Tobacco tax is imposed on the sale and distribution of tobacco products within the State of Alabama. State of Alabama charges Tobacco taxes Under the Tobacco tax Law, The State Tobacco Taxes and State Administered County Tobacco Taxes) on the following items:
- Cigarettes
- Cigars
- Filtered Cigars
- Little Cigars
- Smoking Tobacco
- Chewing Tobacco
- Snuff
- Cigar Wrappers
Who is Liable to pay tax:
Every person, firm, corporation, club, or association, within the State of Alabama, who sells or stores or receives for the purpose of distribution to any person, firm, corporation, club, or association within the State of Alabama, cigars, cheroots, stogies, cigarettes, smoking tobacco, chewing tobacco, snuff, or any substitute therefor, either or all, shall pay to the State of Alabama for state purposes only a license or privilege tax which shall be measured by and graduated in accordance with the volume of sales of such person, firm, corporation, club, or association in Alabama.
Statistics and Collection of Tobacco taxes:
- State of Alabama reported a Cigarette tax revenue of $ 179.8 million in 2017.
- Alabama is ranked 40th in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $ 0.675 per pack (as of 2017), compared with the national average of $1.79 per pack.
- Alabama received an estimated amount of $309.9 million in tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2018.
Levy, collection & payment of Tax:
|
Item |
Cigarettes |
|
Tax Rate |
$ 33.75 mills |
|
Due Date |
At the time of affixing revenue stamp on cigarette packs. |
|
To be Paid By |
Tax on cigarettes are paid by wholesalers/ retailers affixing a revenue stamp on the cigarette pack. |
|
Collection of Tax |
61% of the collection goes to the medical fund out of which 2 million is allocated to pay the administrative expenses of the state. Remaining is distributed to the following:
|
|
Item |
Cigars, Filtered Cigars, Little Cigars, Cigar Wraps |
|
Tax Rate |
Cigar: $ 0.0405 each. Filtered Cigar: $ 0.015 each Little Cigars: $ 0.04 each. Cigar Wraps: $ 0.21 per four ounces with additional tax of $ 0.06 per ounce over 4 ounces.
|
|
When to pay |
At the time of bringing the product in the state. |
|
To be Paid By |
Every wholesaler, distributor, jobber, semijobber, or retail dealer provided they add the amount of the tax levied herein to the price of the tobacco or tobacco products sold |
|
Collection of Tax |
Taxes are collected by tax Returns and distributed to the General Fund
|
|
Item |
Smoking Tobacco, Chewing Tobacco |
|
Tax Rate |
Smoking Tobacco: $ 0.21 per four ounces with additional tax of $ 0.06 per ounce over 4 ounces. Chewing Tobacco: $ 0.015 per ounce or fractional part thereof. |
|
When to pay |
At the time of bringing the product in the state. |
|
To be Paid By |
Every wholesaler, distributor, jobber, semijobber, or retail dealer provided they add the amount of the tax levied herein to the price of the tobacco or tobacco products sold |
|
Collection of Tax |
Taxes are collected by tax Returns and distributed to the General Fund
|
|
Item |
Snuff |
|
Tax Rate |
$ 0.08 tax per six ounces with additional tax of $ 0.12 per ounce over six ounces. |
|
When to pay |
At the time of bringing the product in the state. |
|
To be Paid By |
Every wholesaler, distributor, jobber, semijobber, or retail dealer provided they add the amount of the tax levied herein to the price of the tobacco or tobacco products sold |
|
Collection of Tax |
Taxes are collected by tax Returns and distributed to the General Fund
|
Tax returns:
Tax returns are due on the 20th of the month reporting activity for the previous calendar month. If the due date falls on a holiday or weekend, a tax return is required to be submitted on the very next working day. Returns must be filed electronically through the portal.
Penalties for Late Filing:
If a taxpayer failed to pay the tax due thereupon on the prescribed date, he or she will have to pay the additional amount equal to the 10 percent of the tax amount due on the return or the amount stated in the notice.
If a taxpayer failed to submit the tax return with the department of revenue on due date, he or she will be fine with the amount of 10 percent of any additional tax required to be paid or fifty dollar $ 50, whichever is greater.
