TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) supported the implementation of tax and excise on electronic cigarettes or e-cigarettes. YLKI chairman Tulus Abadi said that the government's efforts to collect the tax should be appreciated.

The tax on e-cigarettes, also known as vapes, is effective as of January 1, 2024, according to the Finance Ministerial Regulation (PMK) No.143/PMK/2023.

“One of the instruments to control the consumption of electronic cigarettes is the fiscal policy by imposing high excise duties and taxes,” Tulus said in a discussion in Jakarta on Thursday, January 25.

In response to protests including from the industry players, he said, “Rejecting taxes on electronic cigarettes under any pretext is a logical fallacy.”

Tulus mentioned that the widespread distribution of vapes in Indonesia was in line with the surge in the number of users. The Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) in 2021 revealed that the prevalence of the use of electronic cigarettes increased significantly from 0.3% in 2011 to 3.0% in 2021.

In addition, the prevalence of cigarette smoking among adolescents aged 13-15 years increased by 19.2%. Tulus opined that this is already at an alarming rate, not to mention that the rate of e-cigarette use among young people far exceeds that of adults.

Tulus further stressed that there is no scientific evidence that vaping could help addiction to conventional cigarettes. “On the contrary, people will get double health burden due to the use of electronic cigarettes.”

Previously, the Indonesian National Vape Association Association (Pavenas) asked the Finance Ministry to postpone the implementation of the tax on e-cigarettes. Secretary General of the Indonesian Personal Vaporizer Association (APVI), Garindra Kartasasmita, said that the imposition of the tax which coincided with the excise tax hike would be a heavy blow to entrepreneurs, consumers, and industry players.

In 2024, the government imposes a 10% e-cigarette tax and a 15% increase in the excise tax rate.

“This needs to take into consideration that the e-cigarette industry is a relatively new industry, and most of the industry players are from communities and MSMEs,” Garindra said in a statement on December 21, 2023.

AMELIA RAHIMA SARI

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