President Muizzu hints at more tax changes on tobacco

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has hinted at more changes to the price and tax policies on tobacco products.

In a statement on Sunday on occasion of World No Tobacco Day, President Muizzu said his administration continues to review and strengthen tobacco control measures, including price and tax policies as well as legislative reforms.

The remarks come after President Muizzu’s administration introduced amendments to the Tobacco Control Act in 2024, prohibiting the import of vaping devices and e-cigarettes in November, and expanding the restriction in December to cover the sale, free distribution, and use of such products.

The country has also doubled import duty and taxes on cigarettes, and imposed a smoking ban on the post-2007 generation.

The anti-smoking measures has earned Maldives global recognition, with a World No-Tobacco Day Special Recognition Award from the World Health Organization (WHO) for President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, and a Integrity Award from the Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control (GGTC) for the Maldives.

Despite the global recognition for the measures, the ban on vapes and the subsequent doubling of import duty on cigarettes has created an illegal market where vapes and cheaper brands of cigarettes are being smuggled in and sold in the Maldives. This has also resulted in the loss of millions of Rufiyaa in import revenue.