Greece Stands Out in Battle Against Illegal Cigarette Trade

Illegal cigarette consumption in Greece fell to its lowest level in a decade in 2024, even as it reached its highest point across the European Union since 2015, according to the latest annual independent report by KPMG, commissioned once again by Philip Morris International.

Key findings for Greece in 2024:

• The share of illegal cigarettes is estimated at 17.5% of total cigarette consumption, marking a 6.2 percentage point drop compared to 2023, when it stood at 23.7%.
• A total of 2.5 billion illegal cigarettes were consumed in the country.
• Lost revenue for the Greek state is estimated at €438 million for 2024, significantly down from more than €620 million in 2023.

European Union Overview:

• Across the EU, 38.9 billion illegal cigarettes were consumed.
• Public revenue losses are estimated at €14.9 billion—an increase of €3.3 billion compared to 2023.

Negative Standouts:

According to the KPMG report, two countries recorded particularly troubling trends in the fight against illegal tobacco trade:

France remains the EU leader in illegal cigarette consumption for yet another year, with such products accounting for 37.6% of total cigarette consumption—registering the largest year-on-year increase among EU nations according to vima.com

The Netherlands enters the high-risk category for the first time, with illegal cigarette consumption rising to 17.9% of the market.

For the first time, the KPMG report also assessed the illegal consumption of heated tobacco products in 10 countries, including Greece. The issue appears relatively limited for now, accounting for just 0.9% of the total consumption of heated tobacco products.

KPMG is a global organization of independent services firms providing audit, tax, and advisory services.

Source: pagenews.gr