Spain considers new rules around smoking and vaping in public

Visitors to Spain should be aware of the proposed new rules about smoking, vaping, and e-cigarettes when planning their trip. On 9 September 2025, the Spanish coalition government put forward legislation to restrict smoking and related activities in public spaces.

If approved without amendments, the bill would mean no more smoking, vaping, or consumption of e-cigarettes, herbal smokes, shisha pipes, or nicotine pouches, on bar or restaurant terraces, beaches, at bus stops, sports stadiums and centres, children’s playgrounds, and places of education.

“We’ll always put public health ahead of private interests,” Spain’s health minister, Monica Garcia, told reporters. “Everyone has a right to breathe clean air and live longer and better lives.”

Smoking is already banned in indoor public venues in Spain and has been since 2011. The new measure would further limit the freedom to smoke in public, sparking criticism from the hospitality sector, with many restaurateurs and bar owners complaining the move will drive customers away or keep them at home.

Official Spanish health figures from the Ministerio de Sanidad reveal that around 50,000 Spaniards die from tobacco-related diseases every year. Around 25% of adults in Europe as a whole smoke – a higher proportion of smokers than anywhere else in the world, and, over recent decades, various countries in the region have legislated to try to bring down preventable deaths caused by smoking.

Aprobado el Anteproyecto de Ley del tabaco:

– Ampliación de espacios sin humo.
– Regulación de productos relacionados.
– Prohibición de cigarrillos electrónicos de un solo uso.
– Limitación de publicidad, promoción y patrocinio.
– Seguimiento de políticas públicas de prevención. pic.twitter.com/pPaXpO1jhA

— Ministerio de Sanidad (@sanidadgob) September 9, 2025

Spain’s proposals also cover tobacco consumption by minors and sales activities such as the promotion and distribution of nicotine, vape and e-cigarette products. But they do not go as far as proscribing branded images, logos and slogans on packaging – a step already taken in other European markets, such as Belgium, France, Ireland, Norway, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.

The new Spanish bill is similar to laws passed last year in France, where, since 1 July 2025, smoking is prohibited on beaches and lakesides, in parks and gardens, at sports grounds and pools, bus and public transport stops, libraries and areas near children’s centres, schools, and training facilities.

Flouting the French ban could cost rule-breakers up to €135, whereas in Spain violations could cost between €100 to €600, depending on the offence. Youngsters who smoke risk their parents’ or guardians’ wallets. However, it is not yet clear when or if Spain’s no-smoking zones will come into force, as there currently is no clear majority in the Spanish parliament.