Purbaya Has Submitted Plan for Additional Excise Duty on Cigarettes

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has stated that the policy plan to add a new layer of tobacco excise duty is currently under review and awaiting discussion with the House of Representatives (DPR). “The tariff cannot be announced yet because we must discuss it with the DPR first. There has been no official discussion, but we have spoken and will request time for talks,” Purbaya said in Tangerang on Friday. He added that while the discussion process is still waiting for a formal schedule, the proposal for the additional excise layer has been completed. Regarding the delayed implementation of the excise on packaged sweetened beverages, the Ministry of Finance stated that its status is not yet final and it has not been included in the main state budget calculations. “It is not final, it is still being discussed. It is not in the budget calculation yet. There is upside potential,” he said. Purbaya also addressed the widespread crackdown on illegal imported goods, explaining that the operational budget for Customs and Excise will be increased to combat smuggling. “We are increasing the operational costs for Customs and Excise so they can be more active in catching smuggling or other business fraud in Indonesia,” he explained. He claimed that there has been a fairly significant improvement in Customs and Excise performance, evident from growing state revenues and a drastic decrease in the circulation of illegal cigarettes.