From today, tobacco companies will no longer be able to sell cigarettes in branded packages: they will be in brown, olive, generic colours - nothing that catches the eyes.
This comes after the push for 2025 Smokefree Aotearoa campaign.
ASH Programme Manger, Boyd Broughton said this was one of their goals in a long term plan in making New Zealand smokefree
"This is to stop the normalisation and attractiveness to smoking"
The law will not apply to e-cigarettes and vaping.
Broughton said one of the biggest problems is stopping intergenerational smoking and this new law could help stop it.
"It will stop young people watching their parents come home with pretty packages."
Shopkeepers will have till June 6th to sell the remaining stock left on shelves - after that they have to move to the new cigarette packets.
Smokefree New Zealand advertising timeline -
1948 - First campaign by the Department of Health on the harms of smoking
1963 - Cigarette advertising banned on all NZ TV screens
1973 - Advertising banned on billboards or cinema screens
1974 - Health warnings printed on cigarette packaging
1990 - Smokefree Environments Act bans tobacco sponsorship of sports events (started in 1939)
- Sponsorship Council established to create Smokefree branding
1995 - No more tobacco sponsorship
- All shop cigarette branding is banned
2004 - All workplaces place including childcare and schools go Smokefree
2008 - Health warnings are introduced on cigarette packages
2012 - All tobacco products must not be on display in shops
2018 - All tobacco must be in plain, brown, olive generic packaging