Smoking in Portugal
In Portugal, smoking is allowed but tobacco is strictly regulated. The regulatory framework show that cigarettes are allowed in the country with some restrictions. Under these regulations, health warnings on packaging are mandatory, the minimum legal age for sales is 18 years, and smoking is restricted in public places. A comprehensive ban on all cigarette advertising is also in force. The excise tax of 45.34% contributing to a total taxation rate of 78% is applied on cigarettes. Cigarettes can legally be sold, and they may be purchased through vending machines. However, online purchase is not legal. Importing cigarettes for trade is allowed with an appropriate import license. Despite these control measures, prevalence data show that smoking prevalence is high in Portugal. There were 2.1 million current smokers in the country in 2024. This represents an overall adult smoking prevalence of 23.4%, with higher prevalence among men (30.8%) than among women (16.7%). The overall current smoking prevalence was 20.9% in 2022. Adult daily smoking prevalence was recorded to be 15.8% in 2023. Smoking-related mortality also remains significant. In 2021, smoking resulted in 8,087 deaths, including 6,797 among men and 1,290 among women. This means, smoking accounted for 6.57% of all deaths in Portugal in 2021, with a higher rate among men (10.94%) than among women (2.11%).
Read articles from Portugal
October 11, 2023 by theportugalnews.com
Tobacco tax extends to nicotine-free electronic cigarettes
Tobacco taxation will be extended to nicotine-free electronic cigarettes in 2024, according to the State Budget proposal, which foresees a total increase in tobacco tax revenue of 176.6 million euros. The extension of taxation to nicotine-free electronic cigarettes is due “to the exponential growth in consumption of these products in Portugal”, which constitutes, “on the one hand, a gateway for new consumers to adopt smoking habits and, on the other hand, a risk to public health from the lack of control over these products”.
April 15, 2022 by theportugalnews.com
Alcohol and tobacco taxes rise
The State Budget for 2022 (OE2022) has updated the Tax on Alcohol, Alcoholic Beverages and Sugar-Added Beverages (IABA) by 1%, with total revenue expected to amount to €286.8 million.
An identical rise of 1% will also target the Tobacco Tax (IT) rate, according to the report accompanying the OE2022 proposal.
“Regarding Special Consumption Taxes, the tax rates will be updated by 1% for IT and IABA”, says the document, noting that, “taking into account the expected evolution for private consumption and the internal demand”, an increase in revenue is expected in 2022, compared to 2021, of 20 million euros in IT (+1%) and 29 million euros in IABA (+11%).
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