The Verkhovna Rada (the Ukrainian Parliament) adopted in the second reading the draft law on the prohibition of trade in cigarettes and alcohol in duty free.
The corresponding bill No. 9315 was supported by 276 MPs at the plenary session on Thursday. This was reported by the member of the "Voice" faction Yaroslav Zheleznyak.
"The law on banning the scheme for cigarettes and alcohol in duty free has been adopted. This is a plus of 5-7 billion per year to the budget," Zheleznyak wrote.
The document should stop the existence of a scheme for the illegal sale of cigarettes allegedly produced for sale in duty free.
The draft law prohibits the placement and sale in duty free shops of tobacco products produced in Ukraine during the martial law, as well as the sale of more than two packs of cigarettes and 1 liter of strong alcohol per day per person in one check — and only with a passport. A limit of 2 liters is set for alcohol with an alcohol content of up to 22%. Fines in the amount of UAH 13 600 to UAH 17 000 are provided for exceeding the established limits.
In addition, the document will legalize the inventory of the remaining tobacco products intended for placement in duty free.
- In May 2023, the temporary investigative commission (TIC) on the illegal circulation of tobacco products discovered the duty free scheme. In 2021, there were 48 duty-free shops, and after the start of the war, only 15 of them remained. Although travel abroad was closed for a large number of citizens, in 2022 they sold 20 million packs of cigarettes, and the year before — 27 million packs.
- During the investigation of the TIC, it was found that at ground checkpoints, an average of 30-35 packs of cigarettes are bought for one check, and only 5-7 at others, while only two packs per person are allowed when crossing the border.