An article in the US publication Politico claims that they have a document from the European Commission that proposes a 258% tax increase on self-liquid cigarettes and a 139% tax increase on regular cigarettes. In addition, the inclusion of vape devices in the list of taxable goods is being considered.
The document contains not only options to increase taxes for tobacco products, but also estimates the likely impact of these measures on the EU common market.
At the same time, the article notes that the document of the European Commission was a reaction to the demand of a number of countries to develop unified measures and include vape and nicotine sachets in the EU Directives on excise duties on tobacco, as innovative and most popular among young people products.
Previously, the EU has already discussed the need for a unified approach to the taxation of tobacco products and e-cigarettes, as the different approach to these issues in the EU countries leads to market distortion and “migration” of consumers to those countries where these products are cheaper.
The document of the European Commission notes that high excise duties and taxes on tobacco have already shown their effectiveness in the fight against tobacco smoking and contributed to the reduction of tobacco consumption. Therefore, we are confident that the new measures will be the next right step in this direction.
The European Commission is considering three different options for raising tobacco taxes, the most radical of which should generate an additional 15.1 billion euros in revenue.
