MOSCOW, June 13 Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on the introduction of state regulation of the production and circulation of tobacco and nicotine-containing products, similar to the alcohol market.
The explanatory note states that the document is aimed at reducing the volume of illegal production and sale of such products and raw materials for them.
Production, storage and supply of tobacco and nicotine-containing products and raw materials for their production, export and import of such products for sale in duty-free shops are classified by law as licensed activities. The presence of a license will become mandatory from March 1, 2024.
To prevent the illegal release of tobacco products, tobacco and nicotine-containing products and raw materials, mandatory state registration of certain types of installed basic technological equipment for their production is introduced. The types of such equipment will be determined by the government.
From March 1, 2024, mandatory conservation of unused equipment will come into effect. Accounting for the volume of production and turnover of tobacco products will be carried out using the state system for monitoring labeled goods. From the same date, the rules related to the ban on the sale of nicotine-containing products below the minimum price set by the Cabinet will come into force.
The law will enter into force on September 1, 2023, with the exception of the rules that will come into force later. In particular, from July 1, 2025, it will be prohibited to place the main technological equipment that is not in its ownership, economic management or operational management in the warehouses and production premises of the manufacturer of tobacco products and raw materials.