Canada’s contraband problem is about much more than lost revenue
A large market, along with relatively easy retail, low enforcement priority and outsized profit margins have made contraband cigarettes lucrative.
One of the measures of state failure is the relative size of the underground economy. So-called narco-states are rife with smuggled cigarettes, liquor, drugs and gasoline, and are a telltale sign that the institutions of government are not functioning as they should.
Inability to assert the right to tax is indicative of state failure or collapse. We commonly associate this phenomenon with select parts of the Balkans, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. But Canada?
Contraband tobacco is thought to incur global annual tax losses in the order of $40 billion-$50 billion (U.S.). Estimates range from 10.7 to 11.6 per cent of cigarettes consumed worldwide. Canada’s contraband cigarette problem is outsized and disproportionate by comparison: our illicit tobacco market is estimated at 15 to 33 per cent of all cigarettes consumed.
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Customs wants fags, liquor smugglers jailed
The Customs Department is in the process of asking for mandatory jail sentence be imposed on offenders for the smuggling and illegal distribution and selling of cigarettes and liquor.
Its deputy director-general (Enforcement and Compliance), MatrangSuhaili, said the application was made as the compound fines imposed currently under the Customs Act 1967 were no longer effective in stemming these illegal activities which caused losses to the country.
Lear MoreKorea steps up cigarette smuggling crackdown
The Korea Customs Service is to reinforce the monitoring of tobacco smuggling on concerns about the burgeoning trade of duty-free cigarettes in the domestic market following an announced price hike.
In the run-up to a tobacco price hike on Jan. 1, the agency said it would closely monitor tourists purchasing more duty-free cigarettes than the government-imposed 10 pack limit.
http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20141209000833
Lear MoreThe Growth of Counterfeiting
Systech International is a global leader in brand protection and authentication technologies serving a wide variety of industries ranging from pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical devices to food and beverage and healthcare. It has pioneered many of the advances that have become industry standards, and understands the threats to global supply chains and the consequences of brand protection. David DeJean, Vice President, Systech International offers an insight into the growing world of counterfeiting.
http://www.packagingeurope.com/Packaging-Europe-News/61404/The-Growth-of-Counterfeiting.html
Lear MoreCustoms office steps up crackdown on tobacco smuggling
South Korea’s customs office said Monday that it will beef up monitoring and crackdown on tobacco smuggling amid growing demand for cheaper cigarettes ahead of a sharp price hike slated to be effective starting next year.
The moves come as the government is to raise tobacco prices by 2,000 won (US$1.78) per pack starting on Jan. 1, the first increase since December 2004. It represents an almost 80-percent increase in the average per-pack price in Korea.
According to the Korea Customs Service (KCS), the agency will strengthen its monitoring on shipments of duty-free cigarettes intended for exports as they could be routed back to the domestic market through fake documentation.
http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20141208000660
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Gambian diplomats convicted in UK embassy tobacco racket
A group of Gambian diplomats were convicted on Monday for ordering 26 tonnes of tobacco supposedly for personal consumption to then sell it illegally from their London embassy to queues of buyers.
YusuphaBojang, the deputy head of the Gambian Diplomatic Mission in London, and his six co-defendants were found guilty of cheating the British state out of £4.8 million ($7.5 million, 6.1 million euros) in unpaid tax over a three-year period.
http://news.yahoo.com/gambian-diplomats-convicted-uk-embassy-tobacco-racket-221342891.html
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Southwest provinces struggle against border smuggling
VietNamNet Bridge – Authorized agencies have found it tough to fight against smuggling traditionally flourishing by the end of every year along the southwest border in Vietnam.
ThuongThoiHau B Commune, Hong Ngu District, Dong Thap Province sharing the river border with Cambodia is one of the busiest places of illicit goods in the Mekong Delta.Along the riverside in Cambodia a lot of warehouses contain illegal commodities. They will be transported across the river by motorboats to the Vietnamese side, where motorbikes are always ready to receive goods.
Smuggled goods have run through VinhNguon Ward, Chau Doc District, AnGiang Province adjacent to Takeo Province in Cambodia.
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New Evidence: Plain Packaging Drives Up Tobacco Sales In Australia
New evidence has emerged showing a marked increase in youth smoking and tobacco smuggling rates in Australia, following the introduction of plain packaging two years ago. Remarkably, the volume of cigarettes sold also went up for the first time in decades. Despite the damning evidence, anti-smoking campaigners have claimed victory with the measure, calling for it to be introduced in the UK.
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Cigarette smuggling up nation-wide
VietNamNet Bridge – Lack of cooperation between the coast guard, police, market watchdogs and local governments have all contributed to an increase in cigarette smuggling, experts have warned.
Other factors that have caused a dramatic rise in smuggled cigarettes include cumbersome administrative procedures, outdated laws, poor equipment and limited human resources.”Cigarette smuggling is happening all around the country and has had a negative impact on the economy,” said Lieutenant General Phan Van Vinh, head of the Public Security Ministry’s Police General Department for Crime Prevention.
Vinh spoke at a conference held in HCM City on Tuesday, Dec 2, on “Implementing the Prime Minister’s Order No 30/CT-TTg on increasing the fight against smuggled cigarettes”.
http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/society/117884/cigarette-smuggling-up-nation-wide.html
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Sarawak customs man caught smuggling cigarettes into Brunei
A Sarawak customs department official was caught by Brunei authorities on Monday for attempting to smuggle 350 cartons of cigarettes into the country. The driver of the Customs Department was detained by Brunei Customs at the Kuala Lurah Customs branch on the border Brunei/Sarawak border in Limbang, Sarawak after a check on the official customs vehicle found several boxes containing cigarettes of various brands. A report by The Borneo Post said the case involved a 50-year-old suspect who was nabbed on his way from Miri to Limbang.
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