Union Budget 2026-27: Cigarettes, pan masala gets costlier from today onwards
the various types of tobacco products including cigarettes, pan masala, and others, have become costlier from today onwards.
New Delhi: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharam presented the Union Budeget 2026-27 in the parliament on Sunday.
As per the new tax structure presented by the Finance Minister, the various types of tobacco products including cigarettes, pan masala, and others, have become costlier from today onwards due to new excise duties and a health/national security cess.
The government aims to regulate the use of the products in the country with high tax levels.
An additional excise duty will now be charged on the products, along with a new health and national security cess on pan masala.
These new levies will replace the earlier system under which the products were taxed at 28 per cent GST along with a compensation cess that has been in place since the launch of GST in July 2017.
According to the new rules, the excise duty will now range from Rs 2,050 to Rs 8,500 per 1,000 non-standard or uniquely designed cigarettes. It could even go up to Rs 11,000 in some categories – all based on the length and the variety of the cigarettes. Reports say that the short non-filter cigarettes (up to 65 mm) will have an excise duty of about Rs 2.05 per stick, while short filter cigarettes of the same length will be taxed higher around 2.10 per stick. The medium-length cigarettes will be taxed around Rs 4 per stick, and longer cigarettes around Rs 5.40 per stick.
The overall tax burden on cigarettes could reach 60 to 70 per cent from the previous 50 to 55 per cent.
