Milan, Italy’s fashion and financial hub, has implemented the country’s strictest smoking rules from January 1, 2025. Anyone caught smoking in public places, including streets, parks and outdoor areas, will face fines ranging from €40 to €240. (Approximately Rs 3,500 to Rs 21,000).
The ban is part of a broader effort to tackle pollution in the city, which has long struggled with high levels of air pollution.
In 2020, Milan’s city council introduced a sweeping air quality law that imposed tighter restrictions on smoking, according to AFP. By 2021, smoking was banned in parks, playgrounds, bus stops and sports facilities. Now, the new law, which came into effect on January 1, extends the ban to all public places, including streets, although exceptions have been made for isolated areas where a distance of 10 meters from others can be maintained.
Milan, known for its long-standing association with fashion and style, is the first city in Italy to impose such widespread outdoor restrictions. However, the ban does not include vapes and electronic cigarettes.
While the ban officially took effect on New Year’s Day, Milan police confirmed that no arrests were made, despite the timing of the law coinciding with New Year’s celebrations, CNN reports. Lino Stoppani, president of Fipe Concomercio, the federation representing public businesses, expressed concern over the practical effects of the ban. “Without adequate controls, the ordinances jeopardize remaining measures aimed at raising awareness rather than solutions,” CNN quoted Stoppani as saying.
Stoppani also criticized the lack of clarity and enforcement mechanisms in the law. “This is a provision with many important issues. For us, this is a provision that will not have the desired effect, it has some regulatory weaknesses, and it also probably creates a little confusion in its application, but we are not fighting it.
The new rules will also affect visitors attending the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics in 2026.
Milan residents have mixed reactions to the new smoking ban. Sales clerk Myrian Illiano expressed her concern, telling AFP, “I think this measure is excessive. As long as we’re talking about an indoor space, I agree. Because (smoking) can be annoying and it’s not healthy. But if we are talking about open space, I don’t see why anyone should be banned.”
Content creator Chiara Ciuffini expressed support for the ban, saying, “I agree because I’m a sporty, non-smoker. I hope that even smokers can understand the need of non-smokers who want to breathe clean air.”
