Location requirements for approval of specialist vape retailers

New specialist vape retailers (SVRs) cannot be approved if they are located within 300 metres of registered schools and marae. To be approved, new SVRs have to be at least 300 metres away from a school or marae.

Existing specialist vape retailers (SVR) and general vape retailers (GVR)

The location regulation does not apply to GVR premises. A general retailer is only allowed to sell up to three flavours of vapes – mint, menthol and tobacco. Only SVRS can sell other flavours. Read more about SVRs here.

It also does not apply to SVR retail premises that were approved before 21 September 2023. Existing approved SVRs may continue to operate if they are within 300 metres of a registered school or marae. However, if the premises is sold to a new owner, the proximity regulation would apply to the new application and will be declined.

If you are considering purchasing an existing SVR retail premises, it is advisable to check that it is located more than 300 metres from the legal boundary of any registered schools and marae in the area before completing the purchase. See the below section “How can you check if the location of a proposed SVR premises is more than 300 metres from schools and marae before applying?” for instructions on how to perform a distance measurement in google maps.

How the 300 metres is being officially measured

The VRA uses a web-based tool called a geographic information system, (GIS), to measure the straight-line distance from the proposed vape store to the legal boundary of any registered schools and marae.

The GIS tool uses the following information:

• school location data from Ministry of Education website
• marae location data from the Ministry of Māori Development—Te Puni Kōkiri website, and
• Land Information New Zealand boundary data from NZ primary land parcels and NZ facilities.

If any school or marae boundaries are located 300 metres or less from the proposed vape store the application will be declined.

How you can check if your proposed store is more than 300 metres from schools and marae before applying

Some people may like to check whether their proposed new store is more than 300 metres away from a school or marae before applying. Applicants can use our Pre-application location assessment tool if they would like to measure the distance of their proposed vape store from schools and marae. The location tool uses the same sources of information as the VRA when carrying out their assessments.

Please note the VRA will assess the distance of every application, even if you have checked yourself. The check by the VRA is the only measurement that will be considered during the assessment. You do not need to provide evidence that you have already performed this measurement as part of your application.

How to use the location tool

1. Open the tool on this link: Pre-application location assessment tool, and follow the below steps
2. Start typing the proposed vape store address into the “a) Search address” bar on the left and select the right address from the drop-down list. 
3. If you want to move the dark blue dot that shows the location of your proposed vape store (for example if your vape store is in a shopping mall): 
   1. Select the “point” tool -the vertical flag left most under location
   2. You can then move the dark blue dot on the map to the correct location using your mouse and click to set the location point.
4. The map will then show a red circle around your vape store, which is a 300 metre radius.
5. If there are any schools (dark blue shapes) or marae (yellow shapes) boundaries within 300 metres they will appear listed on the left of the page under the headings “School polygon” or “Marae polygon” on the left of the map.
6. The name of the school or marae and the straight-line distance in metres from the store will show on this list.
7. If there are any schools or marae less than 300 metres from your proposed store, then it is likely that your application will be declined if you still choose to apply.