Excise duty on alcohol – Revision of Council Directive 92/83/EEC on the structures of excise duty applied to alcohol and alcoholic beverages

This briefing is one in a series of 'Implementation Appraisals' on the operation of existing EU legislation in practice. Each such briefing focuses on a specific EU law which is likely to be amended or reviewed, as foreseen in the European Commission's Annual Work Programme.

Implementation Appraisals aim to provide a succinct overview of material publicly available on the implementation, application and effectiveness of an EU law to date – drawing on available input from the EU institutions and external organisations. They are provided to assist parliamentary committees in their consideration of the new proposals, once tabled.Council Directive 92/83/EEC harmonises the structures of excise duties on alcohol and alcoholic beverages, as agreed in 1992 by the Member States. The directive establishes common definitions of alcoholic products that are subject to duty, as well as exemptions and common reduced rates, particularly for small producers of alcoholic beverages and home-brewers.

The European Commission evaluated in 2016 whether the rules were still up to date and ensure a level playing-field among producers, as well as whether smaller producers might benefit from simpler rules and lower excise duties.

Based on the results of the evaluation process, a new legislative proposal was expected to be presented by the end of 2017. This would be the second attempt to modify the current legislation, after the first failed to obtain the approval of the Member States in the Council, in 2006.

EP: EPRS: Briefing: Implementation Appraisal: Ex-ante Impact Assessment http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/search.html?policyAreas=EXIMAS

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