Can You Bring a Vape on a Plane from Bali?

Yes, but only in the cabin: a vape or e-cigarette must travel in your pocket or carry-on bag, is banned from checked baggage, and cannot be used or charged during the flight. This applies on every airline flying out of Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport because it comes from ICAO standards and the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations. What usually gets travellers into trouble is the destination country. All rules below were checked in October 2026.

Why can't a vape go in checked luggage?

The lithium battery can overheat and catch fire if the button gets pressed inside a suitcase. In the cabin the crew can deal with it straight away; in the hold nobody can see it. ICAO banned e-cigarettes from checked bags in 2016, and IATA lists them as dangerous goods that passengers may carry under these conditions:

• Cabin or on your person only.
• Battery up to 100 Wh (or 2 g of lithium for lithium-metal batteries). Ordinary vapes are far below this.
• Protected from accidental activation: switch it off, lock the button, or remove the battery or pod.
• No use and no charging on board.

Spare vape batteries are treated like power banks: cabin only, terminals covered. The Wh limits and quantities are in our power bank rules article.

What does Indonesian regulation say?

Reports by Katadata and CNBC Indonesia (30 March 2025) cite Directorate General of Civil Aviation Circular No. 12 of 2024: one e-cigarette per passenger, in a pocket or cabin bag, switched off or with the battery removed, battery up to 100 Wh, and refill liquid up to 100 ml in a plastic bag. We could not find the circular's text on an official Ministry of Transport site, so treat "one device" as a safe limit rather than a certainty. Smoking on aircraft has long been banned under Law No. 1 of 2009 on Aviation.

It is enforced: Garuda Indonesia took action against a passenger vaping on flight GA1904 in March 2025, citing that circular.

What do individual airlines say?

• Garuda Indonesia, Lion Air, Batik Air, Citilink, Indonesia AirAsia: follow the DGCA and IATA rules above. Batik Air states its whole operation is smoke-free, e-cigarettes included. We found no vape-specific baggage page on the official Garuda, Lion, Citilink or Indonesia AirAsia sites, so ask at check-in if you carry more than one device.
• Qantas: its official dangerous goods page says vapes are allowed in the cabin without airline approval, not in checked bags, must be protected from accidental activation, and may not be used or charged.
• Jetstar and Virgin Australia: equivalent rules: cabin only, no approval needed, no use or charging. Virgin Australia adds "personal quantities only".
• Singapore Airlines: states the 100 Wh or 2 g lithium limit, cabin only. Carrying a vape through Changi is still risky; see Singapore below.

What about vape liquid?

E-liquid counts as an ordinary liquid at cabin security: maximum 100 ml per container, all containers in one clear bag of roughly 1 litre. A 120 ml bottle will be confiscated even if nearly empty, because the container size is what counts. Liquid without a battery may go in checked baggage, but seal it well, as cabin pressure often makes caps leak. Full cabin-liquid rules are in our article on liquids in cabin baggage.

Can I take a vape to Australia?

Only within tight limits. Since 1 July 2024 vapes in Australia are sold only in pharmacies. According to the TGA (Therapeutic Goods Administration), arriving travellers may bring at most 2 vapes, 20 accessories (pods, cartridges, capsules) and 200 ml of liquid, and these must be for treating yourself or someone in your care on the same flight. Sources differ on whether a prescription is required for this exemption; carry a prescription or doctor's letter if you have one and check the Australian Border Force page before flying. Anything over the limit is seized at the airport.

Singapore and Thailand: do not bring one at all

• Singapore: the Tobacco and Vaporisers Control Act has applied since 1 May 2026. According to gov.sg (updated 1 September 2026), individuals can be fined up to S$10,000 for possessing a vape. Vapes containing etomidate ("Kpods") carry fines up to S$20,000 and/or up to 10 years in jail. Foreign visitors caught with a vape have it seized and are fined, and repeat offenders can be barred from entering Singapore. This also applies to transits that pass through immigration.
• Thailand: importing e-cigarettes has been banned since 2014. Penalty figures differ between sources (up to 10 years in prison and fines that are multiples of the goods' value), and foreign tourists have been fined or detained. The Thai embassy advises not bringing a vape at all.
• Malaysia and Japan: the rules keep shifting. Malaysia has fully enforced Act 852 since 1 October 2025, and Japan treats nicotine e-liquid as a medicine. Check the official customs site before you travel.

I'm still in Bali. Where can I vape?

At the airport, only in designated smoking rooms, not in toilets or gate lounges. Outside the airport, Bali's no-smoking zones also cover e-cigarettes; the zones are explained in our article on smoking and vaping rules in Bali.

One practical step before heading to the airport: empty or remove the pod, keep the device and liquids in the bag you can pull out fastest at the X-ray, and never tuck a vape into a suitcase you are checking in. When screeners find one in hold baggage they usually call the passenger or open the bag, which can cost you your flight.