ID now required in Denmark for online purchases of alcohol, nicotine, e-cigarettes, and tobacco

07.10.2024 - From October 1, 2024, you will need to verify your identity with MitID or valid photo ID when purchasing nicotine, tobacco, e-cigarettes, or alcohol online. This is part of the government’s prevention plan aimed at reducing nicotine, tobacco, and alcohol consumption among children and young people.

Next time you fill your shopping cart with nicotine pouches, spirits, or cigarettes from a webshop, be prepared to show valid ID before clicking "order." As of today, age verification is mandatory when purchasing nicotine, tobacco, e-cigarettes, and alcohol products online. Verification can be done via MitID, passport, driver's license, or other valid identification, and the method may vary from webshop to webshop.

“Many have been used to simply ticking a box confirming they are over 18 or clicking 'OK' in a pop-up window on a webshop. But from today, they must be ready to log in with, for example, MitID or provide valid photo ID. The previous process was ineffective in preventing minors from ordering nicotine, tobacco, e-cigarettes, or alcohol online, so the requirements are now being tightened,” says Stine Pedersen, Head of Department at the Danish Safety Technology Authority.

This new measure is part of the government's prevention plan, which was presented by the Ministry of the Interior and Health last autumn. The prevention plan includes 30 initiatives aimed at reducing the consumption of tobacco, nicotine, and alcohol among children and young people over time.

“We see this as a significant step toward ensuring that children and young people cannot access products that may pose a danger to them. These new measures are necessary to establish more effective age control for these webshops,” says Stine Pedersen.

The Danish Safety Technology Authority will continuously monitor online retailers to ensure compliance with the new rules, making it impossible for minors to purchase nicotine, tobacco, e-cigarettes, and alcohol products online.

Examples of effective online age verification under the new requirement as of October 1, 2024:

• Customers will be asked to verify their age through MitID, which checks whether the customer is above or below the age limit for the product in question. The purchase can only be completed if MitID confirms that the buyer is above the age limit.

• Customers will be asked to use a passport, driver's license, or other valid identification when creating a user account or profile on the webshop. The webshop must assess whether the ID appears genuine, whether the customer's age can be verified based on the ID, and whether the ID is valid (not expired).