The excise stamps on packs of cartridges, reserves for electronic cigarettes and preparations intended for use in cartridges will become mandatory. A bill to this effect was approved by the Parliament’s commission on economy, budget and finance. According to the initiative, the excise taxes will be applied for each unit apart, not per liter as at present, IPN reports.

The bill was drafted by MPs of the Party of Action and Solidarity. According to them, the goal of the initiative is to prevent smuggling and illegal trading in such products on Moldova’s territory.

The amendments will take effect after they are published in the Official Gazette. However, the companies that will import such products before the coming into force of the law will be able to sell the existing stores without paying excise taxes until October 1, 2022.

In accordance with the budgetary-fiscal policy for 2022, the excise duty on cartridges and reserves for e-cigarettes and preparations intended for use in cartridges and reserves for electronic cigarettes is 1,957 lei per liter. In 2023, this will rise to 2,055 lei per liter.

The bill authors said the lack of the excise stamp on the pack does not enable the inspection bodies to determine if the excise duties were paid or not. This way, it is presumed that these goods can be smuggled into the local market or can be counterfeited.

The bill to amend the Fiscal Code and the law on tobacco control is to be debated in Parliament.