DOH‘s tax increase on tobacco products lights up hot debate(China Post)
發佈日期： 2013-03-26
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday that it is planning an amendment to raise the surcharge on tobacco products to NT$40 per pack in hopes of lowering the smoking rate.
The John Tung Foundation (JTF, 董氏基金會), however, suggested raising the tobacco tax instead, so the government could utilize the extra funds. Income from the surcharge goes to the DOH, while income from the tax goes to the central government.
Bureau of Health Promotion (BHP) Director-General Shu-Ti Chiou (邱淑媞) announced yesterday that the DOH will propose to the Legislative Yuan an amendment to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防制法) to increase the surcharge from NT$20 to NT$40 per package.
“The price for each pack of cigarette would be increased by the end of this year if the amendment is passed,” said Chiou.
According to the DOH, after the amendment is passed, the price for a pack of locally made cigarettes will be increased to around NT$100, while the price for most imported cigarettes will be raised to over NT$100 per pack.
Deputy Health Department Director Lin Tzou-yien (林奏延) said that the tobacco surcharge has not been adjusted since 2009, so the DOH has decided to make the more significant adjustment of NT$40 to the tobacco price.
Taxation Agency (賦稅署) Director Wu Tzu-hsin (吳自心), however, called for a hike in the tobacco tax, as rises in the surcharge have not helped decrease the smoking rate.
The tobacco tax has not been increased for the past 10 years, Wu said, and during this same period the demand for cigarettes did not decrease.
“The income from the tobacco surcharge and tax has decreased slightly,” National Treasury Agency Director (國庫署) Ling Chung-yuan (凌忠媴). Given the fact that smoking levels have remained relatively stable, this “indicates that the impact from smuggled cigarettes is still very serious.”
JTF volunteer Chen Shu-li (陳淑麗) said that cigarette prices in Taiwan are too low, especially when compared to prices in other countries.
“The price for a pack of cigarettes in the United States is now NT$400, while the price for imported cigarettes in Taiwan is only NT$85,” said Chen.
The smoking rate is United States has dropped from 52 percent to 20 percent, according to Chen, but the smoking rate in Taiwan has only decreased from 33 percent to 19.1 percent.
“The JTF supports the idea of increasing tobacco prices by raising the tobacco tax so that the government can utilize this income for all citizens,” Chen said, adding that the foundation will also propose another amendment to increase the tobacco tax.
