Greece passes law to jail people for selling alcohol or tobacco to children

Published on 04/07/2025 - 15:25 GMT+2

The Greek parliament has passed a measure that intends to protect children from smoking and intoxicant by enacting strict property verification rules for sales, banning smoking successful definite nationalist places, and restricting advertising.

People will now look fines of up to €10,000, arsenic good arsenic up to 3 years successful prison, if they break nan rules. That includes trading baccy aliases intoxicant to minors, utilizing children to waste tobacco, employing minors successful bars aliases allowing them to bent retired there, aliases trading intoxicant done vending machines.

The rule is far-reaching. Here's what's successful it.

Stopping income to minors

The rule requires shopkeepers to cheque nan property of group buying intoxicant and baccy products, including cigarettes and vapes, pinch terrible penalties for violators. If nan shopkeeper has "any uncertainty arsenic to nan personality of nan person," they must garbage nan sale.

It besides enacts strict penalties for group who waste intoxicant to minors aliases let them to activity aliases walk clip successful bars aliases intermezo centres. There is an objection for backstage parties held successful designated spaces, if section constabulary are informed astatine slightest 2 days beforehand.

Bars and akin establishments must put up signs that make clear that children will not beryllium admitted and that they will not waste intoxicant to minors.

Smoking bans

Both smoking and baccy income are now prohibited successful net cafes and places wherever AI games are played. The state besides banned smoking astatine indoor and outdoor sports and intermezo venues and different gathering places for minors.

Illegal smokers look a €200 fine, while group who negociate these accommodation and break nan rules could beryllium fined €500.

The rule bans smoking successful taxis – some nan driver and rider – pinch a €1,500 good for violators. The good is doubled to €3,000 if nan smoker is successful nationalist carrier specified arsenic a autobus aliases metro.

Drivers tin besides person their licenses revoked for 1 period per infringement, moreover if their passengers were nan ones smoking.

The rule sets fines and penalties astatine different levels. For smokers, nan fines scope from €50 to €500, pinch nan heaviest fines imposed connected serial offenders.

Meanwhile, group successful complaint of these establishments look much terrible penalties, ranging from €500 to €10,000. They tin besides person their licences revoked either temporarily aliases permanently depending connected nan violation.

Tobacco advertising

Tobacco advertizing and income will beryllium prohibited successful outdoor, open-air, and indoor areas, for illustration adjacent wellness and acquisition institutions. Under nan law, baccy tin nary longer beryllium advertised successful cinemas and shopkeepers cannot spot baccy products successful their windows.

Other non-tobacco products cannot beryllium sold arsenic baccy lookalikes. In nan past, Greece had chewing gum that looked for illustration cigaret packets.

Violators of nan advertizing rules tin beryllium fined €500 to €10,000.