Are cigarettes so expensive that it’s making Hungarians quit?

It seems that the price of cigarettes has reached a level that is forcing Hungarians to take action. The last two excise duty increases raised the price of cigarettes by 200-250 forints; moreover, the rise in prices came suddenly, not gradually, as in recent years. 23 per cent of smokers asked in the Pulse and Daily survey said that the price of 1,700-1,800 forints is too high, so they will quit.

The Hungarian government finally raised the excise duty on cigarettes to the minimum level required by the European Union. This was requested by a 2011 directive that gave Hungary until 2017 to reach the desired tax rate. Although Hungary raised the tax in recent years, it has not complied with EU rules at that time. That is why the European Court of Justice condemned Hungary, the decision of which was published last week.

Excise duty on cigarettes:

• must be at least EUR 90 per 1,000 cigarettes,
• must reach 60% of the weighted average price,
• or it should be a minimum of EUR 115 per 1,000 cigarettes

According to the court, Hungary had already met the requirements in January, and since then, there has been another increase, now on 1 April.

Compared to November-December 2020, now in March-April, the price of a box of cigarettes may have risen by 200-250 forints, which is a great and sudden increase for smokers. A box of cigarettes costs 1,700-1,800 forints now. If someone smokes one box a day, they have to pay more than 51-55 thousand forints a month for cigarettes only, which is half of the net minimum wage.

• Hungary has the second-lowest minimum wage in the EU
• Four international retail chains leave Hungary due to COVID-19

Napi.hu asked Hungarian smokers if they would change their smoking habits due to the current increase in prices, or if they had done so before.

31 per cent of the population over the age of 18 reports smoking, which is roughly in line with recent surveys and accounts for nearly 2.5 million people.