In Morocco, a proposed law aims to ban smoking and vaping in public places

The Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) is proposing a 16-article bill to the House of Representatives banning the consumption of all forms of tobacco and vaping products in public places, including cafes.[1]The law also prohibits any form of advertising or promotion of these products.

Many products and public places affected by the ban

The text defines tobacco to be banned in public as including ready-to-smoke cigarettes, excluding cigars and little cigars, cigars and little cigars of different sizes, shisha tobacco ("maâssel"), finely chopped tobacco intended for rolling cigarettes, snuff tobacco, chewing tobacco, electronic cigarettes, cigarettes made from plants or other local substances, heated tobacco, as well as all other forms of tobacco intended for smoking.

The collective use areas covered include offices, administrations, meeting rooms, hospitals, clinics, retirement homes and public transport. Also affected are performance halls, cinemas, theatres, schools and universities, petrol stations, rest areas, hotels, cafes, restaurants, airports, train stations, daycare centres, boarding schools and community centres.

The objective of this bill, signed by Abdellah Bouanou, leader of the PJD group in the House of Representatives, is to protect the population from the health, environmental, and economic dangers of tobacco. The aim is to reduce the number of smokers with clear provisions to combat smoking and prevent its spread. However, the ban would not be complete, as smoking areas would be considered. Although there is no threshold for the risks associated with exposure to secondhand smoke, the PJD proposes the creation of specific areas for smokers, separate from non-smoking areas.[2]According to the text, it will be up to the authorities to set the technical criteria for these places, which will have to respect strict standards.

In Morocco, 13.4% of adults over the age of 18 smoke, including 26.9% of men and 0.4% of women, and 6% of young people aged 13 to 15 smoke. Furthermore, 35.6% of the population is exposed to secondhand smoke in public and workplaces. Approximately 12,800 Moroccans die prematurely from smoking each year, representing approximately 8% of total mortality.

A system of sanctions in the event of non-compliance with the measures

The PJD also plans gradual financial sanctions.

If the bill is adopted, smoking in a prohibited public place would be punishable by a fine of 500 to 1,000 dirhams (€48 to €96), increasing to 5,000 dirhams (€481) for a repeat offense. The fine for failure to display signs would be 5,000 to 10,000 dirhams (€963), doubled for a repeat offense.

Furthermore, the proposal provides that anyone caught smoking in a public place will be legally liable for damage caused to others, with compensation determined according to the health, commercial or moral nature of the damage.[3].

For violations of the advertising ban, the text provides for a fine of 1,000 to 5,000 dirhams, and up to 10,000 dirhams for repeat offenses. Encouraging a minor to smoke or facilitating their access to tobacco would be punishable by a fine of 5,000 to 10,000 dirhams, doubled for repeat offenses.

In total, smoking costs the country more than 5 billion dirhams (482 million euros) each year, or 8.5 billion dirhams of health expenditure and 0.45 billion dirhams of GDP.

Morocco is one of the few countries that has not ratified the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. This bill comes at a time when Morocco is considered one of the largest tobacco consumers in the Mediterranean region, with more than 15 billion cigarettes smoked annually. Swiss cigarettes sold in Africa, particularly popular in Morocco, are even more toxic than those sold in the European Union.The levels measured by the researchers also do not match those indicated on the cigarette pack. For example, Winston cigarettes contain nearly 1.5 milligrams of nicotine, while they display the figure of 1 mg.

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[1]The Info Site, Morocco: Will smoking soon be banned in public places?, published May 16, 2025, accessed May 19, 2025

[2]bladi.net, Morocco: Fines of up to 10,000 dirhams for smokers?, published May 16, 2025, accessed May 19, 2025

[3]Jnina Zaina, Bill: Fines of up to 1,000 dirhams for smokers in prohibited areas, published May 16, 2025, accessed May 19, 2025

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