New TCRG research assesses effect of eliminating duty free tobacco sales in Taiwan
at
-
New TCRG research assesses effect of eliminating duty free tobacco sales in Taiwan, Tobacco Tactics, updated 28 October 2025, accessed 01 January 2026.
A new paper from Taiwan Medical University and the Tobacco Control Research Group looks at Taiwan’s virtual elimination of duty-free cigarette sales during the COVID-19 pandemic, to assess the potential impact of such a ban on cigarette consumption.
The researchers found that the virtual eradication of duty-free cigarette sales was only partially offset by an upturn in sales of taxed cigarettes.
This research is the first to use a real-world experiment to examine the impact of eliminating duty-free tobacco sales.
Dr Rob Branston, one of the paper’s co-authors, notes:
“Allowing duty-free sales undermines the intended impact of tobacco taxes, which are to raise retail prices and deter consumption. It is time for more governments to ban the sale and importation of duty-free tobacco products so that both public health and government finances benefit.”
Read the paper:
Effect of eliminating the sale of duty-free tobacco products: a natural experiment during the COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan, M. Sanna, M. Tsai, J.R. Branston, et al, Tobacco Control, Published Online First: 05 October 2025. doi: 10.1136/tc-2025-059650
See the Tobacco Tactics pages: