In May, the government introduced a tax to reduce consumption, adding two cents per litre of diesel and one cent per litre of petrol. Four months after this increase in excise duties, the Customs and Excise Agency has revised its estimates for the current year, confirming the loss of 100,000 litres in diesel sales. This equates to excise duties of around 35.5 million euros, constituting a loss for government coffers.
For the moment, there has been no impact on petrol sales, as consumption has continued an upward trend (+ 5.78% for the first nine months in 2019). In total, fuel excise revenue is expected to reach around 1.16 billion euros (including 170 million euros of VAT) for 2019.
The increase in excise duties appears to have had repercussions in the sale of tobacco products, especially on roll-your-own tobacco (unlike cigarettes whose sales are on the rise). In total, the sale of tobacco products is expected to generate revenues of 775 million euros (including 170 million euros' worth of VAT) for the state coffers for 2019. It has also been estimated that revenues from the sale of alcohol are expected to remain at a very high level (57 million euros).
Members of the parliamentary committee queried the impact of the planned legalisation of cannabis on the revenues of the state. This calculation is not yet possible because of the lack of precise data, according to the experts of the Customs and Excise Agency.
