Law to increase excise tax on sugary drinks passed
The Bill increasing the excise tax on sugary drinks including wine by 3 percent has been approved by Parliament.
Introduced by Minister of Revenue, Tialavea Tionisio Hunt, the passing of the bill was put through as a matter of urgency.
“This is not a huge increase and this law should have been effective in January 2018,” said Tialavea.
“As indicated before, it is not easy to bring forth such a Bill, given that it is taxation.
“The new increased excise rate is applicable to imported sugary drinks and locally made sugary drinks.”
The Bill seeks to amend the schedule of the Excise Tax Rates Act 1984 by replacing rates for tariffs for certain items with new tariff rates.
“The objective of the Bill is to increase the excise tax rates for sugary products by 3 percent from the current excise tax rate charged. This follows the government’s revenue review completed in 2016.