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If you want to travel with your vape juice, it’s very important to keep up with the latest regulations because the laws relating to what you can travel with – and what you need to do in order to travel with those items – are always changing. Airlines aren’t going to walk you through the process of packing your items for travel, so it’s your responsibility to know what the regulations are and to comply with them. Moreover, it’s also your responsibility to know what the laws are in your destination country and to ensure that you’re in compliance with them.
So, can you still bring Vape Juice on an airplane in 2023? The answer is that you can – so there’s no need to worry there. However, nearly all items that relate to vaping have special packing requirements if you want to fly with them. In this article, we’re going to explain those requirements to ensure that you can travel with your vape gear safely. Before we begin, though, we have an important note for you.
Always Check the Laws Before You Travel
Before you bring your vape juice on an airplane, it’s important to note that although this information is correct to the best of our knowledge at the time of publishing, travel regulations can change quickly and without notice. In addition, different nations have their own laws regarding the importation, sale and possession of vape gear.
- Some countries allow you to import and possess vape gear and also allow the domestic sale of vaping products with nicotine.
- Some countries allow you to import vaping products but do not allow domestic sales of those products.
- Some countries only allow the sale of vaping products without nicotine.
- Some countries do not allow the sale or possession of vaping products at all.
You need to know what the legal situation is in your destination country before traveling there, and that’s your responsibility – so make sure that you spend an appropriate amount of time conducting research before you go.
Why Are There Special Laws About Bringing Vape Juice on an Airplane?
So, why is it important to know how to bring vape juice on an airplane in 2023? One reason – which you probably surmised from reading the section above – is that no two countries handle vaping in exactly the same way. It’s completely legal in some countries and restricted or banned in others. The other reason is because airlines always have special rules regarding how to pack potentially hazardous items. Liquids and batteries are two of the most common things that you’ll encounter in the world of vape gear, and they’re both considered hazardous. Therefore, you’ll have to comply with special requirements when traveling with either of those items.
Here’s how to pack your vape juice and other vape gear for traveling by air.
How to Pack Your Vape Juice and Vaping Hardware for Traveling
If you want to bring your vape gear on an airplane, the different types of items that you might want to bring will fall into three categories.
- Vape juice (liquids)
- Vaping devices (batteries)
- Disposable vapes (liquids and batteries)
Since those three categories of vape gear each have their own hazardous items or combinations of hazardous items, you’ll need to comply with slightly different requirements when traveling with them.
How to Bring Vape Juice on an Airplane
Vape juice is a liquid, so it falls under the rules that govern flying with liquid items. Those rules are as follows.
- You can bring vape juice in your carry-on baggage with restrictions.
- You can bring vape juice in your checked baggage with no restrictions.
If you want to bring vape juice in your carry-on bag, here’s how to do it.
- Get a quart-sized zip-top bag. All of the liquids, gels and creams that you intend to put in your carry-on baggage need to fit in this one bag.
- Make sure that any bottles of vape juice you intend to bring in this bag are no larger than 3.4 oz (100 ml). This limit applies to all liquids, gels and creams.
- Seal the vape juice and all other liquid items in the zip-top bag and place the bag in your carry-on baggage.
- Remove the zip-top bag and present it for separate inspection when you go through the airport security checkpoint.
If you want to bring vape juice in your checked baggage, you can bring as much as you like. However, it’s still a good idea to pack your bottles in a plastic bag because liquids may leak at high altitude in a non-pressurized environment.
How to Bring Vaping Devices on an Airplane
Vaping devices use lithium-ion batteries, so they fall under the rules that govern flying with those types of batteries. The FAA also has specific rules governing vaping devices, which means that they aren’t allowed in your checked luggage under any circumstances.
- You can carry a vaping device only in your pocket or in your carry-on baggage.
- You can bring spare vaping batteries in your carry-on baggage with appropriate protection.
Whether you decide to travel with your vaping device in your pocket or in your checked baggage, you’ll want to make sure that the device is deactivated and can’t fire accidentally. You can do that by turning the device off – usually by pressing the fire button five times – or by removing the battery. If the device has no fire button and can’t be turned off, you can remove the pod or cartridge.
You should never travel with loose vaping batteries in your pocket due to the potential fire risk resulting from those batteries touching other metal objects. Instead, you should put spare batteries in your carry-on bag. Put the batteries into a dedicated carrying case to ensure that they won’t touch each other or other items in your bag.
How to Bring Disposable Vapes on an Airplane
If you want to bring disposable vapes on an airplane, it’s a special case because the devices have both liquid and batteries – and you can’t remove either. Therefore, you can’t pack disposable vapes in your checked luggage.
You should put disposable vapes in your checked baggage only. Since the devices contain liquid, you should place them in the same one-quart zip-top bag that you use for carrying your other liquid items. You should leave the devices in their original packaging if possible. If that’s not possible, leave their original protective tabs in place to prevent accidental activation.
According to the FAA rules cited above, you are also allowed to carry a vaping device in your pocket. Simply present it along with the other items in your pockets when you go through airport security.
