Indiana Loosens Vape Ban on Mr Fog and Lost Mary

Following the actions of Texas, Indiana has implemented a ban on vapes manufactured in foreign adversary countries. However, the ban on vapes was loosened and excluded vapes by Mr Fog and Lost Mary. A ban on made-in-China vapes, which was deemed the strictest and once-and-for-all strategy to limit vape use, now exposes its loopholes that manufacturers can easily exploit. Let’s see what’s new about the Indiana vape ban and how it fails to do the job.

1. Timeline Of IN Vape Ban Changes

The foreign vape ban took effect on July 1, 2026, but the crackdown and enforcement began on September 9. During the implementation of SEA 185, some brands are targeted while others are exempted and become “lawful for sale in Indiana”. Let’s see the timeline to understand this better.

Now we can see clearly that during roughly two weeks of crackdown on made-in-China vapes, ATC (Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission) issued 3 notices and made 9 disposable vapes legal for sale again in Indiana. So, why did Indiana reverse these vape bans?

2. Indiana Vape Ban Targets E-liquid

Since September, 9 unique products of two different brands have been determined to be lawful for sale in Indiana by ATC. The Alcohol and Tobacco Commission of Indiana considers a unique flavor as an individual product, but we use a different method here. To know how they became legal for sale, let’s revisit the law that banned them at first.

(1) Foreign Adversary Country List

SEA 185 adopts the foreign-adversary designation in 15 CFR § 791.4, and China is on the list. The other countries are Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela (under the Maduro Regime), and none of them are known for vape manufacturing.

(2) How Does Vape Ban Work in Indiana

Surprisingly, the SEA 185 explains how a vape is regulated if any part is China-related in great detail. Here is a table of it.

In this case, finished disposable vapes with e-juice filled in China are banned. However, standalone refillable vapes and vape accessories, such as batteries, coils, and replacement parts, are excluded. Generally speaking, Indiana bans such products because Chinese e-liquid (foreign adversary products) is dangerous.

3. Loopholes Exploited by Chinese Vape Brands

A ban on vapes made in China seems efficient at first but leaves multiple possible loopholes open. In order to protect revenue, the Chinese vape brands come up with solutions creatively, but not all of them work.

Although Indiana law provides an exception for products with qualifying FDA applications pending review, we have no public information to confirm such a review exists. So, let’s take a gander at other possible methods these two brands may adopt.

(1) US Made Disposable Vapes Claims

This primitive strategy was first invented to deal with the Texas vape ban, which also targets Chinese vapes. Vape brands started to label their products with US flag symbols and “Made in US” or “Assembled in USA” stickers.

Unfortunately, such vapes are of low quality and branded like this to fool retailers rather than American vapers. The retailers are in denial and believe that “the American government won’t ban vapes produced at home”.

This action has different names and is used by other industries in China to avoid tariffs. It is infamously known as origin laundering, tariff-jumping, and circumvention.

(2) Production relocation

Other vape manufacturers seek to move the production line outside China to prevent impacts of such vape bans. Southeastern countries, such as Indonesia and Malaysia, are picked for the low cost of labor and transportation from the chosen country to China.

However, production relocation doesn’t mean the vapes you use come from a second country, at least not all parts of them. For maximized profits, there are different ways to relocate vape production:

• All from China, Origin Laundering Elsewhere
• Hardware From China, Assembled Elsewhere
• 100% Manufactured Outside China

The first type is origin laundering and thus illegal, as the place of origin is deliberately misrepresented. The second one remains risky but more reliable than the place-of-origin washing. The last option lowers the profits significantly but remains the most reliable way to bypass both Indiana and Texas vape bans.

4. Why Is Lost Mary Off the Hook?

As far as I am concerned, Lost Mary rolled out the Indonesian version of its flagship MT35000 Turbo in September 2025 unofficially. Online vape distributors often market them as Texas-compliant vapes. As fake American made vapes filled the market, the slogan switched to Made in Indonesia. Such claims are hard to confirm, as fake documents are easy to forge. However, I did find an original recruitment posting by Heaven Gifts, which owns Lost Mary, about hiring in Batam, a city in Indonesia. This occupation could somehow indicate that Lost Mary has overseas operations and partially relocates production in Indonesia.

Both Elf Bar and Lost Mary are product brands owned by the same company: Shenzhen iMiracle Technology Co., Ltd. On Sept.14, a removal notice covered products of both brands, but the Lost Mary disposable vapes were excluded merely 10 days ago. This shows what vape manufacturers need to do in the face of future vape bans. In order to keep their business going rather than relentlessly protect the profits, sacrifices must be made.

5. Mr Fog & Lost Mary Exempt Complicates the Situation

There are 9 unique vapes, and as many as 300 flavors are available to vapers in Indiana again; what’s your problem? Well, my unpopular idea is that this reinstatement complicates the situation in terms of product quality and vape prices.

(1) Possible Lower Vape Quality (Bad Flavors/Durability)

As we discussed before, vapes that are lawful for sale in Indiana have been through some adjustments. If such vapes are only labelled as not manufactured in China, they are often white-label products with one-off brands and random manufacturers. This means no after-sales service at all. The only selling point is the fake place of origin.

On the other hand, if these vapes allowed by ATC in Indiana are manufactured in a third country, partially or completely, the quality is still questionable. Although this is not Lost Mary or Mr Fog, the Reddit post named “New 2026 batch Fogers suck?” talked about the weird tastes of new Foger and a wise commenter mentioned this could be the Texas-compliant version with Indonesian origin.

To be honest, I am not suggesting the work ethic. Product line relocation adds to the cost greatly and the vape brand owners tend to make up for the profits with other sacrifices. Otherwise, they have to raise the prices.

(2) Higher Vape Prices in Indiana

No matter what kind of vape ban is implemented, vape manufacturers, distributors, and retailers need to spend more to mitigate the impact. For reckless ones, smuggling vapes requires them to bribe officials. Origin laundering is also not cheap, considering the extra rent for warehouses, transportation, and personnel. You also need to pay extra money to print labels with American flags and the made-in-US claim.

All this money spent makes retailers charge you more as the cost of vapes rises. If the price remains almost the same, we can deduce that either the US-made or Assembled in the US claim is a hoax or the production relocation is done by paperwork.

(3) Impacts on Third-world Countries

It’s common for both developed countries and those who refuse to admit to being developed countries to move their environment-damaging industry abroad. Apart from the environmental problems, these countries where they built factories could become potential vape markets with little to no regulations. Youth smoking is already worrying. Underage vaping might be overwhelming, too.

6. Summary

Optimistic vapers may see that more vapes are legal again in Indiana, and I am glad that it’s not a blanket ban, too. However, this shows us that under a ban on vapes manufactured in adversary foreign countries, the only solution is product relocation. At least, the profits are cut for sure, and extra costs are needed.

The silver lining is that Indiana ATC seems to be efficient at figuring out the origins of vapes and plays by the book. How Indiana deals with vapes completely or partially made in China helps vape brands make future plans wisely.

7. My Prediction

The repeating cases of restriction and lifting of the bans show that vape manufacturers refuse to reveal the place of origin in the first place and will not show where their vapes are manufactured. I will expect several other brands to repeat this cycle, and those who have a backup plan can pass the test and get the ban lifted eventually. Here are brands I predict that will repeat the cycle:

• Fogertech: Foger Switch Pro
• Off Stamp: Off Stamp SW9000/SW16000/Cube Series 25K
• Olit: Olit Hookalit 40000

FAQ about Indiana Vape Ban Twists