Backlog of 6 million packs of smuggled foreign cigarettes

Foreign cigarettes were gathered at the flea market in Cambodia, opposite the Binh Hiep border gate area (Kien Tuong, Long An). Photo: Đ.Nguyên

So far, the amount of smuggled cigarettes confiscated is over 6 million packs.

The reason is the difficulty in assessing smuggled cigarettes, determining the quality of smuggled cigarettes, the difficulties of destruction expenditure, the funding to support the competent forces and the work of administration.

Ministry of Finance (General Department of Vietnam Customs) is researching amending and supplementing Decision 20/2018/QD-TTg under one of two options:

Option 1: Submit to the Prime Minister to issue a Decision for abolishing Decision 20/2018/QD-TTg; continue to destroy all smuggled cigarettes confiscated under Decision 2371/QD-TTg.

Option 2: Submit to the Prime Minister to issue a Decision to replace Decision 20/2018/QD-TTg toward delegating selecting a plan of destruction or auction for export to the competent authorities which issued the confiscation decision.

Ministry of Finance is collecting opinions from ministries, ministerial – level agencies, agencies under the Government, provincials People's Committees, Permanent Office of the National Steering Committee 389 on the above options as a basis for reporting to the Prime Minister.