EU tobacco rules enter the next phase as Brussels prepares a major overhaul covering traditional and next-generation products. Photo credit: Sébastien Bertrand, CC2.0.
The European Commission has closed its public consultation on an overhaul of EU tobacco rules, moving the review into its next phase. The consultation ran from May 22 to August 14 and covers revisions to both the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) and Tobacco Advertising Directive (TAD). The Commission expects to present a legislative proposal before the end of 2026.
The review could affect the entire tobacco market, but newer categories—including e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products (HTP), and nicotine pouches—are likely to attract particular attention as Brussels considers how to update rules developed for a very different market.
The review has generated an unusually large response. More than 82,000 submissions came from 138 countries during the Commission’s May 18-June 15 Call for Evidence, which preceded the public consultation. According to EU News, participants included nearly 2,000 companies, around 350 trade associations, 250 academic institutions and 60 trade unions.
An analysis by We Are Innovation and Path to Smoke-Free found that more than 90% of those submissions raised at least one substantive objection to the regulatory direction under consideration. Objections appeared in 96% of academic and research submissions, 94% of business, NGO and other organizational responses, and 93% of individual submissions. Only around 2% explicitly supported a more restrictive approach.
The findings have fueled debate over how the Commission should assess the responses. Public-health groups argue that submission numbers alone should not determine policy and that the Commission should focus on the quality, independence and evidence behind responses.
The consultation has also sparked controversy over the role of artificial intelligence. Dutch broadcasters Pointer and NOS reported that AI assisted with a significant share of submissions and linked many responses to Philip Morris International’s “Your Voice. Your Choice” campaign. PMI rejected claims that it manipulated the consultation, saying its tool helped people participate while allowing users to edit their responses and decide whether to submit them.
For the industry, however, the substance of the eventual legislation matters more than the consultation numbers. The Commission’s April evaluation found that the existing tobacco framework has contributed to declining smoking rates and tobacco-related deaths, while also identifying areas where the rules no longer fully reflect market developments. The TPD entered into force in 2014 and became applicable in 2016, before nicotine pouches had become a significant European category and as vaping and HTP markets were still developing.
The Commission has highlighted the rapid expansion of novel tobacco and nicotine products and the need to ensure EU rules keep pace with the evolving market. It has also pointed to the growing role of digital channels, including social media, in product marketing and consumer engagement.
The review could therefore lead to more consistent EU-wide rules on flavors, product presentation, health warnings, advertising, and online promotion. It may also establish clearer rules for products that currently fall outside, or only partly within, the TPD, creating a more comprehensive and predictable regulatory framework.
National measures already highlight the differing approaches across the bloc. Austria, Bulgaria and Belgium have moved to prohibit disposable e-cigarettes, while Ireland is advancing legislation that would restrict nicotine-inhaling products to tobacco flavor and introduce tighter rules on advertising, display and presentation.
The Commission will now assess the consultation responses alongside its evaluation and impact assessment before drafting legislation. The proposal will then move into the EU legislative process, where the European Parliament and Council will negotiate its final form.
The review also runs alongside the EU’s separate tobacco excise reform, which proposes significant changes to tobacco taxation. Parliament voted in June to reject the Commission’s excise proposal and called for its withdrawal, underscoring the political challenges surrounding broader tobacco-policy changes.