Guide To Submit To The EU Public Consultation

The European Commission recently launched its Call for Evidence on the EU legislative framework for Tobacco Control. 

The objective is to collect as many opinions as possible on the current EU legislative framework for Tobacco Control due to the “rapid rise” in emerging products (such as heated tobacco and e-cigarettes) which have entered the EU market since 2014.  

This Call for Evidence will define the potential options considered for the upcoming revision of the EU Framework for Tobacco Control planned for 2026!

Some of the options under consideration will place harsher restrictions on tobacco products, including on your beloved cigars and cigarillos. It is therefore paramount to make your voice heard so that cigar/cigarillo smoking will not be treated as cigarette smoking or other mass market tobacco products in the future!

As an example, ECMA made a submission to the previous consultation in 2022 here. 

The Call for Evidence will run until 15 June 2026 (Midnight Brussels Time). It is open to EU citizens, retailers, companies, academics and scientific experts. 

HOW TO SUBMIT TO THE CONSULTATION

  • The following is meant for ‘EU Citizen’ feedback. 
  • You can submit your feedback in all 24 official EU languages
  • For the ‘EU Citizen’ questionnaire, there are 20 questions and it should take you around 30 – 45 minutes to complete it
  • The questionnaire is available in all 24 official EU languages
  • If you do not know how to answer certain (technical) questions, do not hesitate to tick the box ‘Don’t know / Can’t answer’). 

1. Go to: ‘Call for Evidence’

2. Scroll down the page to the Call for Evidence section, and click on ‘Give feedback’

3. After clicking you will have to either sign in or create an account.

4. Once signed in you will be taken to feedback section, where you can provide your feedback with up to 4.000 characters (approximately 2 pages on Word). 

For any longer submission, to share technical expertise on policy related aspects linked to the revision of the Tobacco Products and Tobacco Advertising Directives, you can additionally submit more detailed comments in a separate file (preferably as a PDF with less than 5MB). 

In this section we recommend adding your testimonial, in your own words, on how cigars and cigarillos are different from other mass-consumed tobacco and nicotine products. 

Some things to consider including:

  1. Cigars/cigarillos are not the same as cigarettes 
  2. The fact that you smoke your cigars/cigarillos on an occasional basis 
  3. The fact that cigars/cigarillos are enjoyment products 
  4. The fact that cigars/cigarillos are not attractive to young people as opposed to new products placed on the market 

5. You will have to fill in your personal information. Please note that if you are taking part as an EU citizen/consumer you must identify yourself as an EU citizen in the ‘I am giving my contribution as’ section. 

6. You will have the option to submit your contribution anonymously or publicly. We recommend that submissions are public.

7. Finally, click SUBMIT and your contribution will be published.

An email will be sent to you to verify your response.  Don’t forget to click on the link in the email, then your response will be displayed.

The Call for Evidence closes on 15 June 2026 (Midnight Brussels Time) but we recommend you respond as soon as possible. 

Do not hesitate to reach out to us (info@ecma.eu) if you need help.

Help by spreading the word – as many aficionados as possible need to act on this!