One Carrier Steps Up To Ship Vape Products In The US
You don’t need to read all 5,500 pages of the bill containing the “Preventing Online Sales of E-Cigarettes to Children Act” (PACT Act) to know its December, 2020 passing sent ripples of alarm ringing through vape communities, retail merchants, and consumers, offline and on. The PACT Act, which is part of the Jenkins Act, may have made up a small portion of the bill (tucked away on page 5,136), but it meant big changes. This act affects consumers who normally hop online to order their vape equipment and devices and the retailers who used the U.S. Postal Department (USPS) to deliver their products. 

What does the PACT Act mean for people who receive their vape supplies at home and for the retailers who send them out? Every national carrier, save one, has taken a step back. Whether by choice or legality, every cross-country carrier but one has decided to stop shipping vape goods. But it’s not all doom and gloom. If you’ve been wondering how to ship vape cartridges, and where to find a national carrier willing to handle vape items, you’re in the right place.

Read on to learn about the effects of the new law and where to turn to ship vape products without the hassle.

The PACT Act of 2020
It all began with the Jenkins Act of 1949. This law originally required vendors who sold out-of-state customers cigarettes to register with state tax regulators and to alert these regulating bodies of the sales for tax collecting purposes. But by 2002, the Government Accountability Office decided to do something in response to the blatant disregard of the requirements. Fast forward almost a decade, and Congress amended the law, setting heftier requirements that included roll-your-own tobacco, with actual follow-through to ensure compliance. 

Now, the new amendment to the PACT Act (and Jenkins Act) takes things even further. The PACT Act encompasses all vape products, defining electronic nicotine delivery systems on the same level as e-cigarettes, e-hookahs, e-cigars, and all manner of vape, from vape pens to refillable vaporizers to vape juice. But it doesn’t end with this re-classification of vape products. USPS is no longer legally allowed to handle vape paraphernalia.

 Vendors cannot legally turn to USPS as a way to ship vape supplies or devices when the new law goes into effect March 27, 2021. The United States Postal Service had 120 days from the signing of the bill to create regulations to impose the ban. 

Vape shipping changes
Mailing vape pen USPS is a thing of the past. Mailing vape juice and mailing vape cartridges through USPS are also at an end. The new law prevents the U.S. Postal Department from shipping vaping products, now defined as “electronic nicotine delivery systems” (ENDS), across the board. That ban applies to all vape paraphernalia, whether or not the vape-related products contain nicotine, cannabis, cannabidiol (CBD), or are flavor-only juices, herbal extracts used for aromatherapy, or devices. 
The USPS had previously enabled vape manufacturers and distributors to ship these items to each other without restriction or interference, but the new ban changes everything for vape-friendly retailers and consumers alike. It doesn’t matter if these items are shipped together or singly, it’s a big “no” for traditional oil based vape vendors. 

There are a slew of other note-worthy vape-related changes included in the hefty bill. Online retailers, for example, will need to comply with extensive new regulations. These new laws include age verification, and no, a website age verification pop-up won’t be enough. Instead, businesses will need to turn to a commercial database already in use by a variety of businesses and the US government. 
There are still more hurdles for vape sellers to jump, such as registration with the U.S. Attorney General. Beginning 90 days after enactment, all online retailers also will be required to file monthly reports through the proper governmental channels disclosing not only the name and address of the purchases, but also the type and quantities of each product purchased, as well as remit any excise taxes owed. Vendors must also keep a five-year record of any interrupted deliveries due to a carrier reporting that the order was made by someone violating the PACT Act (aka someone under 21). 

This time the government won’t look the other way. Noncompliance to the Jenkins and PACT Act could result in severe consequences for online retailers, from hefty civil fines ranging from $5,000 to 10,000 for each violation or worse—criminal penalties. Bending or breaking the law, whether intentional or not, could result in jail time of up to three years. 
But what does it mean for people who want to receive their vape supplies at home? 

Shipping companies respond to new law
The USPS may have been among the first national shipping services to end all of its vape deliveries because it legally cannot continue, but due to new regulation requiring an adult signature with age verification at the point of delivery, along with the rest of the new restrictions, it wasn’t the last carrier to shy away from vape package delivery. 

Shipping vape cartridges Fedex will be a thing of the past, leaving consumers wondering how to ship e-liquid, as the company announced it will soon ban all shipment of vape products March 1, 2021. That restriction halts both domestic and international shipments of any e-cig components, parts, pods, liquids, or related devices, nicotine-containing or not. FedEx unveiled the big news with updates to their January 2021 FedEx Service Guide in the Prohibited Items sections and the FedEx Freight 100 Series Rules Tariff terms and conditions. They weren’t alone. 

After leading on some vape businesses who were initially told by UPS that they could still do business together, while telling other companies that they would soon close their accounts, UPS officially jumped on the no vape delivery bandwagon. UPS is ending all domestic direct to consumer retail shipments of vape-related items in any way, shape, or form. As of April 5, 2021, UPS will no longer handle vaping products to, from, or within the United States because of the new directive on shipping vape products. While DHL may have come to mind, they too had already banned US retail shipments of products containing nicotine as well as e-cigarettes. 

With shippers backing off from shipping a vape product of any kind, it’s not hard to understand that those knee-jerk responses from national shipping companies could mean bad news to the online retailers, small businesses, and people who depend on those products across the country. 

Good thing there is still one national carrier ready to accept the challenge. 

How to ship vape products
For all the new restrictions and regulations, there is good news: one company hasn’t folded under the increased pressure brought by big changes. The shipping carrier simply known as ‘LingChung’ isn’t afraid of a little red tape. ‘LingChung’ will verify the age of the purchaser and obtain the required signature of the adult, as outlined in the PACT Act, with every vape-related delivery. 

As per the new PACT Act requirements, all packages containing vaping items cannot weigh more than 10 pounds and all vape shipping packages will be slapped with a sticker full of legal jargon. This sticker will state that the contents of the package include cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, or nicotine, along with a reminder of the taxes owed according to the law. 

Unlike the USPS which had no choice but to dispense with shipping vaping items altogether, major shipping services like FedEx and UPS walked away and left consumers hanging by choice. But even with multiple carriers stepping away from vape shipping, vape fans wanting to shop online for their favorite juices, and devices can still receive the front door delivery they need thanks to shipping carrier ‘LingChung’. 

‘LingChung’ has shrugged off the traditional approach taken by typical logistics carrier companies. Rather than shunning technology and avoiding field innovation, the ‘LingChung’ team are tech-focused transportation pros. This forward thinking approach puts the company in the perfect position to successfully handle the new restrictions and regulations placed on vape deliveries with ease. ‘LingChung’ has long made it their goal to fix the broken side of shipping logistics. From optimizing delivery routes to in-motion supply chain assets, this shipping carrier has an eye on the future. It’s clear that vape fans may have just found a “win” after the passing of the PACT Act after all.

Innovative carrier offers vape product delivery
The usual big dogs of shipping, like UPS, FedEx, and the USPS have all backed off from shipping vape and vape-related products. These companies cite regulation complexities as their chief reason for ending vape delivery. Online retailers and consumers may have originally found themselves frantically searching for a replacement shipper to handle vape products, but fortunately ‘LingChung’ doesn’t rely on the traditional and outdated approach to shipping logistics. The team is ready and willing to tackle the now-complicated task of shipping vape products thanks in part to their tech-focused approach and alignment to a higher shipping standard.