Two independent studies point to the fact that cigarette smokers in Uruguay still prefer illicit cigarettes.

Interviews with International Tax Stamp Association (ITSA) members in 2023 – common threads and differences; implementing Lebanon’s tobacco authentication and traceability solution. Some of the year's headlines.

Enforcement authorities in Europe have taken down a criminal group operating an intricate cigarette trafficking scheme across several EU countries.

Looking back over the year that was, a number of developments stand out in different areas: namely mergers and acquisitions, the growth in illicit vapes, the integration of tax stamps into wider e-governance programmes, and a greater focus on sustainability in tax stamps. In the meantime, the ongoing rollout of national tobacco track and trace systems under the WHO FCTC Protocol continues at a sluggish pace.

India’s government banknote printer, the Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Ltd (SPMCIL) has reported a 29% growth in its tax stamp division.

According to the latest US Tax Foundation report, ‘Cigarette Taxes and Cigarette Smuggling by State, 2022’, growing cigarette tax levels and price differentials have made cigarette smuggling a persistent, national problem in the United States. But price is not the only culprit, with state bans on flavoured tobacco and nicotine products also driving up levels of cross-state smuggling.

The Malaysian newspaper printer Ultimate Print has entered into a deal with Türkiye’s state printer, Darphane, to establish a high-security printing hub in Malaysia.

The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co- operation and Development) has released the 15th edition of ‘Consumption Tax Trends’, a biennial publication presenting comparative data on consumption taxes in OECD member countries. The report highlights the continuing downward trajectory of excise duties as a percentage of total tax revenues in these countries.

A few months ago, the third edition of the Tobacconomics Cigarette Tax Scorecard was published, evaluating the 2022 performance of cigarette tax policies in 170 countries. Unfortunately, the scorecard shows that governments have made insufficient progress, and even regressed, in addressing the world’s leading cause of preventable death, despite unequivocal evidence showing that when countries raise tobacco taxes, consumption declines (Ngo et al, 2023).

Washington, the first state to approve marijuana use recreationally in the US, alongside Colorado, still lacks a system to properly track cannabis from production through processing to retail sale, the Office of the Washington State Auditor confirmed in an audit.

In October, 40 participants turned up for the latest International Tax Stamp Association (ITSA) webinar, which was in Spanish only and directed towards tax and customs authorities across Latin America.

Following the UK’s decision to introduce a new excise duty on vaping products in 2026, the government has announced it will be implementing tax stamps on vapes, to accompany this new duty. At the same time, it has advised that a track and trace system will not be introduced on vapes, even though such a system is applied to traditional tobacco products in the UK.

The Excise Department of Thailand has launched its ‘QR Cigarette’ system, comprised of tax stamps with unique QR codes and serial numbers. By scanning the code, users can access detailed product information, such as brand, manufacturer, tax payment date, shipping location, and price.

Amid an intensified crackdown against the illegal transfer of fuel in the Philippines, two tankers, carrying 370,000 litres of smuggled fuel worth over PHP 20 million ($343,000), were confiscated by the Philippines Bureau of Customs (BOC) in Navotas City in September. One month later, another tanker was caught in the act of transferring smuggled fuel into four lorries at the Port of Batangas.

This article looks at the newly created, massive illicit market in vapor products originating mainly from China and sold in the United States (US). Despite being banned in both China and the US, brands like Elf Bar, Geek Bar, and Lost Mary continue to circulate. What’s more, they carry authentication labels that falsely suggest legitimacy, further exacerbating illicit trade.

Tax Stamp & Traceability News™ recently spoke to Arnaud Bansard, Sales Director, Government Affairs at EDGYN, a leading provider of physical and digital technologies for protecting brands and securing government revenues. Arnaud joined the company six months ago, with the objective of revitalising its government business. While EDGYN has been active in this area for over 20 years, and has multiple government references for tax stamps and ID documents, Arnaud’s objective is to ensure it becomes as successful in government as it is in brand protection.

Chile’s fiscal traceability system on tobacco products (SITRAF) has been instrumental in allowing the Chilean tax authority, Servicio de Impuestos Internos (SII) to identify a company that has been illegally manufacturing cigarettes in the country.

The global software engineering company ELEKS has been awarded a tender to develop Ukraine’s ‘e-Excise’ tax stamp and traceability programme for tobacco and alcohol products.

India is the largest market in the world for liquor tax stamps, given that 27 states consume 30-35 billion tax stamps annually. While tax stamps at a global level are mainly used on tobacco products as part of a federal scheme, the situation is different in India, where almost all stamps in circulation are used on alcoholic beverages at the individual state level – and no stamps are used at all on tobacco products.

Work has now begun on the programme for the next Tax Stamp & Traceability Forum™, which will take place from 7-9 April 2025, in Cape Town, South Africa.