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The Slow Draw
The Cuban warranty seal for cigars: a green, banknote-style label with a barcode at the left end and a patterned hologram strip at the right end

Image: Habanos S.A.

Authenticity

Check your box
is genuine.

Every full box of Habanos carries a warranty seal with its own barcode. Look at the seal, read the code, and check it on the official Habanos portal. It takes about a minute.

Open the Habanos check How to check
  • Authorised importers
  • Duty paid
  • Tax invoice with every order

Quick answer

Find the warranty seal on your box, read its barcode, and check it on the official Habanos authenticity portal.

We can only confirm cigars bought from The Slow Draw.

Check a box
Three steps

How to check a box

You need your box and a phone or computer. Nothing to install, nothing to buy.

  1. Find the seal

    Look at the upper-left of the box. The warranty seal sits a few millimetres in from the edge and folds over the corner toward the front.

  2. Read the code

    The seal carries a barcode that is unique to your box. Keep the box in good light and read the number under the bars.

  3. Check it

    Open the Habanos portal, enter the code, and follow the result it gives you.

Where to look

The warranty seal, in detail

The seal is what ties a box to its record. Here is where each part sits.

Illustration of a closed cigar box with the warranty seal wrapped around the upper-left corner and a barcode near the bottom of the seal
Image: Habanos S.A. Illustration only; seal size and finish can vary.

  1. Warranty seal. Placed toward the upper-left of the box, a few millimetres in from the edge, and folded over the corner toward the front.

  2. Barcode. A unique code for the box, low on the seal. This is the code you enter in the portal.

  3. Hologram. A patterned security strip at the right-hand end of the seal, shown in the flat picture further down.

Built to resist copying

What is in the seal

The seal is made to be hard to fake and easy to spot if it has been tampered with.

Tamper-evident paper

A synthetic paper that does not survive being peeled off, so a removed seal shows.

Copy protection

Printing that is designed to defeat scanners and photocopiers.

Holographic text

Two-colour holographic lettering that appears in 2D and 3D as the seal moves.

Optical variation

Elements that change look with the angle of the light.

Micro-dot

A tiny mark that cannot be seen by eye and is read with a laser scanner.

A code for every box

Each barcode is unique to one box and is tied to a record held by Habanos, which is what the portal checks.

Know the limits

What the check can tell you

The portal answers one question well. Here is what it does and does not cover.

It can confirm

  • Whether the box's code is a genuine Habanos code.
  • That the seal on your box matches a record held by Habanos.

It cannot confirm

  • Where a box was bought. We can only confirm cigars bought from The Slow Draw.
  • Anything about single cigars. They are supplied without the original box and have no portal code of their own, so box-level checks apply to full boxes.
Good to know

Why we open the box

If the seal on your box is already broken, that is us. We open every box before it is dispatched to check the condition of the cigars inside.

Cigars are a natural product and they travel a long way to reach you. We would rather find a problem on our bench than have you find it at your table.

What we look at

  • Wrapper Clean and unbroken, with no cracks or tears.
  • Feel Firm but not dry, with no soft or damp spots.
  • Damage No crushed or bent cigars, and a full count in the box.
What this means for your check. An open seal from us is not a sign of tampering.
How we buy

Authorised channels, duty paid

Every cigar on The Slow Draw is sourced through authorised channels. Habanos come through Habanos S.A. authorised importers. We do not stock grey-market or counterfeit goods.

  • Duty paid. Customs duty, central excise duty and GST are paid on every product before it reaches our shelves.
  • Tax invoice. A tax-paid invoice is issued with each order.
  • The detail. See GST & Authenticity.

Habanos brands we carry

  • Cohiba
  • Cuaba
  • H. Upmann
  • Hoyo de Monterrey
  • Jose L. Piedra
  • Montecristo
  • Partagás
  • Quai d'Orsay
  • Quintero
  • Ramón Allones
  • Romeo y Julieta
  • San Cristóbal
  • Trinidad
  • Vegueros
Questions

Common questions

I bought from The Slow Draw and the code does not check out. What now?

Contact us with your order number and a clear photo of the seal.

My cigars came without a box. Can I check them?

Single cigars are supplied without the original box and do not have a portal code of their own, so the check applies to full boxes.

Can you check a box I bought somewhere else?

We can only confirm cigars bought from The Slow Draw.

The seal on my box was already open. Is that a problem?

It is us. We open every box before dispatch to check the condition of the cigars.

Is the barcode the same on every box?

No. Each barcode is unique to one box. Two boxes with the same code is a reason to be careful.

What if the seal looks damaged or has been peeled?

The seal is made to show when it has been removed. Do not discard the box. Contact us with photos.

Last updated

Have your box in front of you?

Find the seal, read the code, and check it now.

Open the Habanos check GST & Authenticity

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