Act no. 728/2026 changed the time frame for young test purchasers

Section 1, no. 3, of Act no. 728/2026 changed the time frame for young test purchasers in section 2 b(4) of the Danish Act prohibiting the sale of tobacco and alcohol to persons under 18.

The express end date was changed to “til og med den 30. juni 2028” (up to and including 30 June 2028).

The amending provision reads, in Danish:

»3. I § 2 b, stk. 4, ændres »i perioden fra den 1. juli 2024 til og med den 30. juni 2026« til: »til og med den 30. juni 2028«, og »samt regler udstedt i medfør af § 2 a, stk. 8,« udgår.«

The quotation is from the amending Act and is not a consolidated version of section 2 b.

Entry into force

Act no. 728/2026 was published on 2 September 2026.

The amendment in section 1, no. 3, entered into force on 3 September 2026 under section 5(1) of the Act.

The ministerial exception in section 5(2) applies to section 2, no. 3, not to section 1, no. 3.

What the provision concerns

The provision concerns Erhvervsstyrelsen’s (the Danish Business Authority’s) power to use young test purchasers whose identities are concealed in shops where retail sales take place.

This is subject to the condition that there are not already reasonable grounds to suspect sales to persons under the age limit.

The authority may not influence material circumstances of the test purchase, for example by increasing the extent or gravity of an infringement.

The prohibition on selling tobacco surrogates (tobakssurrogater) to persons under 18 already existed.

Which products are covered is determined by the Act’s definition and exceptions.

The period from July to September 2026

The time frame in the earlier wording ended on 30 June 2026.

The amendment made by Act no. 728/2026 entered into force on 3 September 2026.

The provisions examined do not support describing the specific power to use young test purchasers as continuously in force from 1 July to 2 September 2026.

This is not a statement that other legal powers were lacking during that period.

Relevance for B2B businesses

For a B2B business, relevance depends on its actual activities: the provision applies to shops where retail sales take place.

Purely wholesale activity is not automatically covered by this specific subsection; this does not imply an exemption from other rules or other forms of supervision.

This description is based on the archived versions cited. No full check of later amendments has been carried out.

This is not an assessment of any particular shop, control method or product.

Sources: Act no. 728/2026 and Consolidated Act no. 1088/2024, retsinformation.dk (https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2026/728, https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2024/1088).