Five shops in Sydney’s Inner West have been shut down after NSW Health inspectors found and seized approximately 780,000 illicit cigarettes and 2,200 illicit vapes, with a further two premises in Northern NSW also issued with closure notices.
The stores have been shut down for 90 days, with the Department saying further investigations will follow and additional enforcement action, including prosecution, may take place.
NSW Health Inspectors, together with NSW Police, have now closed down a total of 66 stores since tough new laws and closure powers targeting the sale of illicit tobacco and illegal vapes came into effect in November last year.
“We are continuing to ramp up efforts across the state to stop the sale of illicit tobacco and illegal vapes,” said Health Minister, Ryan Park.
“The recent closures should serve as a reminder for those people in the community who are doing the wrong thing that we are serious and they will be prosecuted.”
“We are actively strengthening our efforts to bolster enforcement activity and will continue to pivot our approach to target even those who feel they can evade the law.”
NSW Chief Health Officer, Dr Kerry Chant said tobacco use remains one of the leading causes of preventable death and disease in the community.
“These closures show that our teams are ready to act swiftly and are committed to having a stronger oversight of the illicit tobacco and illegal trade to help protect public health,” she said.
NSW now has some of the toughest reforms in the country for the sale and commercial possession of illicit tobacco, including:
- a new offence for the possession of a commercial quantity of illicit tobacco with a maximum penalty of over $1.5 million, 7 years’ imprisonment, or both
- new penalties for the sale of illicit tobacco with a maximum penalty of over $1.5 million, 7 years’ imprisonment, or both
- the introduction of short-term (up to 90 days) and long-term (up to 12 months) closure orders for premises selling illicit tobacco, illegal vaping goods, or selling tobacco or non-tobacco smoking products without a valid licence
- new offences and penalties for anyone who breaches these closure orders, including for entering closed premises or selling products from closed premises
- new lease termination powers for landlords where a closure order is in place
- new nation-leading offences for falsely claiming to be licensed, resisting seizure, and attempting to retake seized products.
From 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025, NSW Health Inspectors conducted around 1,700 retailer inspections and seized more than 16.2 million cigarettes, over 2650kg of other illicit tobacco products and around 215,000 illegal vaping goods with a combined estimated street value of around $24.8 million.
During this period, NSW Health also finalised 22 successful prosecutions, inclusive of a District Court Appeal, with the courts imposing a total of $784,700 in fines related to vaping goods and tobacco offences.
Interim data shows that between 1 January 2026 to 31 January 2026, NSW Health Inspectors have conducted a further 131 inspections, seizing around 560,000 cigarettes and 98kg of other illicit tobacco products and over 6000 illegal vaping goods with a combined estimated street value of around $830,000.
In this period, NSW Health has also finalised four prosecutions with the courts imposing a total of $41,300 in fines related to e-cigarette and tobacco offences. There are currently 23 prosecutions before the Courts.
More information on closure orders and penalties can be found on the NSW Health website: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/tobacco/Pages/tobacco-retailing-laws.aspx.
More information on the new Tobacco Licensing Scheme including how retailers and wholesalers can apply for a licence can be found on the NSW Health website: NSW tobacco licensing scheme.
