The Latvian Ministry of Health is preparing to introduce stricter regulations on public vaping, including a proposed ban on using electronic cigarettes from residential windows. This move follows new recommendations from the European Union to limit public exposure to both tobacco smoke and aerosol vapors.
Latvia already bans smoking and vaping on balconies, staircases, train platforms, and bus shelters. The Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO) of the EU recently called for wider restrictions. In response, Latvia plans to target residential windows, workplaces, and catering establishments.
Artjoms Uršuļskis, Parliamentary Secretary at the Ministry of Health, explained the initiative: “We should regulate what happens to smoking from windows – whether it is tobacco or vapor – because we have a regulation on balconies, but we might need to work on residential (house) windows.” The primary goal is protecting the public from secondhand vapor.
Currently, the State Police and municipal police monitor compliance. Violators face warnings or fines up to €100. Edgars Rudzītis, deputy chief of the Riga municipal police, noted that citizens actively report violations. The Riga municipal police received approximately 600 smoking-related reports this year, covering underage smoking and violations in stairwells and balconies.
The Smokefree Industry Association opposes the new restrictions, calling them disproportionate. Marita Jansone, the association’s Executive Director, argued that existing bans are already poorly enforced. “Our call would therefore be to reflect on the need for and proportionality of additional restrictions to avoid declaratory bans that are only on paper but which are not monitored and enforced,” Jansone said. She suggested creating designated outdoor zones for smoke-free products instead.
However, medical professionals reject the industry’s stance. Alvils Krams, chief specialist in pneumonology at Riga East Clinical University Hospital, warned that passive vaping poses real health risks. “Everything that is inhaled is toxic, whether it is the smoke from conventional cigarettes or the vapor from electronic cigarettes,” Krams stated, pointing out that vapor contains toxic substances and carcinogens despite lacking combustion.
The Ministry of Health suggests the new restrictions could enter the legislative agenda next year. The exact timeline for when these EU-backed recommendations will become law in Latvia remains under discussion.
