Implications of the taxation of tobacco in the European Union in the period 2005-2014

Abstract

The paper aims to analyze the implications of excise policy in member states and at the EU level in the period 2005-2014 in the field of tobacco taxation for policy convergence, revenues and the tobacco market. Based on statistical measures of variability, the convergence of the excise policies of EU member states in the field of the taxation of cigarettes is determined, with the proviso that the excise policies of the new member states are more homogenous than those of the EU-15. From trends in the consumption of tobacco products it can be concluded that the policy that was based on the premise of increasing the excise burden on cigarettes while maintaining a low excise duty on fine cut tobacco led in most member states to distortions in the tobacco market and loss of excise revenues. The study presented in this paper confirmed the key hypothesis that a coherent and effective excise policy at EU level cannot be achieved without careful balancing the structure, amount and dynamics of the increase in the tax burden on cigarettes and all products that may appear as their substitutes.