Successful Passage of the Kenya Excise Duty Act, 2015 – IILA Case Study

On December 1, 2015, the Kenya Excise Duty Bill 2015 went into effect, switching the tax system from a hybrid to a uniform specific rate of KShs 2,500/1,000 cigarettes, or “mille”, increasing tax over the previous Finance Act 2012 system (i.e., KShs 1200/mille), and adjusting the tax for changes in inflation. It is estimated that the tax increase will result in a 3.4% decline in consumption and 0.3% decline in adult smoking prevalence.