The retail trade of tobacco products became a state monopoly from 1 July and applicants can obtain the right to sell tobacco with a concession agreement – wrote the Napi Gazdaság (Daily Economy).
Those tobacco shops, stores, bars and clubs which didn’t get concession rights can sell their remaining stock until 16 July. After Monday midnight serious penalties are expected in case of infraction. This measure was necessary because of the smooth transition and the excise tax revenue. Since if the deadline has been 1 July, the retailers wouldn’t have ordered new tobacco products in May.
Former tobacco shops can expect severe controls because from mid-July Tax Administration launch a series of national control. Public land surveyors and civil guards also help in the supervision so they can report those places where unauthorized tobacco distribution is going and the penalty of violators is between 5 and 500 million forints.
There is another regulation against which if the tobacco shops offend, they can expect very serious consequences. According to the law CXXXIV of 2012, young people under the age of 18 mustn’t buy cigarettes or be in a National Tobacco Shops.
The RTL Klub tested this prohibition and they sent a 16-year-old boy to buy a pack of cigarettes in these shops. He succeeded in 6 out of 8 stores without showing his ID. According to the announcement of the Government Information Centre, Zsolt Gyulay, the CEO of Nemzeti Dohánykereskedelmi Nonprofit Ltd. has been asked to investigate this case. If the shown case in the news of RTL Klub is real, the concession rights of the concerned retail shops have to be withdrawn within 48 hours. Furthermore, János Lázár, the Minister of State for the Prime Minister’s Office asked the above mentioned company to start the national control of the tobacco shops in connection with the enforcement of legislation.
