New rules on heated tobacco, equivalent to regular cigarettes, come into force on Tuesday, with shocking messages on packaging and a ban on flavourings.
“Each individual packaging and outer packaging of smoking tobacco products, including cigarettes, rolling tobacco, hookah tobacco and heated tobacco products, to the extent that they are smoking tobacco products, must bear combined health warnings that include one of the text warnings and corresponding color photograph” is determined by law.
Under the transitional rule, products that were placed on the market before the effective date of this law may be sold as long as they are not sold within the validity period of the “relevant special stamp.”
The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, unveiled a parliamentary decree earlier this month that transposes a European Union directive to remove certain exceptions applicable to heated tobacco products, “strengthening standards” for the prevention and control of smoking. .
On November 28, the Parliamentary Working Group on Tobacco approved the introduction of a European Directive into Portuguese legislation, which Portugal had to adopt urgently, otherwise it would be in default, leaving issues related to health promotion and the sale of tobacco unaddressed.
The new tobacco law included only equating e-cigarettes with traditional tobacco, as well as proposals to ban the sale and consumption of tobacco near schools, at gas stations or on terraces with some lighting.