Heated Tobacco National Standard Passes WTO Notification — HNB Market Entry into China Enters Countdown

On August 19, 2026, a major industry announcement was officially posted on the WTO website: China's mandatory national standard for Heated Tobacco Products (Notification No. G/TBT/N/CHN/2344) has passed the WTO/TBT notification procedure and entered the 60-day member-state comment period.

This means that the door to the Chinese market for Heat-Not-Burn (HNB) products — a new tobacco category rising rapidly worldwide — is slowly beginning to open.

I. Timeline: From Initiation to Notification, a "Fast Track" Completed in Six Months

Reviewing the pace of the heated tobacco national standard's progress, one word comes to mind: relentless.

• On April 7, 2026, the National Public Service Platform for Standards Information published the proposed-project public notice, officially launching the standard-setting process.
• On July 28, 2026, the mandatory national standard for Heated Tobacco Products (draft for comments) was released for public comment, with feedback due by September 26.
• On August 19, 2026, the standard passed the WTO/TBT notification procedure and was published on the WTO member-state trade portal.

From project initiation to WTO notification took just over four months — clearly much faster than the e-cigarette national standard of its day.

For comparison: after the e-cigarette national standard plan was issued in October 2017, it went through a lengthy comment, review, and approval process, and was not officially released until April 12, 2022 — a span of nearly five years. The heated tobacco standard, by contrast, went from initiation to WTO notification in under half a year, reflecting a marked improvement in policy-making efficiency.

II. Comparison with the E-Cigarette Standard: Projecting Subsequent Milestones

According to the WTO notification, the standard's proposed effective date is "6 months after approval." Referring to the rollout pace of the mandatory E-Cigarettes standard — roughly a 5–6 month interval from draft for comments to official release — the following can be inferred:

• Official release of the standard: late 2026 to early 2027
• Official implementation: 6 months after release, expected around mid-2027

Once the standard takes effect, products can be compliantly manufactured and brought to market in accordance with it. Multiple securities firms' research reports project that 2027 is likely to become the first year of compliant HNB sales in China.

III. Standard "Relaxation": No Restrictions on Technical Routes, No Hard Limits on Flavors

Key points of this draft for comments deserve attention:

• Clear scope of application: Applies only to "electrically heated tobacco products"; the stick and the heating device are treated as an inseparable whole.
• Source of tobacco substrate: Must be manufactured from tobacco leaf, re-dried leaf tobacco, reconstituted tobacco leaf, or cut tobacco — herbal heated products are excluded.
• Technical routes unrestricted: The heating element may be located inside the device or inside the stick; multiple technical routes are permitted.
• Flavor restrictions left open: The draft for comments does not set explicit flavor restrictions, requiring only that the product should not be inducing to minors.

Compared with the e-cigarette standard's strict limits on flavors and technical routes, the heated tobacco standard focuses more tightly on quality and safety in its core parameters, with a generally more open tone overall.

IV. The Supply Chain Is Already in Place, Awaiting the Starting Gun

The fast-tracked standard directly benefits supply-chain companies that positioned themselves early.

SMOORE International has won the bid for China Tobacco Jiangsu Industrial's 2026–2028 heated product device project, and the market share of the new Glo HILO product developed with British American Tobacco is steadily climbing. China Tobacco International (Hong Kong), as the only overseas-listed platform in the China Tobacco system, has already established a presence in HNB exports. Hengfeng Paper and Xianhe are deeply involved in specialty papers for HNB. Huabao International has accumulated strong capabilities in tobacco sheet and flavoring.

On the global front, Argentina has lifted strict restrictions on heated tobacco, with Philip Morris International planning to enter with IQOS by the end of 2026; in the U.S. market, IQOS ILUMA is awaiting FDA approval. Domestic policy and global trends are resonating in tandem, and the supply chain is entering a critical window of opportunity.

Conclusion

From the five-year marathon of the e-cigarette standard to the six-month sprint of the heated tobacco standard, the changing pace of policy itself sends a clear signal.

August 19, 2026 — the WTO notification going live is only the beginning, but the finish line is already clearly visible.

For industry practitioners and consumers alike, 2027 is worth looking forward to.