Romania has officially banned smoking and the use of all electronic cigarettes in schools nationwide under Law 64/2024. Entering into force on March 31, this legislation targets youth nicotine addiction by prohibiting the possession and use of these products on school grounds.
Romania Targets Youth Nicotine Use with Law 64/2024
Law 64/2024 modifies existing regulations to restrict minors’ access to tobacco and nicotine. In addition to banning the sale of electronic cigarettes to anyone under 18, the law prohibits students from bringing these items onto school premises.
The ban applies to a wide range of products. Under the text of Law 64/2024, students are prohibited from “smoking, as well as using all categories of products containing tobacco, electronic cigarettes, refill bottles for electronic cigarettes, electronic devices for heating tobacco, nicotine pouches for oral use, and products intended for inhalation without combustion.”
Ministry of Education to Set Disciplinary Sanctions
While initial drafts of the bill allowed individual schools to decide how to punish offenders, the final version passed by the Chamber of Deputies shifts this responsibility. The Ministry of Education will now establish a uniform set of rules and sanctions through the framework regulation for pre-university education.
School administrations must update their internal regulations to classify smoking or vaping on school grounds as a severe disciplinary infraction. Additionally, schools are required to display visible signs indicating the ban throughout their facilities.
