Switzerland raises tobacco sales age to 18 nationwide

Currently, the age limit for the sale of tobacco products in Switzerland is set at the cantonal level, either at 16 or 18 years. The cantons of Appenzell Innerrhoden and Schwyz do not even impose an age limit for purchasing tobacco. With the new Tobacco Products Act, which will come into force on 1^er October 2024, the sales age limit will be 18 years throughout Switzerland.

The Federal Council adopted the Ordinance on Tobacco Products and Electronic Cigarettes at its meeting on 28 August 2024; it will come into force on 1 October 2024, at the same time as the Tobacco Products Act. 

In cantons where it was already forbidden to sell tobacco to minors under 18, checks showed that the law was not always properly respected.[1].

A series of measures aimed at protecting young people

From now on, it will be prohibited to sell tobacco products and e-cigarettes as well as related products (e.g. nicotine pouches) to minors under the age of 18 in all Swiss cantons. The new law will also impose restrictions on tobacco advertising: advertising on posters, in cinemas, on public transport and in public buildings, as well as on sports fields and at sporting events will now be uniformly prohibited in all cantons. In addition, the ban on advertising on radio and television will also apply to vaping products and nicotine pouches.

Health warnings on tobacco products will be updated for the first time in 14 years and a QR code will be added to smoking cessation packages. Smoking bans in public places will include the consumption of heated tobacco products and will be extended to vaping products. Finally, disposable e-cigarettes (puffs) and e-liquids with nicotine will be subject to a small tax.

A law with serious shortcomings

The adoption of this law, which took years due to the strong interference of the tobacco industry in the discussions, still has significant shortcomings.[2]. While restrictions on advertising tobacco and nicotine products will be put in place, advertising remains permitted on the Internet and in print media. Sponsorship of events by the tobacco industry remains possible at local and national levels. Promotional offers for tobacco and nicotine products at points of sale and online also remain permitted.

While controls are planned to monitor the effectiveness of the ban on sales to minors through test purchases, nothing is planned to monitor online sales.

For the Swiss Association for the Prevention of Smoking (AT), this law remains insufficient to effectively protect young people and calls on the "Parliament to proceed with the implementation of the popular initiative Children without tobacco in accordance with the will of the people. This is a form of youth protection that is both effective and credible."

Regarding the Children Without Tobacco initiative, the Parliament is watering down the text of the initiative, warns Luciano Ruggia, director of AT: "It - the Parliament - betrays the popular will to suit the interests of the economy"[3].  Switzerland remains very susceptible to the tobacco industry lobby. The three main manufacturers (Philip Morris, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco) have factories or operational centres in the country. The country also remains one of the only countries in the world not to have ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

Consumption of nicotine products on the rise among Swiss adolescents

While fewer adolescents are consuming tobacco products in Switzerland, the consumption of nicotine products (vaping and nicotine pouches) is on the rise. According to the 2022 Swiss national survey[4], around a third of fifteen-year-olds reported having consumed at least one tobacco or nicotine product in the thirty days preceding the survey, compared to 30% in 2018. This increase is explained in particular by the appearance of puffs on the Swiss market.

©Tobacco Free Generation

AE

[1] Tobacco-free generation, Switzerland: “test purchases” to monitor the effectiveness of the ban on tobacco sales to minors, published March 14, 2024, accessed August 30, 2024

[2] Luciano Ruggia, New Tobacco and Nicotine Products Act Has Gaps, Press Portal, published on August 28, 2024, consulted on August 30, 2024

[3] Paul Ronga, The reasons for Switzerland's delay in the fight against tobacco, 24 hours, published on August 29, 2024, consulted on August 30, 2024

[4] Addiction Switzerland, Swiss Panorama of Addictions 2024, Young people: more vulnerable and not sufficiently protected – we must act now!, published March 2024, accessed August 30, 2024