From today, Friday 5 June, a new increase in the price of excise duties will take place which also includes some brands of cigarettes. This is an increase communicated by the Customs and Monopolies Agency of approximately 10-20 cents per pack on some brands and is added to a series of increases which from the beginning of the year to today have also increased the prices of other brands of cigarettes, cigars, shredded tobacco and non-combustion inhalation tobacco. They are the result of the latest budget law (Law no. 206/202) approved by the Meloni Government.
For the first time since the beginning of the year, the increase is also accompanied by a cut: while traditional cigarettes increase, the price on some brands of heated tobacco electronic cigarettes (defined as “non-combustion inhalation tobaccos”) is lowered together with excise duties, with a reduction of around 50 cents per pack.
Which cigarettes are increasing, which are decreasing and the reasons
From today, traditional cigarettes of the Elixyr and Che brands will be subject to an excise duty of approximately 265-270 euros per kilogram (which corresponds to approximately a thousand cigarettes), which therefore leads to a cost of 5.30-5.40 euros per pack. The cigarettes recording an increase are:
- Elixyr Red (+10 cents/package)
- Elixyr Blue (+10 cents/package)
- Elixyr+ (+10 cents/package)
- Elixyr+ X-Type (+10 cents/package)
- That (+ 20 cents/package)
- Che Original Blue (+20 cents/package)
For electronic products affected by the measure, however, the tax for some brands will drop from 275 to 250 euros per thousand equivalent cigarettes: in practical terms, on a pack of 20 units the saving will be around 50 cents. These are the products:
- Virto sticks Azure tobacco
- Virto sticks Balanced tobacco
- Virto sticks Classic tobacco
- Virto sticks Copper tobacco
- Virto sticks Signature tobacco
- Virto sticks Silver tobacco
- Virto sticks Blue tobacco
The reasons for the price increases: the 2026 Budget Law
These rising prices of cigarettes, cigars and shredded tobacco since the beginning of the year are the result of the latest budget law approved by the Meloni Government, in force from 2026, for which gradual increases have been foreseen.
As we had already told you, in fact, it is a three-year plan that was launched in January 2026 which provides for increases of up to 40 cents in three years, in phases: there will be an increase in the excise duty on manufactured tobacco which will go from 29.50 euros per 1,000 cigarettes in 2025 to 32 euros in 2026, to rise to 35.50 euros in 2027 and 38.50 euros in 2028. In concrete terms, this is approximately 15 cents on average per package for 2026, 25 cents in 2027 and approximately 40 cents from 2028.
For cigarillos, the minimum amount of excise duty will rise from 37 to 47 euros per conventional kilogram for 2026, reaching 49 euros in 2027 and 51 for 2028. On chopped products it will go from 148.50 euros per conventional kilogram in 2025 to 148.50 in 2026, to 165.50 euros per 2027, up to 169.50 for 2028.
All increases already recorded in 2026
The 2026 increases, reported in the dedicated portal of the Customs and Monopolies Agency, have been ongoing since January. Among the variations, in addition to today’s, there are:
- January 16, increase in sales prices of 387 brands of manufactured tobacco products.
Main brands involved: Cigarettes: 821 (Silver, Blue, Camou, Green, Red), Base (Blue, Black, Red), Chesterfield (Blue, Label Blue, Label Original, Original, Silver, Tuned Blue), Chiaravalle (Burley & Virginia, Virginia, Virginia Bright), Diana (Blue, Red, SSL Blue), Em@il (Black, White), Futura (Blue, Classica, Red), L&M (Blue Label, Red Label), Linda (also Blu), Marlboro (Blue Line, Crafted Gold, Crafted Red, Gold, Mix, Pocket Pack, Red Touch, Silver Blue, Touch, White), Merit (Bay, Bianca, Blu, Gialla, SSL), Muratti (Ambassador Azure/Blue/Silver, Azure, Red), Nologo (Orange, Gialla, Verde), Philip Morris (Azure, Blue, Filter Kings, Red, White), Yesmoke (Black, Blue, Planet, Red, Silver, White Red). Cigars and Trinciati: Hundreds of references including Alec Bradley, Balmoral, CAO Pilon, etc. - January 30, increase for 41 brands.
