Excise duty

Basic act: The Law on Excise Duty of the Republic of Lithuania (hereinafter referred to as “the Law on Excise Duty”)

Excise duties when alcoholic beverages are delivered to exhibitions in Lithuania from other Member States.

Taxpayers:

  • authorized warehouse keepers;
  • registered consignees;
  • registered consignors;
  • certified consignees of excise goods;
  • other persons who may be liable to pay the excise duty.

Subject to excise duty:

  • ethyl alcohol and alcoholic beverages;
  • manufactured tobacco;
  • raw tobacco;
  • heated tobacco products;
  • electronic cigarette liquid;
  • energy products;
  • electricity.
  • All other products become subject to excise duty when sold or used as motor fuel or additives.
  • All other hydrocarbons with indicated in Annex 1 of the Law on Excise Duty are subject to excise duty when sold or used as heating fuel.

Tax rates:

Beer is subject to EUR 9.46 rate of excise duty for 1 percent of the actual alcoholic strength by volume fixed per hectoliter of the product.

Wine from fresh grapes and other fermented beverages:

1. wine and other fermented beverages with an actual alcoholic strength by volume (or by fermentation in case of other fermented beverages) not exceeding 8.5% vol. are subject to EUR 109 rate of excise duty per hectoliter of the product;

2. wine from fresh grapes and other fermented beverages not referred to in Article 24(1) of the Law on Excise Duty are subject to EUR 219 rate of excise duty per hectoliter of the product.

Intermediate products:

1. intermediate products with an actual alcoholic strength by volume not exceeding 15% vol. are subject to EUR 234 rate of excise duty per hectoliter of the product;

2. intermediate products with an actual alcoholic strength by volume exceeding 15% vol. are subject to EUR 333 rate of excise duty per hectoliter of the product.

Ethyl alcohol is subject to EUR 2467 rate of excise duty per hectoliter of pure ethyl alcohol.

Cigarettes are taxed at the combined rate of excise duty, consisting of a specific element (EUR 85.3 for 1,000 cigarettes) and a value element (25% of the maximum retail price). However, the combined rate (i.e. the sum of a specific element and a value element) must not be less than EUR 138 per 1,000 cigarettes.

Cigars and cigarillos are subject to EUR 95 rate of excise duty per kilogram of the product.

Smoking tobacco is subject to EUR 112.8 rate of excise duty per kilogram of the product.

Heated tobacco products are subject to EUR 79.5 rate of excise duty per 1000 units of the product.

Electronic cigarette liquid is subject to EUR 0.25 rate of excise duty per milliliter of the liquid.

Raw tobacco is subject to EUR 112.8 rate of excise duty per kilogram of the product.

Unleaded petrol is subject to EUR 466 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Leaded petrol is subject to EUR 579.24 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Kerosene  is subject to EUR 330.17 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Gas oils are subject to EUR 410 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Heating gas oils (domestic heating fuel) are subject to EUR 60 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Excise duty on gas oils intended for use by entities producing agricultural products in agriculture, including aquaculture and commercial fishing in inland waters activity, shall be levied at the rate of EUR 60 per 1,000 litres of the product.

Energy products classified under subheadings KN 2710 19 91–2710 19 99 are subject to EUR 410 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Heating energy products classified under subheadings KN 2710 19 91–2710 19 99 are subject to EUR 60 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Liquid fuel (heavy fuel oils) with characteristics confirmed by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorized by it and Orimulsion are subject to EUR 15.06 rate of excise duty per 1 ton of the product.

Liquid fuel (heavy fuel oil) with characteristics not confirmed by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorized by it are subject to EUR 410 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Heating liquid fuel (heavy fuel oils) is subject to EUR 60 rate of excise duty per 1,000 liters of the product.

Petroleum gas and gaseous hydrocarbons used as fuel (motor fuel), their substitutes and additives are subject to EUR 304.10 rate of excise duty per 1 ton of the product (except in the cases specified in Article 39(2) and (3) of the Law on Excise Duty of the Republic of Lithuania).

