Budget 2023-24: E-cigarettes to be costlier by June

The new budget for the upcoming fiscal year 2023-24 will spell relief for lungs as the government will impose duty on e-cigarettes, electronic vaporising devices and its parts.

Finance ministry officials said the new budget will impose a 150% supplementary duty on liquid nicotine, and transdermal use of nicotine.

At the same time it may also impose a 212.20% duty on electronic cigarettes and similar personal electric vaporising devices and its parts. 

The move is aimed to discourage the use of electronic cigarettes and similar devices considering the health risk, officials of the finance ministry have told The Business Standard.

They mentioned that the use of e-cigarettes is increasing day by day as it has become very popular among the young smokers.

The government is going to impose a high duty because e-cigarettes are hazardous to health like other cigarettes and bidis.

ABM Zubair, executive director of a Research and Advocacy organisation, PROGGA, told The Business Standard that they had been demanding an effective amendment to the tobacco control law to ban all types of e-cigarettes and vaping products as 32 countries across the world have already banned those.

He also mentioned that the health ministry has made a draft to amend the tobacco control law, which is currently at the cabinet division for approval.

Zubair also hoped that Bangladesh would pass this law very soon like other countries and after that it would not need to impose such a duty.