Government Discusses Higher Excise Duty on Cigarettes

Ljubljana, 5 March - At a correspondence session on Monday, the government adopted proposed amendments to the act on excise duties that foresee a gradual increase of excise duty on cigarettes. The proposed changes, which were sent to parliament, foresee the excise duty to increase twice annually, namely on 1 January and 1 July, until 1 July 2005, when the excise duty will stand at 57 percent, something that is in line with the relevant EU regulation.