According to Kommersant's report on February 17, the Russian government is discussing a tobacco market reform plan aimed at reducing the scale of illegal tobacco trade. One proposal for the reform is to introduce a licensing system for tobacco retailers similar to that of alcohol sales.
Another proposal is to establish a registration system for licensing the sale of tobacco products. It is reported that illegal tobacco trading could result in annual losses of up to 100 billion rubles (11 billion USD) for the national budget.
It is suggested that stricter penalties be implemented for sellers of counterfeit tobacco products, as fines have proven to be insufficient deterrent. This could include removing them from the registered list or revoking their sales license.
Applicants seeking to obtain a tobacco sales permit or be included in the registration list must meet several conditions, including having a sales or storage location and no debt records. The cost of a retail sales permit may be 10,000 rubles (100 USD), while the cost of a wholesale sales permit can be up to 500,000 rubles (5,500 USD).
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