A third of cigarettes in Belgium are illegal

According to Cimabel. Nevertheless, more than a third of smoked cigarettes in Belgium have not been legally purchased. In addition, A proportion which continues to increase and which finds its source in the flambé of the excisees. However,

Frank Vandenbroucke. However, the Minister of Public Health, has the ambition of having a generation in 2040 that no longer begins to smoke. Additionally, However, A tobacco -free or nicotine generation. In addition, To get there. he has drawn an arsenal of measures including the sharp increase in the excisees on tobacco and the creation of excisees on the liquids of electronic cigarettes. The latter prompted vapers to get supplies, completely legally, in specialized stores located in France. The radical increase in the price of the packet of cigarettes (from 6.39 to 10.57 euros under the previous legislature) also leads to border third cigarettes belgium illegal purchases in Luxembourg, but especially dope illegal purchases. Thus, Cimabel, the Belgian-Luxembourg Federation of cigarette manufacturers, indicates that in the first half, 34.6% of the cigarettes consumed escaped the taxman, an increase of 29% over one year! Among these cigarettes, around 3% are counterfeits.

These figures are disturbing. All the more disturbing that Belgian customs do not remain inactive. Far from it. Thus, last year, a dozen illegal factories were dismantled in Belgium. This represents the seizure of more than 200 million cigarettes for 96 million euros in elected taxes. That said. the majority of cigarettes bought illegally are produced legally elsewhere, but fraudulently introduced into us via well -established criminal organizations. According to Cimabel, Bulgaria is the main provider of these illegal cigarettes (45.4%). Since 2020, the tax lack of tax would amount to nearly 700 million euros.