An embarrassing drafting blunder brought the country’s new tobacco tax law into force on Wednesday, 21 October - more than two months ahead of schedule. But its replacement rates for e-liquids don’t begin until January 2027.
The result? Industry representatives say the wording leaves liquids free of tobacco duty until the end of December. The ministry disagrees and is continuing to apply the old rates. In other words, Berlin has produced a tax row before the planned tax rise.
Someone check the calendar
The reform was supposed to introduce higher duties from next year. Instead, the published legislation said it would take effect the day after publication.
With the law published on 20 October, that brought it into force on 21 October. Germany’s finance ministry acknowledged a technical error over the commencement date and said a correction had been initiated.
For vape liquids, the replacement text lists a rate of €0.38 per millilitre from January 2027, rising to €0.40 in 2028, €0.42 in 2029 and €0.44 from 2030.
The finance ministry has created chaos and must clear it up immediately.
What it doesn’t list is a rate covering the remaining weeks of 2026.
That missing line has turned an exercise in collecting more money into an argument over whether any tobacco duty is currently payable on liquids at all.
A taxing explanation
Dustin Dahlmann, of German vaping trade association BfTG, says the new legislation prematurely replaced the old rules without providing a liquid tax rate for 2026.
He told German news agency dpa (translated from German): “The finance ministry has created chaos and must clear it up immediately.”
The ministry’s position is that parliament’s intention was clear and the previous rates continue to apply. Customs officials have been informed that the tax increases are intended to start in January.
The mistake has also caused headaches for cigarette manufacturers. Industry representatives warned that the wording brought forward substantially higher duties before the necessary tax stamps were available.
A reform intended to run in stages had, on paper, sprinted ahead of its own paperwork.
Don’t rush to the till
Anyone hoping for an accidental vape sale should keep their wallet closed for now.
Dahlmann has advised businesses against selling products without duty. Stock already sitting in shops and online retailers’ warehouses carries tax stamps that have been paid for.
Removing those stamps and trying to reclaim the money would be impractical and inadvisable, he said. Consumers are therefore unlikely to see an immediate saving from the dispute.
Meanwhile, the ministry is seeking to fix the error through a procedure for correcting printing mistakes and obvious inaccuracies, requiring the consent of the presidents of the Bundestag and Bundesrat.
That means claims that only a fresh parliamentary bill can resolve the mess go further than the ministry’s stated position. The correction process is being pursued, while the legal interpretation remains contested.
For German vapers, the immediate prospect is more paperwork rather than cheaper liquid. For the finance ministry, proofreading has suddenly become a rather valuable investment.