CD 52/2019 — Excise goods, rates and the Excise Price (repealed)

Factual summary

Listed the excise goods and their rates from 1 December 2019: tobacco products, electronic smoking devices and liquids, and energy drinks at 100%, carbonated drinks and sweetened drinks at 50%. It defined each good, gave priority to the higher rate (and to carbonated over sweetened drinks), and set the Excise Price as the higher of the FTA price list and the designated retail sales price less the Tax included in it. In 2025 its tobacco article was amended to exclude smoking-cessation products.

What it means in practice Professional insight

Who: businesses reviewing excise returns and registrations for periods up to 31 December 2025. What to check: the 50% or 100% rate applied per product, the classification of drinks that were both carbonated and sweetened, and the Excise Price evidence; supplies from 1 January 2026 follow CD 197/2025.

Key provisions

• Arts. 2–5 For Art. 2 of the Decree-Law, the Excise Goods were tobacco and tobacco products, liquids used in electronic smoking devices and tools, electronic smoking devices and tools, carbonated drinks, energy drinks and sweetened drinks. As amended by Cabinet Decision No. 99 of 2025 (from 9 September 2025), Art. 3 covered all items of Chapter 24 of the GCC Common Customs Tariff including electrically-heated cigarettes and excluded products exclusively intended to assist in smoking cessation, under customs codes set by a decision of the Minister.
• Arts. 6, 8, 11 Carbonated drinks were any aerated beverage except unflavored aerated water, and concentrates, powders, gels or extracts that can become one; sweetened drinks were products with an added source of sugar (GSO Standard 148) or other sweetener (GSO Standard 995), excluding ready-to-drink beverages with at least 75% milk or Milk Substitutes, baby formula and baby food, and special dietary (GSO 654) or medical (GSO 1366) beverages. A product meeting more than one definition was classified at the highest rate, and a drink both carbonated and sweetened as a carbonated drink.
• Art. 12 Tax rates: tobacco and tobacco products 100%; liquids used in electronic smoking devices and tools 100%; electronic smoking devices and tools 100%; carbonated drinks 50%; energy drinks 100%; sweetened drinks 50%.
• Arts. 13, 14 The Excise Price was the higher of the Authority's published standard price list (if any) and the designated retail sales price less the Tax included in it — one third of that price for goods taxed at 50% and half for goods taxed at 100%; the Excise Price of concentrates, powders, gels or extracts followed a mechanism set by the Minister. The designated retail sales price was the higher of the recommended retail selling price declared by the Importer or Producer and the average market retail price, both after deducting VAT.
• Art. 15 Where it could not classify a product, the Authority could request documents, laboratory tests or other evidence of its ingredients; if they were not provided within its timeframe, it could treat the product as an Excise Good until proven otherwise.
• Arts. 16, 17 Repealed Cabinet Decision No. 38 of 2017 on the same subject; the Minister was to set an implementation date before 1 January 2020 (set at 1 December 2019 by Ministerial Decision No. 236 of 2019, Art. 5).
• Repeal Repealed by Cabinet Decision No. 197 of 2025 (Art. 14), effective 1 January 2026.