2019/0280/EE
EC/EFTA
EE Estonia
  • X00M - GOODS AND MISCELLANEOUS PRODUCTS
2019-09-16
2019-06-20

Tobacco and tobacco products

Draft amending the Tobacco Act

The draft proposes amending the Estonian Tobacco Act (hereafter “the Tobacco Act”) by creating a new category of tobacco products: “heated tobacco products”. The Tobacco Act is supplemented by rules relating to heated tobacco products.

The draft puts an end to the legal uncertainty regarding heated products on the Estonian market. Currently, it is possible to market heated products in Estonia as products for smoking. The handling of smokeless tobacco products is restricted in Estonia (see § 24 of the Tobacco Act). Heated products are novel tobacco products, which by nature are between traditional smoking and classic smokeless tobacco products and, therefore, it is appropriate to regulate heated tobacco products separately.

A heated tobacco product is a novel tobacco product, which is consumed without a tobacco burning process and by using an accessory to heat the tobacco. The heated tobacco product category includes only those tobacco products that are novel tobacco products within the meaning of the Tobacco Directive and Tobacco Act.

The draft foresees that a heated tobacco product cannot have a characterising flavour and the ingredients of a heated tobacco product must be without flavours. The purpose of the amendment is to introduce common rules for the contents of heated tobacco products, cigarettes, smoking tobacco for rolling cigarettes, as well as electronic cigarettes.

According to the draft, the use of stickers—as for other tobacco products—extends equally to heated tobacco products.

The draft establishes a health warning for heated tobacco products. The wording of § 131(1) and (2) is based on Article 12(1) and (2) of the Tobacco Directive. The wording of point 1 of § 131(3) is based on the second sentence of Article 12(2) and point b of Article 9(4) of the Tobacco Directive. The wording of points 2 and 3 of § 131(3) is based on points a and b of Article 12(2) of the Tobacco Directive.

According to the draft, similar restrictions, in terms of the consumption of tobacco products, are extended to heated tobacco products—consumption by people under the age of 18 is prohibited, a list of locations where their consumption is prohibited or restricted is extended to heated tobacco products.