srsy07Bhutan is a Himalayan kingdom is the world’s first ever non-smoking country. It is illegal to sell tobacco or smoke in public in Bhutan. A fine is imposed on violators which would amount to $232 and this is equivalent to more than the two months’ salary in Bhutan. The strict implementation of smoke-free future in this country is something that the people of Bhutan were able to manage to pull off. Being a Buddhist country, most of them believe that smoking is not good for their individual karma.
It is also a good thing that only a small percentage of the Bhutan people are smokers. This makes it a lot easier to implement the law. Another factor that helped Bhutan from becoming a non-smoking nation is the fact that tobacco is not grown in the country. It would cost a tremendous amount to import tobacco products too. Therefore, it helped a lot in reducing the interest on cigarettes.
If you are a foreigner who smokes swisher cigars, you can still smoke and import tobacco for personal use. But you have to be prepared to pay custom duties as high as 200 percent for sales taxes. Once you are caught selling cigars and tobacco to Bhutanese, you will be charged of smuggling.
Despite this restriction, a lot of wealthy tourists crave to visit Bhutan. It is also interesting to note that Thimphu is the only capital city in the world with no traffic lights.