Smoking and smoking rules in the Netherlands

Every country has laws governing who can smoke where, and they are often changing too. Make sure you are up to date on all the current and impending smoking rules in the Netherlands with this guide. 

The legal smoking age in the Netherlands

Firstly, who can smoke and buy tobacco products in the Netherlands? Currently, it is illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to purchase cigarettes or any tobacco related products, including e-cigarettes or vapes.

Shops will regularly ask for ID (such as a passport or a driving licence) from anyone who appears to be younger than 18, and they can also refuse to sell you tobacco products if they believe you are buying them on behalf of someone under the age of 18.

How many Dutch people smoke?

Within the European Union, the Dutch are almost exactly average in terms of the percentage of the population that smokes. The number of smokers in the Netherlands has been falling for years. As of 2021 (the most recent statistics available), around 20 percent of Dutch adults smoke.

The country in the EU with the fewest smokers is Sweden, where just 9 percent of adults smoke, and the country with the highest number of smokers is Bulgaria, where 28 percent of adults enjoy a cigarette.

The Dutch government has created the National Prevention Agreement, which outlines their strategy to reduce the number of people who are overweight, smokers or heavy drinkers, as these habits are all major contributors to poor health. Part of the agreement is the pledge of “a smoke-free generation” by 2040, known as a "rookvrije generatie" in Dutch. This is idea that, by the year 2040, no young people will start smoking at all and only 5 percent of adults will smoke.

Where can you smoke in the Netherlands?

Smoking indoors in cafes, restaurants, hotels, and sports facilities has been banned in the Netherlands since as far back as 2008, and these rules are well respected and adhered to across the country.

In recent years, extensions to the smoking ban have come into force, which are still taking a little time for some people to get used to.

In 2020, smoking anywhere at educational institutions was banned, and in 2022, indoor smoking areas were also banned. This means place like airports and offices can no longer have indoor spaces exclusively for smokers.

Smoking in Dutch workplaces

Smoking is banned in all Dutch workplaces, so that everyone can enjoy a smoke-free environment. However, this does not apply when your workplace is also your home. This also means that employees who work in other people’s homes, such as caterers or carers, are not guaranteed a smoke-free environment.

Taxis and lorry cabs are considered workplaces, and so neither drivers nor passengers are allowed to smoke in those either.

Smoking on public transport

Smoking on public transport in the Netherlands is not permitted. It is also not permitted in any enclosed space intended for passengers of transport, such as a waiting room or an enclosed platform.

While open-air train, bus and tram stops are not covered by the national ban, many regional authorities or transport companies have prohibited smoking in these places anyway, so keep an eye out for signs before you light up. For example, GVB prohibits smoking in any of their metro stations in Amsterdam, whether enclosed or not, as do NS at all of their stations and on all platforms.

Smoking outdoors

Smoking is permitted on outdoor terraces, even of catering establishments, and you often see smokers sitting outside a restaurant in their full winter get-up.

Smoking cannabis in coffeeshops

You might be wondering how the smoking ban works, when one of the Netherlands' most famous institutions is its coffeeshops, which are full of people smoking cannabis?

The answer is that, as the law is actually a tobacco ban rather than a smoking ban, you are allowed to smoke in a coffeeshop if the joint contains only cannabis and no tobacco.

Buying cigarettes and tobacco products

In order to reduce the number of smokers in the Netherlands, the number of places that can sell tobacco and vapes in the country is being steadily reduced.

Any stores that are still allowed to sell tobacco and tobacco related products must keep them out of sight, so it is not always obvious if a place does sell cigarettes or not. Specialist tobacco stores are still allowed to display their products.

Since 2023, the online sale of tobacco and vapes has been forbidden, including if you order from a shop based outside of the Netherlands.

As of July 2024, tobacco and vapes can no longer be sold in supermarkets, hotels, restaurants and bars, leaving just convenience shops, specialist shops and petrol stations as purchasing places. This is part of the National Prevention Agreement, whereby smoking is not fully legislated against, but made awkward and difficult and thereby less appealing to people who have not yet started smoking.

The law will also go further in future: from 2025, vapes and e-cigarettes will only be sold from specialist shops. From 2030, tobacco and cigarettes will no longer be sold at petrol stations, and from 2032, sales will only be permitted in specialist shops.

Flavoured tobacco, vapes and e-cigarettes in the Netherlands

All the above smoking bans apply to both vapes and e-cigarettes as well as tobacco products. This means no vaping indoors in public places, at work, on public transport, or if you are younger than 18.

In addition, to stop vaping appealing to children, since 2023 vapes in the Netherlands can only be tobacco flavoured.

In a similar vein, it is also illegal in the Netherlands to add flavours to tobacco - including menthol. This includes to the components of tobacco products, such as filters, papers and packaging. Menthol cigarettes and filters are therefore banned in the Netherlands. While shisha lounges are not banned, they cannot offer any tobacco products, only herbal smoking products.

Smoking in the Netherlands

Smoking is a heavily legislated area in the Netherlands and is only going to become more so. A reduction in the number of smokers is a priority target for the Dutch government, so they do not intend to make smoking an easy pastime for people to take up.