Illicit Flows And Trafficking Southern Europe-Maghreb
is in the form of cigarettes , with tobacco taxation bringing in about 14 billion euros per year for the state .
In 2015 , France was the European champion in the consumption of illicit cigarettes ( bought “ on the sly ” or on the internet ); 9 this analysis focuses on legal cigarettes smuggled into the country , on counterfeit cigarettes , and finally , on the nearby cross-border traffic ( from a neighboring country where cigarettes are cheaper ). 10 In 2015 , sixteen billion cigarettes smoked without purchase at a tobacconist ’ s ( which in France has a monopoly on tobacco sales ) represented 27 percent of total consumption :
• Cigarettes bought in the official network : ± 61.5 percent ( 2015 )
• Cigarettes legally purchased outside France : ± 12.5 percent
• Illegal packets : ± 14.6 percent of the total , an increase of + 1.2 percent since 2014
The estimate of French officials is less than that of manufacturers , but is still ( for 2016 ) 15 percent of consumption , for a criminal turnover of ± 9 billion euros per year . In France in 2018 , ± 22 percent of cigarettes were bought outside the network of tobacconists , and professionals estimate that in 2020 , it is likely to be 40 percent of total sales . Finally , in 2016 , 31 percent of the illicit cigarettes smoked in France came from Algeria : we are well on the way up the “ Route du trabendo .”
After France , 11 the use of illicit cigarettes is highest in Poland , the United Kingdom , and Italy .
ALGERIA
Algeria is a huge country of ± 2.4 million km2 12
, with 6,343 km of borders . Seizures of narcotics by all Algerian State services in 2017 :
Cannabis : ± 52.6 tons Cocaine : Heroin :
± 6.3 kilos ± 2.2 kilos
Seizures of cigarette cartridges by Algerian customs : 2017 : 56,038 cartons
9 “ France , the Biggest Consumer of Illegal Cigarettes in Europe ,” 20 Minutes , June 9 , 2016 .
10 “ A Study of the Illicit Cigarette Market in the European union , Norway and Switzerland ,” KPMG , Project SUN - 2016 Results Commissioned by PMI , Imperial Tobacco , JTI and BAT .
11 “ France , the Biggest Consumer of Illegal Cigarettes in Europe ,” 20 Minutes , June 9 , 2016 . 12 Algerian customs .
53