Tobacco Sector Indicators in Response to New Tobacco Excise Tax Regulation in Georgia

Tobacco taxes are recognized as an effective policy tool to reduce tobacco consumption and improve health outcomes; however, in many cases the attainment of the budgetary and regulatory goals of tobacco excise tax regulation is not straightforward and the expected benefits thereof often do not materialize. The project on tobacco sector indicators in response to the new tobacco excise tax regulation in Georgia covered this issue in detail and observed the tobacco market development dynamics in the country in response to the tighter excise taxation policy introduced in 2019.

Observing the development trends, the ACT team shed light on the complexity of the tobacco excise tax regulation, particularly the increase of the illicit tobacco market. The non-existence of a precise plan as well as inconsistent and unequal taxation has further escalated the problem. The analytical document prepared by ACT focused on the following four main parts: tobacco control policies and EU-Georgia Association Agreement requirements, as well as tobacco excise tax developments in the country; EU and regional experience in implementing tobacco control laws; the dynamics of the tobacco sector indicators in Georgia; and the stakeholder and citizen interviews gleaning their attitudes toward the new regulations.

The key takeaways and recommendations were drawn by ACT for the relevant policymakers. Recommendations included the need for a more enhanced set of complementary policies to encourage consumers to quit tobacco products, and to target comprehensive interventions to fulfill the main goals of the regulation.