Smoking in Ireland
In Ireland, smoking is legally allowed but controlled by comprehensive tobacco control regulations. Cigarettes are regulated as tobacco products and are permitted for sale and use with some restrictions. They may be purchased through retail outlets, online platforms, and vending machines. The importation of cigarettes for trade is allowed with a license. However, health warnings on packaging are mandatory, the minimum legal age for purchase is 18 years, and there are legal restrictions on smoking in public places. In addition, a complete ban on all tobacco advertising is in force. Cigarettes in Ireland are subject to an excise tax of 48.53% and a total taxation rate of 76.06%. Despite these regulatory and control measures, smoking continues to contribute to the national health burden. In 2024, there were approximately 730,000 current smokers in Ireland, representing an adult smoking prevalence of 17.2%. In the same year, prevalence was higher among males (20%) than females (14.6%). This prevalence was recorded to be 18.2% in 2022. In 2023, the adult daily tobacco smoking prevalence was 14%, with an estimated 675,956 daily smokers. In 2021, smoking caused 3,836 deaths in Ireland, including 2,291 deaths among males and 1,546 among females. Overall, tobacco smoking resulted in 11.89% of all deaths in 2021, representing 13.62% of male deaths and 10.01% of female deaths. These statistics underscore the continued public health impact of smoking cigarette in Ireland.
Read articles from Ireland
August 05, 2026 by clearingtheair.eu
Ireland’s de facto vape flavour ban delayed after Italy and Greece object
Ireland’s de facto vape flavour ban has hit a pause because other EU countries are asking the proportionality question. Italy and Greece’s objections highlight a wider concern: whether national restrictions on safer nicotine products can be justified when they may reduce adult switching and fragment the single market. Youth protection remains important, but it should be pursued through targeted enforcement rather than broad measures that remove useful alternatives. A delay is not a defeat for public health; it is a chance to get the policy right.
July 31, 2026 by planetofthevapes.co.uk
Ireland is Blocking Switching
Ireland says it wants fewer people smoking, yet its vape policy risks making switching harder. If flavours, disposables or legal access are restricted too far, some adults may lose the products that helped them move away from cigarettes. The result could be a policy gap where smoking is discouraged, but practical alternatives are weakened. A serious tobacco strategy should remove barriers to switching, not build new ones.
July 31, 2026 by 2firsts.com
Italy and Greece Oppose Ireland’s Nicotine Product Bill, Raising EU Regulatory Concerns
Italy and Greece challenge Ireland's proposed strict regulations on nicotine products, citing concerns about EU market coordination. The dispute centers on balancing public health goals with market harmonization. Ireland aims to enhance controls on vapes and nicotine pouches, focusing on marketing, packaging, and sales restrictions. This conflict highlights the evolving fragmentation of European nicotine regulations, affecting companies operating across the region. The objections emphasize the need for harmonizing national rules with EU frameworks. The debate underscores the challenges of aligning public health objectives with single market principles in the nicotine industry.
July 31, 2026 by 2firsts.com
Italy and Greece Oppose Ireland’s Nicotine Product Bill, Raising EU Regulatory Concerns
Italy and Greece challenge Ireland's proposed strict regulations on nicotine products, citing concerns about EU market coordination. The dispute centers on balancing public health goals with market harmonization. Ireland aims to enhance controls on vapes and nicotine pouches, focusing on marketing, packaging, and sales restrictions. This conflict highlights the evolving fragmentation of European nicotine regulations, affecting companies operating across the region. The objections emphasize the need for harmonizing national rules with EU frameworks. The debate underscores the challenges of aligning public health objectives with single market principles in the nicotine industry.
July 20, 2026 by brusselsmorning.com
Tobacco Harm Reduction Debate Grows Across Europe
Europe has a chance to stop treating harm reduction as a threat and start treating it as a public health tool. Millions of adults still smoke, and many will not quit through traditional routes alone. Lower-risk nicotine products can help close that gap if regulation is guided by evidence rather than suspicion. The EU’s tobacco policy should focus on reducing disease, not preserving an outdated divide between approved quitting and practical switching.
July 15, 2026 by filtermag.org
Disposables Banned, Flavors Next: Irish Vape Crackdown Gathers Pace
Remove the products adults actually use to stay off cigarettes, and the outcome may not be the one policymakers expect. Ireland’s proposed restrictions on disposable vapes and flavours risk making vaping less accessible, less appealing and less useful for people trying to quit smoking. Protecting young people matters, but so does avoiding a policy that pushes adults back towards cigarettes or into informal markets. Good regulation should reduce harm in practice, not just look tough on paper.
July 13, 2026 by clearingtheair.eu
Ireland urged to rethink vape policy as smoking decline stalls
Ireland’s stalled smoking decline should prompt a serious rethink of vape policy. When progress slows, restricting the very products that may help adults move away from cigarettes risks making the problem harder to solve. Youth protection matters, but it should not come at the cost of leaving smokers with fewer practical alternatives. A better approach would focus on enforcement, accurate risk communication and regulated access to lower-risk products.
July 02, 2026 by clearingtheair.eu
Ireland moves closer to banning fruit and sweet vape flavours
Ireland’s move towards banning fruit and sweet vape flavours risks weakening one of the features that helps adult smokers switch away from cigarettes. Flavours can make vaping more acceptable than smoking and help people distance themselves from the taste of combustible tobacco. Protecting young people is essential, but broad flavour bans may reduce the appeal of lower-risk alternatives for adults trying to quit. Better regulation should target youth access without removing tools that support smoking cessation.
April 15, 2026 by clearingtheair.eu
Ireland urged to explore Australia-style pharmacy-only vape sales
Ireland is facing calls to consider stricter controls on vaping products, including limiting their sale to pharmacies. The proposal draws inspiration from Australia’s model, where access to e-cigarettes has been tightly restricted through medical-style distribution channels. Supporters argue that such an approach could help address concerns about youth uptake and product accessibility. However, critics point to international evidence suggesting that similar systems may reduce legal access while encouraging the growth of illicit markets. The debate reflects wider tensions over how far governments should go in restricting safer nicotine alternatives.
March 12, 2026 by filtermag.org
Irish Government Grows Ever More Hostile to Vaping
The Irish government has ramped up its hostility towards safer nicotine products by approving new legislation to further tighten restrictions on vapes and nicotine pouches. Though the announcement is confusingly worded, the bill threatens to ban vape flavors.
- Page 1 of 16