Self-monitoring in the sale of tobacco and related products
A retail business selling tobacco products, tobacco substitutes, smoking accessories, electronic cigarettes, or nicotine-containing liquids must prepare and implement a self-monitoring plan.
The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has issued a decree on the sale of tobacco and related products. According to the decree, a retail business selling the products must appoint at least one person responsible for self-monitoring, who is responsible for the practical implementation of the tasks related to the self-monitoring plan. According to the decree, the self-monitoring plan at the sales outlet must include information about the person responsible for self-monitoring and a list of the product groups subject to self-monitoring.
The self-monitoring plan must include a description of how it will be ensured that:
- age limit products are not handed over to persons under 18 years of age
- notifications have been submitted for products on sale in accordance with the Tobacco Act
- the unit packet of products on sale is in accordance with the Tobacco Act.
A retail business may prepare a self-monitoring plan in free form or use a template for a self-monitoring plan prepared by Valvira. The template can be found at the end of this page. The self-monitoring plan can also be prepared in electronic format, and it can be combined with other self-monitoring plans in the food premises. The self-monitoring plan must be made available as a whole to the employees at the sales outlet. In addition, the self-monitoring plan must be kept up to date and updated as required.
Entries to be made in the self-monitoring plan
The following entries must be made in the self-monitoring plan:
- completed induction of new employees
- sales problems related to age checks and suspicions of mediation
- the measures taken in response to problems and inspections by the authorities.
At licensed restaurants or staff restaurants and other similar sales outlets where people under 18 are present only in exceptional situations, the aforementioned entries can be implemented by entering a summary of the observations made during the year in the self-monitoring plan.
The entries must be retained for the current calendar year and the following two calendar years.
Frequently asked questions about self-monitoring
The amendment to the Tobacco Act, which entered into force at the beginning of May 2022, extended the obligation of self-monitoring to certain products subject to the Tobacco Act. The self-monitoring plan must describe how the retail business ensures that the notifications provided for in the Tobacco Act have been submitted for the products, and that the unit packets of the products comply with the requirements laid down in the Act. The obligation of self-monitoring applies to all retailers and wholesalers selling tobacco products, tobacco substitutes, smoking accessories, electronic cigarettes or nicotine-containing liquids.
In practice, the seller can check product notifications, for example, in the public product notification register maintained by Valvira, or take the matter into account in their agreements with their partners, for example. The retail business is responsible for determining and implementing the practical means of fulfilling the obligation. The self-monitoring obligation is regulated for the retailer referred to in the Tobacco Act, and the statutory responsibility for possible disadvantages or neglect of self-monitoring obligations cannot be delegated or transferred to elsewhere. It means, for example, that the holder of the sales permit or the retail business who made the wholesale notification is responsible for the legality of its operations, and any statutory sanctions for unlawful operations are imposed on them.
Yes. In addition to what is otherwise indicated, the self-monitoring plan at the wholesale outlet must indicate how the seller ensures that the buyer of the products has the identification codes related to the traceability of the products, as well as a valid retail permit and/or wholesale notification. The wholesaler has the right to obtain from Valvira the information necessary to ensure the above-mentioned obligations on the retail permit holders and retail businesses that have submitted the wholesale notification, and to process this information.