Sales of tobacco

Do you sell tobacco, e-cigarettes, and e-liquids? You are not allowed to sell these products everywhere and to everyone. You are not allowed to sell tobacco in a supermarket, liquor store, or online. There is also an age limit and there are rules on packaging.

The Dutch Tobacco and Related Products Act (in Dutch) (Tabaks- en rookwarenwet) contains rules designed to reduce the sale of tobacco products and electronic cigarettes.

The rules for selling tobacco and related products apply to:

• tobacco products, such as cigarettes, cut tobacco, cigars, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco, snuff, and water pipe tobacco (hookah)
• electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) containing nicotine
• e-cigarettes without nicotine (shisha pens)
• refill containers for electronic cigarettes (e-liquids)
• components of electronic cigarettes, for example mouthpieces or reservoirs
• electronic heating devices, such as vaporisers
• tobacco-free nicotine products, such as vape stones and nicotine sticks
• nicotine devices (refillable devices for tobacco-free nicotine products)

Where are you allowed to sell smoking products?

You are only allowed to sell tobacco products and tobacco related products in:

• shops in healthcare institutions, for instance in nursing homes, residential care homes, psychiatric hospitals, or rehabilitation centre
• prison shops
• wholesalers
• gas stations
• coffeeshops
• shisha lounges
• specialist tobacco stores (tobacconists) and tobacco points of sale (in Dutch)
• cigarette vending machines in specialist tobacco shops or gas stations (in Duch)
• remotely to consumers outside the EEA (European Economic Area)

Where are you not allowed to sell smoking products?

You are not allowed to sell cigarettes, other tobacco products, and related products, such as vapes, in:

• supermarkets
• outlets in supermarkets (shop-in-shop)
• local supermarkets (mini markets)
• late-night shops/c
• catering establishments, both with and without an alcohol licence)
• remotely to consumers (webshop, social media, chat or mail)

Ban on distance sales of tobacco

You are not allowed to sell tobacco products and related products, with or without nicotine, remotely to consumers in the EEA (European Economic Area):

• online, for instance viawebshop, app, chat, or social media
• by telephone
• by mail order
• with an order form from a newspaper or magazine

You are allowed to sell tobacco products and related products to consumers outside the EEA.

Which tobacco products are you not allowed to sell?

Some tobacco products may not be sold at all. For example: - You may not sell cigarettes and rolling tobacco with flavours other than tobacco, such as vanilla or menthol cigarettes. It is also prohibited to manufacture menthol cigarettes. - You may not sell click cigarettes (cigarettes with a flavoured pellet). - You are not allowed to manufacture, import, or sell flavoured e-cigarettes (vapes) and flavoured refills (such as mango and strawberry ice cream). You may sell tobacco-flavoured e-cigarettes and tobacco-flavoured refills. - Tobacco nicotine pouches (snus) and tobacco-free nicotine pouches- You may not remove cigarettes from their packaging and then sell them individually. 

Age limit for tobacco products

Employees selling tobacco and related products must be at least 16 years of age. And there is also an age limit for buying tobacco and tobacco related products. 

• You may only sell tobacco products and electronic cigarettes to people aged 18 and older (in Dutch). This must be displayed clearly for everyone to see.
• The sale of e-cigarettes without nicotine to under-18-year-olds is prohibited.
• The sale of non-nicotine-containing refill fluids and herbal mixes without nicotine for the waterpipe to under-18-year-olds is prohibited.
• You cannot sell tobacco products, electronic cigarettes and refill containers to people aged 18 or older if you suspect they want to give or sell these products on to younger people.
• You must ask for proof of ID to establish the person's age. This is not mandatory for those who are obviously older than 18.

No advertising for tobacco products 

Advertising or sponsoring (in Dutch) for tobacco products, electronic cigarettes, or any smoking implements, whether or not they contain tobacco, is prohibited. This also applies to advertising inside and outside of shops that sell other products alongside tobacco products, e-cigarettes, and e-liquids. 

Displaying tobacco products is only permitted inside registered specialised tobacconists or tobacco points of sale (in Dutch) and is subject to specific terms and conditions (in Dutch). The advertising must not be visible from outside the shop. You may not give away tobacco products or electronic cigarettes free of charge. For more information or questions, contact NVWA.

No displaying of packaging

You may not display tobacco products , for instance, in a display, showcase, or on the counter (in Dutch). The outlines of the packets should not be visible either: the products should be kept so that they are not visible at all, for example in a cupboard or drawer. This includes electronic cigarettes and herbs intended for smoking. Any place used to store smoking products should be neutral looking: cupboards or drawers should be black, white or grey, should not contrast with the rest of the shop, and cannot be decorated in any way. You are allowed to display smoking accessories, such as ashtrays and lighters.

Specialist tobacco shops are in some cases exempted from the ban on displaying smoking products. For this, they need to be registered with the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA, in Dutch).

Plain packaging

You may only sell cigarettes, rolling tobacco, cigars, and e-cigarettes in plain, dark green-brown packages. Besides the mandatory health warnings in image and text, only the manufacturer's name, the type of cigarettes, and barcode may be printed on the packet. The information must be set in a standard typeface.

Inspection and fines

The NVWA performs inspections to check if you abide by the rules. They will do this, for instance, by having a young buyer visit your shop. If you fail to verify their age on making a sale, you will get a fine or a ban from selling tobacco products.

Excise duty

In the Netherlands you need to pay excise duties (accijns) on tobacco products. Manufacturers, traders and importers have to pay excise duties to the Netherlands Tax Administration (Belastingdienst). The excise duties are incorporated in the price paid by the consumer. You can find the tariffs on the Dutch Customs’ website (in Dutch). You must file excise duty and consumer tax with the Tax and Customs Administration.