Where can I smoke, and where can't I?
Short answer
There is no national answer — this is left to the states, and they disagree. As of mid-2024 the CDC counted bars smokefree in 29 states and restaurants in 35, so the honest rule is to assume indoors is out and look for the sign.
No federal rule, which is the whole difficulty
Most countries a visitor arrives from have a national indoor smoking ban. Here there is none. The CDC tracks the state laws in its STATE System and publishes the tally, and the tally is the point: as of mid-2024 bars were smokefree in 29 states and restaurants in 35.
So the map has holes, and they are not where you would guess. This is not a case where the big cities are strict and the countryside is relaxed — it turns on the state you happen to be standing in, and a state line can change the answer.
What to assume, and what to look for
Assume indoors is prohibited. That is right in most of the country and it is never rude, whereas assuming the opposite can be both an offence and a scene.
Then look for what the venue tells you, because where smoking is allowed the venue advertises it. Outdoors, watch for distance rules around entrances and for parks and beaches that ban it outright; open air is not automatic permission here any more than it is in Asia.
Vaping is regulated separately, and locally
E-cigarettes are not treated as identical to cigarettes everywhere, and some states include them in indoor bans while others do not. Cities add their own rules on top.
The practical approach is the same as for cigarettes and for the same reason: step outside, away from the door, and look for a sign before assuming an exception applies to you.
Good to know
- No national ban — the rule is set state by state
- CDC mid-2024: bars smokefree in 29 states, restaurants in 35
- Assume indoors is prohibited and look for the venue's own sign
- Vaping is regulated separately, and often locally
It is the reverse of what most visitors expect: indoors is generally banned, and so is smoking while walking outdoors. You look for a designated area.
Indoors is banned outright in the big cities, e-cigarettes included, and the rules are written city by city rather than nationally.
Every restaurant, bar and café is no-smoking regardless of size, and a lot of outdoor space is too. Fines run to 100,000 won.
Indoors is banned by national law, with one narrow exception for a properly sealed smoking room. The part that catches visitors is the vape: an e-cigarette is not merely restricted here, it is illegal to import, sell or use — and using one carries the same fine as smoking where you must not, NT$2,000 to 10,000.