Poland proposes draft amendments to alcohol regulations and EU wine package

Poland’s parliament is debating draft amendments to the Act on Upbringing in Sobriety and Counteracting Alcoholism, which changes the rules on advertising and the sale of non-alcoholic products associated with alcohol, including those produced through dealcoholisation. 

This draft legislation, which may still undergo significant changes in the legislative process, is a response to the rapid growth of the market for non-alcoholic and low-alcohol wines across Europe and the recent passage of EU Regulation 2026/471 (i.e. the wine package), which introduces harmonised rules on the labelling of these products.

Poland’s draft sobriety act

The Polish Ministry of Health’s government draft bill bans the advertising and promotion of alcoholic beverages (and extends the ban to beer), restricts the sale of alcohol in containers of up to 300 ml to glass or metal containers only, bans the retail sale of alcohol in non-liquid forms (e.g. powder, gel or paste), regulates distance selling, and increases penalties for illegal alcohol advertising.

In addition, draft legislation submitted by the Polska 2050–Trzecia Droga Parliamentary Club calls for a broad definition of a “non-alcoholic beverage”, which would cover products with an alcohol content of up to 0.5% by volume, but also products carrying names, trade marks, graphic designs or packaging identical to or resembling an alcoholic beverage or another symbol objectively referring to an alcoholic beverage. For products defined in this way, the draft bill provides for a ban on advertising and promotion, and also a ban on the sale, market placement and serving of certain food products. Draft legislation submitted by the Lewica Parliamentary Club provides for a ban on the advertising and promotion of all alcoholic beverages, analogous to the government draft bill, and extends this ban to non-alcoholic beverages as well. 

Alongside these developments, Polish lawmakers are also taking action in relation (EU) 2026/471 of the European Parliament and of the Council (i.e. so-called the wine package), which entered into force on 18 March 2026. The Regulation establishes harmonised rules for non-alcoholic and low-alcohol wines and is directly applicable in all EU Member States. To allow producers to adapt to the new labelling requirements for products with reduced alcohol content, these provisions will apply 18 months after the entry into force of Regulation (EU) 2026/471 – 19 September 2027. Products that were dealcoholised and labelled before that date may remain on the market until stocks are exhausted.

In accordance with the Regulation, products that have undergone dealcoholisation should be labelled as:

• non-alcoholic – where the actual alcohol content does not exceed 0.5% by volume; 
• 0.0% – where the actual alcohol content does not exceed 0.05% by volume; 
• reduced alcohol content – where the actual alcohol content exceeds 0.5% by volume but is at least 30% below the minimum actual alcohol content specific to the category in question prior to dealcoholisation. 

Each of these products must also bear the indication “produced by dealcoholisation”.

In practice, a product correctly labelled in accordance with EU law could still, under the proposed national legislation, be deemed to exploit the similarity to an alcoholic beverage. Consequently, it would be subject to a national ban on advertising, promotion and, in certain cases, on sale or marketing.

The parliamentary draft bills have been subject to the notification procedure before the European Commission. The Commission’s position may be significant for the further course of legislative work and the final shape of the regulations.

Businesses in Poland’s alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages market, particularly producers and distributors of non-alcoholic and low-alcohol wines, should monitor further developments on the draft legislation, particularly on the definition of non-alcoholic products and the relationship between the proposed bans and labelling obligations under EU law. 

For more information on this draft legislation, the EU Regulation and their potential impact on your Poland-based business, contact your CMS client partner or these CMS experts.