“Dmytro Lubinets, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, called on the parliament to strengthen responsibility for the sale of alcohol and cigarettes to minors. For this, fines from 3,000 to 15,000 tax-free minimums must be introduced. The ombudsman wrote about this in Telegram. “Applied to the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy with the initiative to strengthen responsibility for the sale of alcoholic beverages”, — write on: ua.news
Dmytro Lubinets, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, called on the parliament to strengthen responsibility for the sale of alcohol and cigarettes to minors. For this, fines from 3,000 to 15,000 tax-free minimums must be introduced.
The ombudsman wrote about this in Telegram.
“I turned to the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy with an initiative to strengthen responsibility for the sale of alcohol and tobacco products to children,” Lubinets wrote.
According to the National Police, from January 1 to October 30, 2024, 2,655 administrative reports were issued for the sale of alcohol and tobacco products to minors.
The Ombudsman noted that this may indicate insufficient restrictions and the level of responsibility of sellers in this area. For relevant actions, the seller can currently be fined 400-800 non-taxable minimums, which is 6,800-13,600 hryvnias. Thus, the current fines are disproportionate to the harm that the sale of these goods can cause to children’s health.
Lubinets emphasized that any desire to make money from children and damage to their health requires proper responsibility.
“Therefore, I propose to amend the legislation on the sale of alcohol and tobacco products, setting fines from 3,000 to 15,000 tax-free minimums (from 51,000 to 255,000 hryvnias) for the sale of the specified goods to children,” the ombudsman added.
As a reminder, in Ukraine, the sale of alcoholic beverages and tobacco products to minors is an administrative offense for which a fine of over 6.5 thousand hryvnias can be issued.
It was previously reported that the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine is working on “eExcise” – an electronic system for the circulation of tobacco and alcohol. The beta test of the application is planned for spring 2025.
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