KPMG has released the 2023 edition of its annual study, ‘Illicit Cigarette Consumption in the EU, UK, Norway, Switzerland, Moldova and Ukraine’, which reveals an overall increasing rate of illicit consumption in the region, especially in France.

This month, we present the sixth interview with an International Tax Stamp Association (ITSA) member, providing their perspective on the present opportunities and challenges of the industry, and the developments they anticipate for its future.

The third session of the Meeting of the Parties (MOP3) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products will take place on 27-30 November in Panama, and the provisional agenda has now been released.

De La Rue has announced that its Authentication division is on track to exceed £100 million in revenue for fiscal year 2024, demonstrating good growth versus 2023 results.

At the recent World Customs Organisation (WCO) Council session, in Brussels, Edward Kieswetter, Commissioner of the South African Revenue Service (SARS), was elected as chairperson of the Council, replacing Shaikh Ahmed bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Director General of Bahrain Customs.

Revenue authorities, experts, and solution providers from around the world have confirmed their speaking slot at the Tax Stamp & Traceability Forum, taking place in Tbilisi, Georgia from 2-4 October 2023.

OpSec Group has announced that it will list on the NASDAQ stock exchange by merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) – Investcorp Europe Acquisition Corp. The SPAC is an arm of OpSec’s current owners – the private equity firm Investcorp Technology Partners.

As the first G20 nation to legalise recreational cannabis, Canada is well-placed to set the regulatory blueprint for the world. But there are still kinks to be ironed out, including a call by operators for a single national excise stamp to replace the current provincial stamps.

High security printing is based on features made available exclusively for that market. In the case of special inks, for example, this includes pigments with several modes of fluorescence, rare earth pigments, or different types of color shifting.

Cambodia has revealed the features of its new cigarette tax stamps to vendors in prime locations across the country, thanks to a joint effort between the General Department of Taxation (GDT) and the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE), reports Khmer Times.

Authentix has announced that it has acquired Netherlands-based Royal Joh Enschedé, a leading specialty printing and security solutions provider, from investment firm Nimbus.

We continue our interview series exploring the perspective of International Tax Stamp Association (ITSA) members, who offer some of their experiences within the tax stamp industry, and their predictions of challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

In the May 2023 issue of Tax Stamp & Traceability News™, we reported on how the tobacco lobbying concerns of several EU parliament members were largely being ignored by the European Commission.

The programme for the Tax Stamp & Traceability Forum™ (TSTF) is almost finalised and includes some interesting presentations by tax authorities and solution providers alike.

Earlier this year, in an update on Latin America in this same newsletter, we posited that Argentina’s AFIP (Administración Federal de Ingresos Públicos), the government institution in charge of the country’s tax policies, would be toughening up its stance against illicit tobacco trade and tax evasion.

A little over two years ago, Costa Rica was in the throes of allegations by TRACIT (Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade) that the best way to fight illicit tobacco trade was through a close collaboration between private sector companies (eg. tobacco producers) and the public sector.

As the traditional linear 1D barcode celebrates its 50th birthday, its days could be numbered now that GS1 – the global body responsible for barcode standards – prepares for the worldwide acceptance of younger, 2D codes in retail outlets by the end of 2027.

One of the most rapidly and widely embraced treaties in United Nations history, the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) celebrates its 20th anniversary in May 2023.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation has announced that new excise stamps for tobacco and alcohol will be introduced in the country from 1 March 2025, and that they will be linked to the country’s extensive e-governance platform.

We continue our series of interviews with members of the International Tax Stamp Association (ITSA), by talking with Gábor Zsámboki from ANY Security Printing in Hungary.