Participants attend a conference marking World No Tobacco Day (May 31) organized by the Vietnam Steering Committee on Smoking and Health in Hanoi, Vietnam, May 22, 2026. Photo: D. Lieu / Tuoi Tre
The proposal was announced on Friday by Tran Thi Van Ngoc, deputy chief of office at the ministry’s Agency of Medical Services Administration, during a conference in Hanoi marking World No Tobacco Day (May 31) organized by the Vietnam Steering Committee on Smoking and Health.
The measure was included in a draft amendment to Vietnam’s Law on Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harms.
Under the proposal, people born on or after January 1, 2010 from will be banned from buying or using tobacco products.
According to the ministry, the policy is intended to gradually eliminate tobacco access for future generations and reduce smoking rates, secondhand smoke exposure, and long-term healthcare costs.
The ministry said implementation would require strong support from the National Assembly, government agencies, and the public, along with measures such as age verification at retail outlets, reducing the number of tobacco sales points, stricter penalties, and smoking cessation support programs.
A sign stating that tobacco products are not sold to people under 18 years old is displayed at a grocery store in Vietnam. Photo: Duong Lieu / Tuoi Tre
The proposed amendments also include a full ban on tobacco product displays at retail stores.
Current regulations allow retailers to display only one pack of each tobacco brand.
The ministry said tobacco displays effectively function as indirect advertising and increase youth exposure to tobacco products, adding that current rules were inconsistent with the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which calls for comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship.
Vietnam currently has more than 15 million smokers, and tobacco-related diseases cause more than 103,000 deaths annually, according to data cited at the conference.
The ministry said tobacco-related economic losses reached about VND108 trillion dong (US$4 billion) in 2022, equivalent to 1.14 percent of Vietnam’s gross domestic product.
Officials said the amended tobacco control law is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly for approval in October.
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