ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Iraqi parliament on May 6 will vote on a bill that aims to curb smoking through a combination of taxes, fines, and incentives with a focus on limiting children’s exposure to tobacco products and second-hand smoke, a member of parliament told Rudaw on Friday.
“According to the draft law, advertising for cigarettes, hookah, and devices used for smoking will be prohibited. Persons under 18 years of age are not allowed to smoke hookah, and smoking will not be permitted in vehicles carrying persons under 18,” said Majid Shingali, chairman of the parliament’s Health Committee.
“Penalties for violations of this law start from 50,000 dinars,” he added.
The 21-provision draft law has passed through the first and second readings and is ready to be put to a vote, expected to take place on May 6. A scheduled vote last month did not take place as the session was postponed.
If passed, the law will impose a tax of 500 Iraqi dinars (around $0.38) on each imported pack of 20 cigarettes. It will also prohibit smoking in public places, with violators facing a fine of 50,000 Iraqi dinars (around $38.20).
Additionally, individuals who sell tobacco products - including hookah materials, electronic cigarettes, and vapes - to minors could face a prison sentence of no less than six months or a fine ranging from 250,000 (around $190) to 500,000 Iraqi dinars (around $382).
The bill builds on a 2012 anti-smoking law that banned smoking in public places and put limits on imports of tobacco products, and it will provide incentives for tobacco farmers and cigarette manufacturers to switch to other crops or products.
“The draft law doubles the taxes on imported cigarettes and locally manufactured ones, setting the customs tariff at 40%. Loans will be given to factories producing cigarettes and hookah if they convert to other fields, and the same loans will be given to those who grow tobacco if they grow something else instead,” Shingali said.
The Kurdistan Region parliament enacted an anti-smoking law in 2007 that banned smoking in public places. The law is not enforced.
Smoking is highly prevalent in Iraq, including among the youth. Some 18.6 percent of people aged 15 and older smoke as do 9.5 percent for youth aged 10 to 14 years, according to 2022 figures from the Tobacco Atlas, a World Health Organization (WHO)-recognized global public health initiative.
Tobacco Atlas estimates that more than 27,000 people die from smoking in Iraq each year.
Hastyar Qadir contributed to this article.
