France has enacted its most extensive smoking restrictions to date, banning smoking in outdoor public spaces such as beaches, parks, and bus shelters from Sunday, 29 June 2025.
The move, outlined in a decree published in the Official Journal on Saturday, forms part of a national public health strategy aimed at shielding children from passive smoking and promoting a tobacco-free generation by 2032.
The new rules, announced by Health and Family Minister Catherine Vautrin, also prohibit smoking within a 10-metre radius of schools, libraries, swimming pools, and other locations where minors gather. Although the decree came into effect immediately, authorities have confirmed there will be an initial grace period before fines of up to €135 are enforced.
“Tobacco must disappear where there are children,” Vautrin stated. “A park, a beach, a school — these are places to play, learn and breathe. Not for smoking.”
The minister has described the legislation as a milestone in reducing young people’s exposure to smoking, both physically and symbolically.
France’s latest restrictions coincide with a long-running shift in European public health policy. Countries including Sweden, Spain, and Italy have already expanded smoking bans to include outdoor areas. Sweden banned smoking at bus stops and near playgrounds in 2019, while Spain is moving to restrict smoking on restaurant terraces — spaces that remain exempt under the French rules for now. A leaked European Commission document also suggests forthcoming EU-level recommendations that would include similar measures and potentially extend to nicotine-free products.
For France, the new ban represents more than a public health initiative. It marks a cultural departure from a deeply ingrained association between smoking and national identity, especially as depicted in French cinema, fashion, and social life. Scenes of Brigitte Bardot reclining on the beaches of Saint-Tropez or Jean-Paul Belmondo strolling the Champs-Élysées with a cigarette in hand once captured a distinctly French sense of rebellion and allure. That era, however, appears to be drawing to a close.
The Ministry of Health points to stark statistics as justification for the move. According to national data, tobacco use causes approximately 75,000 deaths annually in France. Although the prevalence of daily smoking has fallen — currently at less than 25% of the adult population — the rate remains high by European standards, particularly among younger people. Fifteen percent of 17-year-olds in France are still regular smokers.
According to the French Observatory for Drugs and Addictive Tendencies (OFDT), the smoking rate is now at its lowest recorded level since 2000, yet health officials insist further action is needed. Smoking has been banned indoors in restaurants, bars, and public buildings since 2007. In addition, cigarette prices have risen steadily due to increased taxation, with a standard pack now costing at least €12.
The new ban comes amid growing public support for stronger tobacco controls. A recent opinion poll found that 62% of French citizens favour restrictions on smoking in public spaces. Campaigners, including the League Against Cancer, have welcomed the measure as overdue, pointing to research that over 90% of French films between 2015 and 2019 included scenes depicting smoking — more than double the rate found in Hollywood productions.
Despite these developments, public reaction remains mixed. In the Marais district of Paris, views range from relief to resistance. “It’s about time,” said Clémence Laurent, a mother of two. “I don’t want my children growing up thinking that smoking is glamorous.” Others were less convinced. “Smoking is part of French culture,” said Luc Baudry, a local shopkeeper. “Take that away and what do we have left? Kale smoothies?”
Jeanne Lévy, 72, recalled idolising actress Jeanne Moreau’s “smoky, lived-in voice”, shaped by decades of Gauloises. “It was her voice that made me start,” she said. “We all wanted that poetry.”
The ban currently excludes electronic cigarettes, a decision that has prompted some debate. At Place des Vosges, student Thomas Bouchard took a drag from his vape and remarked, “Maybe vaping is our compromise — a little less romantic, but fewer wrinkles too.”
The Ministry of Health is expected to issue further regulations to define the precise boundaries of the ban at facilities catering to minors. For now, smoking in a wide range of outdoor settings is no longer simply discouraged in France — it is officially outlawed. Whether this will reshape public behaviour or merely shift it to terraces and private spaces remains to be seen.
