The South Korean Ministry of Finance clarifies that it has not promoted the revision of the Tobacco Industry Act and tax measures to fill the financial gap, and the report is untrue

The South Korean Ministry of Finance clarifies that it has not promoted the revision of the Tobacco Industry Act and tax measures to fill the financial gap, and the report is untrue

The South Korean Ministry of Finance denies rumors of using e-cigarette taxes to fill the fiscal gap, emphasizing that the decision-making power for taxation lies with the National Assembly and that the relevant legislative process is not related to the fiscal deficit.

According to the official e-government website Korea KR reported on November 12th that there were previous reports that the South Korean government's report on the harmful effects of electronic cigarettes may be used as a basis for electronic cigarette taxation. Some viewpoints suggest that this may be a preparatory work to 'fill the tax shortfall'.

In response, the Ministry of Planning and Finance has explicitly stated that the decision-making power regarding the taxation of synthetic nicotine electronic cigarettes belongs to the legislative scope of Congress. The report that the government is pushing to amend the Tobacco Industry Law and strengthen taxation in order to fill the fiscal gap is not true.