UAE: Tobacco industry gets extension on hookahs and heated tobacco
June 9, 2020
Par: communication@cnct.fr
Dernière mise à jour: June 9, 2020
Temps de lecture: 3 minutes
The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) of the United Arab Emirates has decided to postpone until 1er January 2021 the implementation of the ban on the sale, storage and possession of shisha tobacco and heated tobacco not bearing a digital tax stamp[1].
Digital tax stamps enable digital tracing of tobacco products from the manufacturing plant to their retail sale, in principle ensuring compliance with production standards and tax obligations.
The ban, which was due to come into effect on June 1, 2020 in the United Arab Emirates, has been granted a seven-month extension to allow for better preparation for the implementation of the ban, according to AFF Director General Khaled Ali Al Bustani.
However, this decision mainly responds to the demands expressed by the tobacco industry and its allies, following the constraints and exceptional regulations applied during the COVID-19 pandemic. The tobacco companies mention in particular the existence of stocks of shisha tobacco and heated tobacco due to the closure of bars and restaurants.
Other illustrations highlight that the tobacco industry is taking advantage of the health crisis to advance its interests, whether of promotional operations for new tobacco products among the younger generations, operations intended to restore its image by trying to portray cigarette manufacturers as responsible and legitimate social actors on health issues, or, here, by putting pressure on public authorities to delay or block regulations on tobacco.
In April 2020, the European Confederation of Tobacco Retailers (CEDT), co-chaired by Philippe Coy (current president of the Confederation of Tobacco Retailers), sent a letter to the Directorate-General for Health of the European Commission in April 2020, with the aim of obtaining an additional period for the ban on the sale of menthol cigarettes and rolling tobacco, on the pretext that the lockdown situation would not allow tobacconists to sell off their stocks. This request was refused.
[1] Gulf Business, « UAE defers ban on e-cigarettes, water pipe tobacco products without 'digital tax stamps' », May 26, 2020 https://gulfbusiness.com/uae-defers-ban-on-e-cigarettes-water-pipe-tobacco-products-without-digital-tax-stamps/
