The involvement of KSRIFE experts in the work of the eTobacco portal will be useful for both consumers and law enforcement agencies - economist
Kyiv • UNN
The eTobacco portal, scheduled to be launched in February 2025, will be an important tool in the fight against illegal tobacco trade, allowing to identify manufacturers, importers and publish data on ingredients and emissions of tobacco products. To make it more effective, the expert recommends involving experts from the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise.
The eTobacco portal, scheduled to be launched in February 2025, will be an important tool in the fight against the shadow tobacco market. To make it more effective, it is worth involving experts from Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise. This opinion was expressed by the expert on taxation of the Growford Institute, PhD in Economics Tetyana Koshchuk in a commentary to UNN.
The expert reminded that manufacturers and importers will have to submit information on the ingredients of tobacco products and emissions from their use. In addition, the eTobacco portal will be an important tool in the fight against the illegal trade in cigarettes and other tobacco products, as it will contain maximum information about raw materials and production lines.
"The portal will allow, among other things, to identify all manufacturers and importers of tobacco products, to create a list of them that will be known to the general public. Data on samples of tobacco products from all production lines in Ukraine will also be made public. If the portal is launched with the involvement of the experts of Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise, it will be possible to additionally publish the results of the examination of such samples as to the legality of their origin, including information about the production equipment and its owner. All this will be done online. Law enforcement agencies will promptly respond to the established facts of abuse", - said Koshchuk.
The economist added that this measure will be most effective together with the launch of a register of equipment for the production of tobacco products using the Diia.Engine platform.
According to Koshchuk, a serious problem today is that there is no public information on tobacco production lines and licenses issued for such activities.
"The most common scheme from court practice is that the 'owner' of the seized equipment appears, provides documents that he leased the equipment and claims that he had no idea that it was used as a tool for committing a crime. The arrest is then lifted and the equipment is returned to the "owner". The production of illegal products continues. The use of modern digital technologies will prevent the use of such schemes," said Koshchuk.
According to her, another tool that could limit the illegal trade in tobacco products is tracking the movement of tobacco. Such a mechanism has been successfully implemented in Poland.
"This is a GPS monitoring system for the transportation of "sensitive" goods called SENT. If the weight of the transported tobacco is more than 500 kg, this movement is subject to online tracking and is reflected in the databases of law enforcement agencies," the economist summarized.
Optional
Director of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise Oleksandr Ruvin saidthat all studies of tobacco products are important because they help the state avoid billions of dollars in losses from the shadow market.
"The issue of researching all types of tobacco products, their analogues and modern substitutes is also relevant for the state in the context of paying taxes, as we are talking about excisable goods and billions of dollars in losses due to the shadow market. The task of the experts is to promptly and accurately provide law enforcement agencies with scientific and methodological support to create a reliable evidence base and ensure fairness and trust in the judicial system of Ukraine," Ruvin said.
