France’s Council of State Rules Comprehensive Vaping Ban in French Polynesia Unlawful

Translated from 2Firsts · Published: December 25, 2025 · Category: International

France’s highest administrative court, the Council of State, has ruled that the provision mandating a comprehensive ban on e-cigarettes in French Polynesia’s Tobacco Control Law is unlawful. The court found that the ban exceeded the scope of the original legislative authorization. With the blanket ban overturned, local regulation will be aligned with mainland France’s tobacco-control framework, including measures such as a ban on disposable e-cigarettes.

Key Highlights

• The Council of State ruled that the comprehensive e-cigarette ban in French Polynesia is unlawful.
• The ban had planned to prohibit the import and sale of e-cigarettes effective July 1, 2026 and July 1, 2027, respectively.
• Local e-cigarette importers and distributors filed suit and prevailed.
• The invalidated provision is Article 76 of the local Tobacco Control Law.
• French Polynesia’s vaping regulation will align with mainland France’s tobacco-control rules.

2Firsts, December 25, 2025 — According to French media outlet Radio 1, the Council of State ruled that Article 76 of French Polynesia’s Tobacco Control Law—which provided for a comprehensive ban on e-cigarettes—was unlawful. The provision had planned to ban the import of e-cigarettes from July 1, 2026 and the sale of such products from July 1, 2027.

The article was adopted in late August with the support of the Tavini majority and sought to impose a territory-wide ban on e-cigarette products. It would have been among the most far-reaching vaping bans applicable within France’s jurisdictions and went beyond the French government’s original legislative proposal.

In September of the same year, local importers and distributors of e-cigarette products filed a legal challenge before the Council of State. While these businesses had previously opposed certain provisions of the new law, they questioned why e-cigarettes would be comprehensively banned while combustible cigarettes remained legally sold, arguing that the amendment carried a strong political symbolism.

Following the Council of State’s decision to annul the provision, the industry group prevailed in the case. The group had earlier received support from France’s employers’ association (MEDEF), but later chose to proceed independently. As of now, the companies involved have not issued an official statement regarding the ruling.

With Article 76 annulled, French Polynesia will not implement a comprehensive e-cigarette ban. Instead, vaping regulation will be brought into line with mainland France’s tobacco-control rules.

Under the adjusted regulatory approach, e-cigarette sales will be subject to a licensing system and prohibited for minors; disposable e-cigarettes will be banned; certain flavors deemed attractive to youth and products with excessively high nicotine content will be restricted. Advertising of e-cigarette products will be significantly curtailed, and their use in public places will be limited.

French Polynesia is an overseas territory of France located in the central South Pacific within Oceania. It comprises 118 islands and coral atolls, grouped into five archipelagos: the Society Islands (including Tahiti and Bora Bora), the Tuamotu Archipelago, the Marquesas Islands, the Gambier Islands, and the Austral Islands.

Image source: Radio 1

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