Bill Seeks Changes to Tobacco Duties

The bill was submitted to Parliament by Komandoo MP Mohamed Ibrahim on behalf of the government and is scheduled for its first reading tomorrow.

The amendment proposes setting the duty on cigarettes, bidi and heated tobacco products at MVR 4 per unit, while increasing the import duty charged on tobacco-related products to 30 percent.

It also seeks to exempt nicotine chewing gum and nicotine patches from duty.

The government increased cigarette duty from MVR 3.30 to MVR 8 in November 2024, stating at the time that the changes were in line with recommendations from the World Health Organization.

Discussions on revising the duty structure began in May, according to the government.