Tabacco, sigarette elettroniche e tabacco riscaldato: sistemi di tassazione a confronto

The taxation of tobacco products is part of a regulatory framework de ned by the European Directive 64/2011. As for traditional cigarettes, Italy is characterized by an unbalanced taxation structure where the ad valorem compo- nent is signi cantly high. This imbalance appears almost unique when compared with the rest of the European countries. Furthermore, while the traditional tobacco products are well regulated by the European Directive 64/2011, new alternative products, such as electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco, have introduced new challenges in terms of regulation and taxation. In Italy, these products have a differential treatment compared with the traditional ones and are characterized by a signi cant lower incidence of the level of taxation. At the international level, a relevant fragmentation emerges, in particular for what concerns the level of taxation, giving rise to strong distortions in the markets of these products, which suggests the need for a comprehensive and harmonized reorganization at the European level, an issue on which the present paper suggests some proposals.