In an attempt to align the country’s laws with those of the EU, the sale of flavoured heated tobacco products (HTPs) will be banned in Romania from 23 October 2023, reports Schönherr.

Heated tobacco products have become very popular in recent years, especially in the EU and now regulators in Romania have decided to regulate the products similarly to cigarettes and RYO tobacco products. This means that from 23 October 2023, flavoured HTPs will be banned and other rules such as those applying to packaging and labelling will also be adjusted.
When the law comes into effect, HTPs that have a characterising flavour or contain flavouring in any of their components such as filters, papers, packages, capsules or any technical features allowing the smell or taste of the tobacco products or their smoke intensity to be modified will be banned on the Romanian market, reports Schönherr. Furthermore, HTPs without any type of flavouring will need to feature warnings such as “Smoking kills” and the information message: “Tobacco smoke contains over 70 substances known to cause cancer”. Each unit packet and any outside HTP packaging must also carry health warnings and adhere to other requirements under the Romanian Tobacco Law.
According to Schönherr, all producers and importers of heated tobacco products in Romania must notify the Romanian Health Ministry whether the heated tobacco products placed on the local market fall into one of the “heated tobacco” categories, namely smoking tobacco products or smokeless tobacco products.