As of May 2024, all tobacco products within the European Union need to be traceable through the use of a unique identifier – a scheme that has been incrementally rolled out since the Directive was passed in 2014.. The purpose of the legislation is to manage illicit trade in tobacco products – facilitating consumer safety and addressing tax avoidance.

See Articles 15 and 16 of the Tobacco Products Directive (Directive 2014/40/EU).

See further the EU Stakeholder Manual