Cigars (12): Diplomaticos Legendarios, H. Upmann Magnum Finite, J. Cortes (Corona Dominican 2, Corona Honduras 2, Corona Sumatra, Corona Sumatra 2), Partagas Serie E No. 2 Tubos, Perla de Calvano (Robusto, Toro), Ramon Allones Absolutos, Trinidad Cabildos; cigarillos (21): Amigos (Authentic 20, Filter, Medium, Pocket, Pocket Filter, Pocket Filtro American Blend, Red Filter 20), J. Cortes (Mini 20, Mini Dominican 20), Neos (Mini 20, Mini Blanc Filter, Mini Red, Mini Red Filter, Pacific Capriccio 10, Pacific Classic 10, Pacific Red 10); Cigarette shreds (8): #No Name (White, Black, Virginia, Pink, Authentic, Red), Amsterdamer (XXX Nepal, XXX Himalaya). - February 13, increase for 73 brands
Cigarettes (44): Winston (Red, Silver, Blue, White, Blue Super Line, Silver Super Line, Winston Red 100s, Winston Blue 100s, Winston Silver 100s, Winston White Super Line, Compact, Expand, Short Blue, Just Blue, Just Red), Camel (Yellow, Orange, Blue, Silver, White, Essential Blue, Compact, Senso Gold), Benson & Hedges (Gold, Red, Blue, Red 100s, Blue 100s, Yellow, White, Yellow 100s, White 100s, Blue Super S, Yellow Super S), Glamor (Pinks, Blues), American Spirit (Original Yellow, Original Orange); Cigars (7): Don Tomas Clasico Robusto Humi-Pack, Villiger Premium (No 1, No 7, No 9), Davidoff Maduro (Short Corona 20, Robusto 20, Toro 20); Cigarillos (7): Roll’s (Red, White), Braniff (Red American Blend, White American Blend), Villiger (Red Mini Filter, Samba Mini Filter, White Mini Filter); Flavors for cigarettes (15): American Spirit (Original Blue, Original Yellow), Winston (Red Volume Tobacco, Red, Blue, Blue 45g), Old Holborn (also Yellow and Blonde), Camel (Yellow, Blue, Essential, Blonde, Blue Volume), Sauvage Blond. - March 4, increase for 29 brands
Cigars (1): Asylum 13 April Fools 90X9; Cigarillos (28): Montecristo (Mini, Mini 10 pieces, Club, Mini Box Wood, Puritos, Club 10 pieces, Short), Cohiba (Mini, Mini 10 pieces, Club, Club 10 pieces, Mini White, Short, Wide Short 6), Partagas (Chicos, 10 Mini, 10 Club, Mini Serie, Club Serie, 20 Mini), Romeo y Julieta (Mini, Club, Puritos, Mini 20 pieces), Guantanamera (Puritos, Mini), Trinidad (Short, Wide Short). - March 13, increase for 59 brands
Cigarettes (44): MS (Classic, Chiare 100’s), Dunhill MS (Bionde 100’S, Blonde, Chiare, Rosse, Bianche), Lido Blu, Dunhill (Club, Gold, International, Club Bianca, Red, Blue), Vogue (Lilas, Classique Long Bleue, Bleue, Classique Long Lilas), Lucky Strike Original, Rothmans of London (D-Series, Blue 20, Silver 20, Red 20, Red 100’S, Blue 100, Silver 100, S-Series Blue, S-Series Silver, White 20’S, Sensora D-Series, White 100, Surround King Size, S-Series White), Rothmans Essence (Red, Blue King Size, Silver King Size, Blue 100’S), Luckies Crafted 1871 (Red, Blue), Rothmans Red Essence King Size; Cigars (1): La Escepcion Don Jose’ Limited Edition 2015; Cigarillos (4): MS I Cigaretti, Rothmans of London (Cigarillos, Tobacco Leaf Rolled), Lucky Strike Crisp Tobacco Leaf Rolled; Shredded cigarettes (6): Lucky Strike (Red 30, Blue 30, Original Red 30, Original Blue 30), Rothmans of London Volume Tobacco, MS Tobacco Shredded 30; Other smoking tobaccos (3): Dover 25 GR, Dover Blue 20 GR, Dover Amber 20GR; Smokeless inhalation tobaccos (1): Neo Sticks Azure. - April 15, increase for 47 brands
Cigarettes (34): JPS (Original, Red, Silver, Blue Stream, Red 100, Blue Stream 100, Silver 100, Blue, Red, SSL-Line Silver, SSL-Line White, White), Peter Stuyvesant (Original, Gold, Original 100’S, Gold 100’S), Gauloises Blondes (Blue, Red, Blue 100s, Red 100s), Davidoff (Gold SL Line, Classic, Gold), West (Original, Blue, Blue 100s, Original 100s, Silver, Blue SSL-Line), News Red, Mademoiselle (La Rose, La Bleue, La Blanche, La Plus); Flavors for cigarettes (12): Drum (Original, White, Bright Blue), Golden Virginia (The Original 40g, The Original Yellow 40g, The Original 30g, The Original Yellow 30g), JPS (Blue 30 GR, Red 30 GR, Blue Volume), Horizon (also Blue); Other smoking tobaccos (1): Elixyr Pipe Tobacco 25 G. - May 15, increase for 1 brand (Alec Bradley Black Market Robusto cigars, 1-pack).
What we have seen to date will therefore not be the last increases, which will continue, as mentioned, progressively over the next 3 years. Furthermore, since January, some products have been removed from the market.
The collection of signatures to increase all products by 5 euros
Since 20 January 2026, AIOM (Italian Association of Medical Oncology), AIRC Foundation, Umberto Veronesi Foundation and AIOM Foundation have launched a signature collection aimed at “protecting public health” and promoting the introduction of a fixed excise tax of 5 euros on all smoking and nicotine inhalation products, including new generation ones, and has exceeded the 50,000 signatures required (51,960), the minimum quota required from the Constitution to present a popular initiative law proposal: this goal now forces Parliament to schedule the text and discuss it in the commission, even if the final approval will depend on the political vote of the Chambers.
If the process were to conclude positively, the increase of 5 euros would come into force from 1 January 2027 for cigarettes (+5 euros for each pack of twenty), cigars or cigarillos, chopped or pipe tobacco (+5 euros for every 10 grams), heated tobacco (packs equivalent to 20 cigarettes), inhalation liquid, with or without nicotine (+5 euros for every 10 milliliters) and the quantities equivalent for other products intended for smoking or inhalation. Pharmacy products containing nicotine and used to quit smoking would be excluded.
