WVA EU Tax Plan
The EU Commission’s new tobacco tax plan is a direct attack on public health, the poor, and common sense, according to the World Vapers’ Alliance
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by Dave Cross
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Breaking news from Bild Zeitung is that the European Union Commission has released a new tobacco tax plan. This plan has been described as “a direct attack on public health, the poor, and common sense”, according to the World Vapers’ Alliance.
The German news outlet says that ex-smokers will be “vaping with frustration” at the news of a hike in the price of products, prefilled pods and eliquids. Shoving vaping under the same umbrella as tobacco products, “European politicians in Brussels want to significantly increase taxes”.
Bild Zeitung says that prices on all products could be set to rise by around 30% from the start of 2026. It says that tax experts are sounding the alarm that this move will have dire consequences.
"The plan affects not only citizens, but also the state itself. Because higher taxes do not automatically mean more revenue," it quotes Michael Jäger, President of The European Taxpayers' Association (TAE).
It points out that in France, a country currently running a high tax system for all tobacco and vape products, the black market has boomed as a result – with an estimated 33% of sales being illicit and therefore contributing no tax whatsoever.
“What Brussels is planning here in times of war, record debt, and mutual punitive tariffs is not only a grab for taxpayers, but also shows how insensitive the EU Commission is in times of crisis,” it says Jäger added.
The World Vapers’ Alliance says it has reacted with alarm to the report of the European Commission’s nicotine tax hike.
It describes the plans to drastically increase taxation on vaping products and other less harmful nicotine alternatives as outrageous and alarming.
The World Vapers’ Alliance says it is urging the Commission to abandon this reckless move, “which would punish millions of smokers trying to quit, hit the poorest hardest, and hand anti-EU populists a powerful new talking point.”
Michael Landl, Director of the World Vapers’ Alliance, said: “This is not just bad policy, it’s a public health disaster giving way to social injustice. The Commission is ignoring science, punishing the poor, and giving anti-EU voices exactly what they want: proof that Brussels is out of touch and doesn’t care about ordinary people.”
Smoking rates are highest among low-income Europeans, who are also the least able to afford higher prices.
Landl concluded: “By raising taxes across the board, the Commission is making it even harder for the most disadvantaged to escape cigarette addiction. Vaping and other less harmful alternatives should be taxed less, not more, to give smokers every incentive to switch. The EU must reverse course before it does irreparable harm to millions of its citizens.”
Photo Credit:
Photo by Immo Wegmann
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
