The government has announced that tobacco advertising will be banned in printed media and at points of sale in Switzerland from 2026. Tobacco firms will now only be able to advertise online and in limited physical settings, with age-limit controls in place to stop smoking content from being promoted to children. 

Tobacco firms must disclose advertising expenditure

Under the new laws - announced in September 2022 - tobacco firms will also be required to collectively disclose their advertising expenditure, giving some transparency to where and how tobacco is advertised in Switzerland. Advertising and sponsorship of public events where children may be present, such as festivals, will be banned from 2026 as well. 

“Every year, 9.500 people die prematurely in Switzerland as a result of tobacco consumption, making it one of the biggest public health problems,” the government said when announcing the move. The Swiss public already voted in a referendum in 2022 to restrict tobacco advertising where children may be present, but many have said the new plans go significantly further than what was envisioned by the referendum committee.

In justifying the harshness of the new regulations, the Federal Council argued that they were following the guidance of the vote, reasoning that it could not guarantee that children would not read certain newspapers or magazines, be untargeted for cigarette ads, or avoid kiosks and stalls which sell tobacco.

Image: Shutterstock.com / Grzegorz Czapski