An increase in the excise tax on heated tobacco products by 200% from April 1 this year and its further growth by 30% (up to 320% in total) in 2022-2025 – such a compromise solution will allow avoiding too sharp price jumps and will provide more tax revenues than the alternative “shock” scenario, according to the Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (ULIE).
As reported on the union’s website on Monday, the business supports relevant bill No. 4278, which provides for such a procedure for increasing the excise tax. At the same time, the organization believes that this approach, among other things, will save jobs in companies, and the legal market, without reducing tax revenues to the budgets of various levels.
According to the business league, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy, when considering bill No. 4278, supported an increase in the excise tax on heated tobacco products by 200% in 2021 and a subsequent annual increase by 30% in 2022-2025.
The ULIE referred in a press release to the data of the Institute for Economics and Forecasting of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, according to which a gradual increase in excise tax rates on heated tobacco products within five years will provide UAH 18.7 billion more tax revenues than the alternative “shock” scenario with an increase in excise tax immediately in 4.2 times this year.
At the same time, the ULIE clarified that under the model of a gradual increase in excise tax, Philip Morris Ukraine tobacco company guaranteed the payment of more than UAH 11 billion of excise tax on heated tobacco products to the state budget of Ukraine during 2021-2022.
The Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs said that legislative amendments affecting the consumer basket should correlate with the purchasing power of consumers, which will ultimately be affected by the rise in prices for products. “Otherwise, this situation will stimulate smuggling and the illegal sector,” the business league said.
As reported, on January 16, 2020, the Verkhovna Rada adopted law No. 1210, which introduced amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine, increasing the excise tax rate on heated tobacco products by 4 times from January 1, 2021. Also, a separate product subgroup is introduced for heated tobacco products.
EXCISE TAX, TOBACCO PRODUCTS, ULIE
