A ruling by Switzerland’s highest federal court has paved the way for the legal sale of snus, according to Sweden’s TT news agency.

The case stems from a 2016 incident whereby Swiss customs refused to allow the import of a large shipment of snus. The decision was consequently then appealed by the Wellauer tobacco company. 

The country’s highest federal court has now ruled that there is no legal basis for a ban on snus, as Switzerland allows the sale of cigarettes, which are more dangerous to public health.  

This makes Switzerland the third country in Europe where snus has been legalised following Norway and Sweden.

“We will review the ruling carefully and then make a decision on what opportunities it may bring,” Swedish Match spokesperson Patrik Hildingsson told TT.

The Swiss government has previously submitted a bill to allow the sale of snus in the country.

Andrea Caroni, the lawyer who represented Wellauer in court, said she was pleased by the verdict.

“It almost never happens that the federal court strikes down a federal council ordinance as unconstitutional, even arbitrary,” he told the Tagblatt newspaper. 

“This decision is highly explosive politically ”