Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Municipalities and Housing has banned gross sales of tobacco inside 500 meters of mosques and faculties.
Geared toward selling public well being and making a secure and orderly industrial atmosphere throughout the nation, the brand new regulatory requirement applies to all shops promoting tobacco merchandise and equipment, together with cigarettes, shisha, and e-cigarettes.
Acquiring a license would require a sound industrial registration, Civil Protection approval, and full compliance with the Municipal Licensing Procedures Regulation and its govt rules.
Saudi Arabia bans tobacco close to faculties, mosques
As per the necessities, shops must be positioned inside a industrial constructing, and might want to have a minimal retailer space of 36 sq. meters. Particular necessities for every municipality can even apply in line with road width and website classification.
The ministry has particularly prohibited the sale of tobacco merchandise to anybody below the age of 18, giving them the suitable to request proof of age from consumers.
The brand new rules prohibit the blending or repackaging of merchandise or promoting them in unapproved packaging and requires them to supply proof of the product’s provider. The sale of single cigarettes or merchandise that don’t adjust to the usual specs permitted by the Saudi Meals and Drug Authority have additionally been stopped.
The shops are solely allowed to show the title of the enterprise and any logos or promotional supplies on exterior signal boards aren’t allowed. The outlets must set up each inner and exterior surveillance cameras.
The ministry additionally emphasised the significance of putting warning indicators inside shops that embrace awareness-raising messages concerning the risks of smoking, together with displaying QR codes linked to licensing and regulatory info with a view to guarantee transparency and ease of verification.
Corporations won’t be allowed to supply tobacco merchandise as rewards or free samples.
The municipal authorities will constantly monitor the implementation of those necessities on the bottom and impose penalties in opposition to violating institutions.
The necessities stipulate a set of controls for the sale and commerce of tobacco merchandise and their derivatives. All tobacco merchandise and their derivatives should adjust to the usual specs permitted by the Saudi Meals and Drug Authority (SFDA). Possession or show of merchandise of unknown origin or containing deceptive info is prohibited.
All tobacco packages in Saudi, in addition to the packages of any merchandise containing tobacco or its derivatives, should bear explanatory and warning info that complies with the usual specs made by SFDA.
The rules additional say that tobacco merchandise have to be intact and free of producing defects. Retail gross sales of tobacco merchandise in kilo or a part of it are prohibited. Gross sales have to be made in line with the weights and sizes permitted by SFDA.
