Prices of alcoholic beverages: an order confirms latest prices

Signed on June 2 by the Head of State to incorporate the new changes to the general tax code, it seems that the debate about the price of beer and other alcoholic beverages is definitively closed.

The President of the Republic has signed an ordinance amending and supplementing certain provisions of the Law on the General Tax Code. It is a question of particular reintegration of the latest provisions of the Finance Act 2015, revised and corrected by a joint order of the Ministers of Finance and Trade.

According to the General Tax Directorate (DGI), "the head of state has put things in their place providing that it is not a ministerial decree that must change the provisions of the Finance Act. The ordinance is law, and this one was awaited to return to legality and safeguard measures taken in the meantime by the mere decree." In other words, "when addressing the provisions of a law, it is essential to have an order from the head of state to endorse it," says our source.

For the record, the Finance Act 2015 foresaw higher taxes on alcoholic beverages which generated a stir both among producers as well as retailers and consumers. A joint decree applicable since February 16, 2015 revised the texts.

One holds that contrary to the FCAF 200 announced by the brewing companies, after the Finance Act was unveiled in late 2014, "the amount of additional excise duties resulting from the application of the specific tax system was FCFA 75 for all beers of 65 cl, FCFA 37.5 for those of 33 cl." The same details are provided for spirits, wines, whiskeys and champagnes, as they are produced locally, lower or high-end range which the current order of the head of state has brought no objections.

At the DGI, our source assures that "from the beginning, there is willingness on the part of the legislator to apply excise duty only to luxury or harmful goods such as alcohol and tobacco. But to ease tensions, the authorities have chosen to split the two."

Note that the order of the President of the Republic, however, provides an additional novelty to the general tax code. It amends and supplements of the provisions of Article 137.

In order to promote the sponsorship, the Head of State precluded the levying of excise duty on "free distribution of goods through advertising or trade promotion," as they do not exceed 3% of the overall production volume of the company.