Amendments to Excise Tax Act – new goods to be taxed

Adam Wnuk

On 14 March 2025, the President signed legislation amending the Excise Tax Act by imposing the tax on new categories of goods, such as nicotine pouches and tobacco heating devices. Expert note that, not having been notified to the European Commission, the changes may well turn out to be invalid.

New categories of goods to be taxed

As of 1 July 2025 excise will apply to:

• vaporizers (e.g. reusable e-cigarettes, tobacco heating devices), and
• sets of vaporizer components.

In addition, the tax rate will go up for disposable e-cigarettes.

As of 1 August 2025 the tax will apply also to:

• nicotine pouches – products intended for oral consumption without tobacco but with nicotine or its derivatives;
• other nicotine products, such as nicotine chewing gums, snuff, tobacco for chewing, except for products used solely for medicinal purposes.

Tax rates

The new law will  gradually hike the tax rates:

• nicotine pouches and other nicotine products:
  • 2025: PLN 150 per kilo
  • 2026: PLN 200 per kilo
  • 2027 and subsequent years: PLN 250 per kilo
• vaporizers and sets of components:
  • PLN 40 per piece or set
• disposable e-cigarettes:​
  • An increase of PLN 40 per piece as of 1 July 2025

Compliance duties for businesses

In addition to excise tax accounting, companies involved in the manufacture, importation, intra-Community acquisition or retail sale of the new excisable goods will have to:

• register in the Central Register of Excisable Entities (CRPA),
• keep excise-related records,
• apply excise markings (stamps) on the goods.

Interim periods have been defined:

• Vaporizers may continue to be sold in Poland without excise stamps until 31 August 2025 if they were manufactured domestically, purchased in an intra-Community acquisition or imported before 1 July 2025.
• Nicotine pouches and other nicotine products may continue to be sold in Poland without excise stamps until 30 April 2026 if they were manufactured domestically, purchased in an intra-Community acquisition or imported before 1 August 2025.

After those end dates the goods may only be sold if they bear the relevant excise stamps.

Notification concerns

Experts point out that the new law has not been notified to the European Commission and so may turn out to be invalid. Under EU law, Member States are required to notify technical regulations that may affect free movement of goods. The absence of such a notification may lead to the new regulations being challenged as illegal at the Union level.