Duterte signs law hiking tobacco excise tax
Credit to Author: Tempo Desk| Date: Thu, 25 Jul 2019 12:20:20 +0000
A measure raising the excise tax on tobacco products, including heated tobacco products and e-cigarettes, has been signed into law by President Duterte, Malacañang announced last night.
The new tobacco tax law seeks to augment government funds to bankroll the implementation of the universal health care program in the country, according to Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.
“To address the urgent need to protect the right to health of the Filipino people and to maintain a broader fiscal space to support the implementation of the Universal Health Care Act, the President has signed into law HB No. 8677/ SB No. 2233 Increasing the Excise Tax on Tobacco Products,” Medialdea said in a text message.
Under Republic Act No. 11346, the excise tax on cigarette packs will be raised to P45 by January 2020. It will be raised by P5 annually until it reaches P60 by 2023.
Thereafter, the rate will automatically increase by five percent annually. At present, the government collects an excise tax of P35 per cigarette pack.
The same measure also imposes a P10 excise tax per pack of heated tobacco products and P10 tax for every 10 milliliters of vapor products beginning 2020. There will be an annual increase of five percent thereafter.
The President earlier certified the tobacco tax bill as urgent to “address the urgent need to further protect the right to health of the people and to maintain a broad fiscal space to support the effective implementation of the Universal Health Care Act.” (Genalyn Kabiling)