Alternative tobacco and nicotine products in Colombia

Colombia: President Gustavo Petro has decided not to increase the tax on tobacco products, press reports. Medical societies had been urging the government to raise the tax on heated tobacco and some members of the Chamber of Representatives have already criticised the decision not to do so as part of Petro’s overall tax reforms.

Colombia: Julián Peinado of the Colombian Liberal Party will next week introduce in the Chamber of Representatives a bill regulating heated tobacco products, press reports. If approved, the bill will explicitly ban sales to minors and introduce packaging and labelling restrictions, including a mandatory health warning, and ban sponsorship of sporting and cultural events. As the bill has not yet been published, it is unknown whether it would also cover nicotine pouches. The Liberal Party is currently the largest party in the Chamber of Representatives, with 32 seats out of 188.

Colombia: The incoming government is planning to impose a specific excise duty on heated tobacco. President-elect Gustavo Petro and the National Federation of Departments (FND) have signed a document defining the working agenda for the next months, in which duty on heated tobacco is labelled as a priority. No details of the rate or model to be imposed have been disclosed. Currently, heated tobacco is taxed as combustible cigarettes, at  a rate of COP2,563 ($0.60) per packet.

Colombia: The Ministry of Health reports that between 2016 and 2021, smoking prevalence fell from 8.3% to 5.6%, a drop of 1m in the number of smokers in Colombia. The ministry has not revealed figures for the number of users of e-cigarettes or heated tobacco.