Sale of cigarettes in New Zealand is prohibited to anybody born after 2008

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New Zealand passed extensive legislation aimed at preventing minors from becoming smokers. The country’s smoking age of 18 would be raised year by year until it applied to the whole population. Those under 15 would be barred from buying cigarettes for the rest of their lives. Only 8 percent of New Zealand’s adult population smoked every day in 2022, according to government statistics. A quarter of Maori adults smoked every day, beginning at age 14, according to government statistics.

They also suffered at higher rates from diseases related to smoking, compared with other ethnic groups. Antiismoking advocates have emphasized the need to engage Maori and Pacific Island communities. Right-wing lawmakers argued that the ban would fuel a black market.