for therapeutic vaping goods. www.tga.gov.au/products/unapproved-therapeutic-goods/therapeutic-vaping-goods/access-pathways
6. TGA. Notified vape list: goods for smoking cessation or nicotine dependence (last updated 2 Oct 2026). www.tga.gov.au/products/unapproved-therapeutic-goods/therapeutic-vaping-goods/vaping-hub/notified-vape-list-goods-smoking-cessation-or-nicotine-dependence
7. WA Health. Electronic cigarettes in Western Australia. www.health.wa.gov.au/articles/a_e/electronic-cigarettes-in-western-australia
8. Tasmanian Department of Health. Vaping. Accessed 5 Nov 2026. www.health.tas.gov.au/vaping
9. Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing. Quit support. Accessed 5 Nov 2026. www.health.gov.au/give-up-for-good/quit-support
10. Quit. Quitline for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities. Accessed 5 Nov 2026. www.quit.org.au/en/how-to-quit/quitline-for-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-communities
11. Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing. Going vape-free. Accessed 5 Nov 2026. www.health.gov.au/vaping/going-vape-free
12. Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. Supporting smoking and vaping cessation, Part 2: Vaping cessation (September 2024). www.racgp.org.au/getmedia/924ba55d-dc47-41f9-bf5b-7a4cf9e19963/RACGP-NVP-and-Vaping-Cessation-September-2024.pdf.aspx