Lithuania: Excise taxes on vapor products go into effect

Vapor products sold in Lithuania are now subject to excise taxation. Amendments to the excise law approved by the nation’s Seimas (Parliament) in July 2018 and in effect as of 1 March 2019 introduced taxes to electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products.

With these reforms, Lithuania joins its neighboring Baltic States of Latvia and Estonia in taxing the liquid used in e-cigarettes. While Latvia levies taxes on both e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, Estonia currently taxes only the former. Lithuania now follows half the European Union Member States in taxing tobacco for heating.

Lithuania’s reforms

According to the amendments to the law, heated tobacco products are defined as “tobacco products prepared to be used only in special electronic device, in which they are heated and do not burn, that are not cigars, cigarillos, cigarettes and smoking tobacco.” A specific tax of 68.6 euros per kilogram of tobacco is applied.

The tax on liquid used in electronic cigarettes was introduced at a rate of 0.12 euros per milliliter of liquid and applies to the liquid product sold separately as well as the liquid sold as part of an e-cigarette device.

An unofficial English translation of the relevant amendments can be found here.