More than 70% of Belgian businesses illegally sell cigarettes to minors.

According to The Bulletin on November 18, recent data from the Belgian government showed that in a series of recent surprise inspections, more than 70% of businesses in Belgium ignored the ban and sold cigarettes to minors (under 18 years old).

Since November 2019, Belgium has raised the age limit for purchasing tobacco products from 16 to 18 years old. However, many retailers did not require young people to show their ID cards when selling.

In order to maintain the goal of a “smoke-free generation”, Belgium plans to stop young people from starting to use tobacco products by 2040. Therefore, the government is considering stricter penalties, such as closing illegal stores.

According to data provided by Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke, as many as 782 times (71%) of the 1,100 inspections this year, sellers ignored the ban and sold tobacco products to minors. These inspections were conducted by minors who acted as “mystery shoppers” and tried to buy cigarettes, e-cigarettes, tobacco and nicotine bags.

The violation rate varies in different regions of Belgium. Stores in Brussels have the lowest violation rate, at only 53.5%. In Flanders, 68% of businesses were caught violating regulations in 469 inspections, while in Wallonia, 76.5% of businesses failed more than 226 inspections.