Deputy Chair of DPR Commission VII Pushes for Balanced Regulation of E-Cigarettes

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Deputy Chair of DPR Commission VII RI, Lamhot Sinaga, is pushing the government to formulate balanced regulations for the e-cigarette industry, namely by safeguarding public health without sacrificing the industry’s sustainability.

Lamhot stated that the state must be present to protect public health and, at the same time, consider the industry’s sustainability as well as the fate of workers who depend on it for their livelihood.

“A good regulation is one that can balance health protection and economic sustainability,” said Lamhot in a statement received in Jakarta on Tuesday.

According to him, a total ban approach on e-cigarettes or e-cigarette liquids could potentially cause widespread economic impacts, from layoffs to reduced state revenues.

The e-cigarette industry has become part of the national tobacco products industry that contributes to the economy.

Therefore, he said that regulation of the sector must be done proportionally and based on data, not merely through a restrictive or limiting approach.

“If it is then banned outright, the effects will not only be on the industry, but also on workers, state revenues, and export earnings. This must be thought through comprehensively before making a decision,” he said.

Lamhot explained that the e-cigarette industry began developing in Indonesia since 2014 and was officially designated as an excisable good in 2018 through Ministry of Finance Regulation No. 146/PMK.010/2017 on Excise Tariffs for Tobacco Products.

According to him, the government’s recognition of e-cigarettes as an excise object shows that the state has positioned the industry as a formal economic sector that contributes to national revenues.

He also said that the industry is experiencing rapid development. Based on industry association data, there are currently around 300 e-cigarette producers in Indonesia spread across various regions.

“From that number, the industry is able to absorb at least 100,000 workers, both directly and indirectly,” said the legislator in the industrial sector.

The fiscal contribution of the sector also shows a significant increase because excise receipts from e-cigarette products, which were still at Rp98.87 billion in 2018, jumped to Rp2.84 trillion in 2025.

In addition, the industry is also seen to be starting to show competitiveness in the global market. The value of Indonesian e-cigarette product exports in 2022 was recorded at US$164.95 million and increased to US$518.27 million in 2025.

“This shows that our e-cigarette industry is not only growing in the domestic market, but has also become an export commodity with international competitiveness. Therefore, policies towards this sector must be calculated carefully so as not to damage the current growth momentum,” he said.

Nevertheless, Lamhot acknowledges that e-cigarettes remain a product that poses health risks, so control must still be carried out strictly.

The government, he said, already has a regulatory framework to oversee the circulation and use of e-cigarettes, such as Government Regulation No. 28 of 2024 on the Implementation of Law No. 17 of 2023 on Health.

In that regulation, the government regulates various aspects related to production, advertising, promotion, sales, inclusion of pictorial health warnings, and age restrictions for use.

He added that e-cigarette products also have quality standards. There are two Indonesian National Standards (SNI) that regulate the products, namely SNI 8946:2021 for heated tobacco products and SNI 9070:2022 for e-cigarette liquids.

According to Lamhot, the existence of these national standards indicates that the government has built a measurable product quality and safety supervision system.

“Therefore, future policies should be directed towards strengthening supervision and improving standards, not with a comprehensive ban approach,” he said.

He encouraged the government to compile more implementable and moderate policy alternatives in regulating the e-cigarette industry.

According to him, a balanced regulatory approach will be more effective compared to extreme policies that risk killing the industry as a whole.

The government, he added, needs to ensure control is carried out through distribution oversight, consumer education, age restrictions, enforcement of quality standards, and promotion supervision.

“With that approach, public health aspects remain protected without having to sacrifice the economic sector that has developed,” he said.