Sugar-sweetened beverages will be subject to excise duty from 2026

Press release, 17 June 2025 (News ● Photos● Broadcasts and videos)

The Seimas passed amendments to the Law on Excise Duty, which stipulate that sugar-sweetened beverages will be subject to excise duty starting from 1 January 2026.

The amendments provide for the levying of excise duty on non-alcoholic sugar-sweetened beverages containing added sugars in excess of 2.5 g per 100 ml of beverage or sweeteners.

‘The proposed model for levying excise duty on sugar-sweetened beverages is based on the criterion of added sugars, which means that beverages containing only natural sugars (e.g., from fruit or milk) would not be subject to excise duty. This approach allows for a more accurate identification of the products that are less beneficial to health and ensures a proportionate levying of the duty,’ the explanatory note to the document reads.

An excise duty rate of EUR 7.4 per hectolitre of product will apply to sugar-sweetened beverages containing up to 8 g of added sugars per 100 ml of beverage. Sugar-sweetened beverages containing 8 g or more of added sugars per 100 ml of beverage will be subject to an excise duty rate of EUR 21 per hectolitre of product.

For sugar-sweetened beverages containing only sweeteners or sweeteners and added sugars the amount of which does not exceed 2.5 g per 100 ml of beverage, it was decided to apply an excise duty rate of EUR 7.4 per hectolitre of product. Beverage concentrates will be subject to an excise duty rate of EUR 105 per hectolitre of product (for liquids) or EUR 4.3 per kilogram of product (in other cases).

As noted by the authors of the initiative, owing to excise duty-related factors, the price of 1 litre of beverage containing more than 2.5 g but less than 8 g of sugar, as well as beverages containing only sweeteners would increase by EUR 0.09, the price of 1 litre of beverage containing 8 g or more of sugar would increase by EUR 0.25, the price of 1 litre of concentrate would increase by EUR 1.27, and the price of 100 g of concentrate would increase by EUR 0.52.

Sugar-sweetened beverages exported to another Member State, sugar-sweetened beverages used in food production, unpackaged sugar-sweetened beverages produced at catering establishments, sugar-sweetened beverages used in the production of pharmaceutical products, medical supplies, food supplements, infant formulae, etc. will be exempt from excise duty on sugar-sweetened beverages.

The relevant amendments to the Law on Excise Duty were passed by 84 votes in favour, with 12 votes against and 30 abstentions.

The additional revenue collected from the levying of excise duty on sugar-sweetened beverages will be directed to the State Defence Fund.