Laws

Code No. 1163, Tax Code of the Republic of Moldova (as amended) (excerpts)

24 Apr, 1997

Note: This law has not been reviewed by our legal staff and was not relied upon for purposes of our analysis. We are providing it here for informational purposes only.

Law No. 1227-XIII on Advertising

COMMENTS: Law No. 1227-XIII on Advertising prohibits tobacco advertising in nearly all forms. The law has been amended on multiple occasions, most notably through the May 29, 2015 amendments contained in Law No. 124 of May 29, 2015.

Note: The uploaded files contain the law as originally enacted. Law No. 124 is uploaded separately below.

Law No. 386-XV Concerning Tobacco and Tobacco Products

19 Jul, 2001

COMMENTS: Law No. 386-XV Concerning Tobacco and Tobacco Products of 2001 was repealed by Law No. 278-XVI of 2007.

Resolution No. 886 on Approval of the National Policy on Health

06 Aug, 2007

COMMENTS: Resolution No. 886 on Approval of the National Policy on Health contains policy statements expressing Moldova's commitment to, among other policies, create a tobacco-free community.

Law No. 278-XVI on Tobacco Control (as amended)

COMMENTS: Law No. 278-XVI of December 14, 2007 on Tobacco Control is the primary law governing tobacco control. It has been amended several times, including comprehensive amendments in 2015. The amended law regulates e-cigarettes and tobacco products, including heated tobacco products.

Law No. 218-XVI, Contravention Code of Moldova (excerpts) (as amended)

31 May, 2009

COMMENTS: Law No. 218-XVI, Contravention Code of Moldova, contains the criminal code, a list of legal violations, and their respective penalties. The Code includes tobacco control-related penalties. The excerpts uploaded here contain relevant provisions as amended through August 15, 2019.

Law No. 22 to Amend and Supplement Certain Legislative Acts

01 Mar, 2012

COMMENTS: Law No. 22 contains several amendments to Law No. 278-XVI on Tobacco Control. The tobacco control amendments have been replaced by the 2015 amendments contained within Law No. 124.

Law No. 124 for Amendment and Supplementation of Certain Legislative Acts

17 Sep, 2015

COMMENTS: Law No. 124 for Amendment and Supplementation of Certain Legislative Acts amends several laws related to tobacco control, including Law No. 278-XVI on Tobacco Control, Law No. 1227-XIII on Advertising, and Law No. 218-XVI, the Contravention Code of Moldova. The comprehensive amendments involve several tobacco control issues, including smoke free places, tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, and tobacco packaging and labeling. Please note that the effective date varies for different provisions.

Ministry of Health Ordinance No. 139 on the Establishment of Counseling and Treatment for Smoking Cessation

03 Mar, 2016

Note: This law has not been reviewed by our legal staff and was not relied upon for purposes of our analysis. We are providing it here for informational purposes only.

Decision No. 1065 on the Approval of Sanitary Regulations Regarding Tobacco Products and Related Products (as amended)

20 Sep, 2017

COMMENTS: Decision No. 1065 approves the sanitary regulations prohibiting certain ingredients in tobacco products (Annex No. 1) and detailing notification and reporting requirements (Annex No. 2). The uploaded file contains amendments through May 13, 2020.

Decision No. 613 Approving the Health Regulations on Health Warnings and Labeling of Tobacco Products, Tobacco Intended for Cigarette Rolling and Related Products

01 Jan, 2018

COMMENTS: Decision No. 613 approves regulations for the implementation of health warnings on packaging of e-cigarettes and tobacco products, including heated tobacco products, roll-your-own tobacco, and related products. The regulations also include additional packaging and labeling requirements. 

Law No. 97 Concerning the Introduction of Changes in Certain Legislative Documents (including changes to Law No. 278-XVI on Tobacco and Tobacco Products)

16 Aug, 2019

Note: This law has not been reviewed by our legal staff and was not relied upon for purposes of our analysis. We are providing it here for informational purposes only.

Law No. 60 on the Establishment of Measures to Support Entrepreneurial Activity and the Amendment of Normative Acts

23 Apr, 2020

COMMENTS: Relevant to tobacco control, Law No. 60 amends Law No. 278-XVI on Tobacco Control to delay the effective date of the ban on product display at points of sale. The ban was scheduled to go into effect on May 20, 2020. However, implementation was delayed until three months after the end of the state of emergency declared under Parliamentary Decision No. 55/2020. As a result, the display ban entered into force on August 15, 2020.

Law No. 257 of December 16, 2020 on the Amendment of Some Normative Acts

01 Jan, 2021

COMMENTS: Relevant to tobacco control, Law No. 257 amends Law No. 278-XVI on Tobacco Control to: (a) increase the maximum allowed concentration of nicotine in e-cigarettes (Art. XXVIII(3)) and (b) remove the phrase "devices and accessories for their use, recharging or heating" from the ban on point-of-sale product display (Art. XXVIII(4)).

However, these amendments were subsequently reversed by Law No. 142 of October 14, 2021.

Law No. 142 of October 14, 2021 on the Amendment of Some Normative Acts

22 Apr, 2022

COMMENTS: Law No. 142 amends Law No. 278-XVI on Tobacco Control and reverses many of the amendments contained in Law No. 257 of December 16, 2020, which includes restoring the maximum nicotine concentration in e-cigarettes to 20 mg/ml and reintroducing the point-of-sale display ban for heated tobacco product devices. 

Law No. 142 also contains related amendments to the Contravention Code of Moldova. 

To the best of our knowledge, all laws provided here are in effect as of February 19, 2022 unless otherwise noted.