Cigarette Tax Scorecard: Southeastern Europe

This regional Policy Brief was written based on the findings of the Cigarette Tax Scorecard. The policy brief evaluates and compares the cigarette tax policies in five countries in Southeastern Europe: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. The average overall score in these countries was only 3.20 points out of 5, with Montenegro scoring the highest (3.88), and Albania scoring the lowest (2.25). The overall score is an average of the following components: the cigarette price, changes in affordability, the tax share of the price, and the tax structure used. The five SEE countries scored well in the tax share of price component (4.20 points out of 5). The most significant challenge in the area is the low price of cigarettes, as the countries scored only 2.20 points in that component of the score. The policy brief further makes policy recommendations for governments to address the high smoking prevalence in the area through improved cigarette tax policies. 

View the entire Cigarette Tax Scorecard here. 

Access the entire Data set with all of the country scores here.