Petroleum gas and gaseous hydrocarbons (other than natural gas) used as heating fuels, with the exception of the case referred to in Article 39(3) of the Law on Excise Duty of the Republic of Lithuania as well as petroleum gas and gaseous hydrocarbons for heating purposes put into gas cylinders, shall be subject to a rate of excise duty of EUR 13 per tonne.

Petroleum gas and gaseous hydrocarbons (other than natural gas) used as heating fuel for business purposes are subject to an excise duty rate of EUR 13 per tonne of product.

Electricity is subject to EUR 1.01 rate of excise duty per megawatt-hour of electricity.

Electricity used for business purposes is subject to EUR 0.52 rate of excise duty per megawatt-hour of electricity.

Coal is subject to EUR 7.53 rate of excise duty per 1 ton of the product.

Coke and lignite are subject to an excise duty of EUR 8.98 per tonne of the product.

Peat for heating purposes is subject to an excise duty rate of EUR 10 per tonne.

Natural gas used as engine fuel (in machinery) is subject to EUR 23.60 rate of excise duty per megawatt-hour of electricity.

Heating natural gas is subject to EUR 1.08 rate of excise duty per megawatt-hour of electricity.

Heating natural gas used for business purposes is subject to EUR 0.54 rate of excise duty per megawatt-hour of electricity.

Taxable period:

The tax period of an authorised warehouse keeper, registered consignee, registered consignor, certified consignee and to the person referred to in Point 2 of Paragraph 8 of Article 9 of the Law on Excise Duty is a calendar month, upon the end of which they are obliged to submit an excise tax return by the 15th day of next month.

Persons who are obliged to pay excise duty pursuant to subparagraphs 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11 of paragraph 1 of article 9 of the Law on Excise Duty, the persons specified in paragraphs 7 and 8 of Article 10 (in the circumstances specified in those articles), as well as other persons who are obliged to pay excise duties in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Excise Duty must submit their returns no later than the next working day from the date of incurrence of the obligation.

Exemption from excise duty: exemption from excise duty is granted if the excise goods are:

  1. exported or supplied in accordance with Article 19(1)(1) of the Law on Excise Duty;
  2. intended for official activities with Article 19(1)(1) of the Law on Excise Duty;
  3. imported in the personal luggage of a traveler and within the limit of the quantities established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania which natural persons (travellers) are allowed to bring into the country without excise duty;
  4. supplied to passenger and/or cargo ships and/or aircraft on international routes for refuelling and resupply;
  5. intended for the use by the military units of the countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) other than the Republic of Lithuania or accompanying civilian personnel;
  6. intended for international organizations recognized in the Republic of Lithuania and the representations of the organizations as well as members of said organizations or representations;
  7. acquired or imported under international treaties;
  8. intended for the use by the armed forces of another Member State or by accompanying civilian personnel, when such forces take part in a defence effort carried out for the implementation of the Union activity under the common security and defence policy;
  9. ethyl alcohol recognized as denatured ethyl alcohol which is granted exemption from excise duty;
  10. beer, wine and other fermented beverages produced by a natural person, provided that these beverages are for personal use only (i.e. not for sale but solely for one's own or family needs);
  11. ethyl alcohol used in pharmaceutical products, veterinary drugs, and ethyl alcohol used for purposes of personal and public health care, pharmaceutical activities, veterinary pharmacy, veterinary practice or for the purpose of carrying out the functions of authorities exercising state control over pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs and veterinary medicines;
  12. ethyl alcohol and alcoholic beverages intended for the production of vinegar;
  13. ethyl alcohol and alcoholic beverages intended for the production of chocolates where the amount of absolute ethyl alcohol used for the production of net 100 kilograms of chocolates does not exceed 8.5 liters;
  14. ethyl alcohol and alcoholic beverages intended for the production of food products and/or production of flavors and their mixtures used for the production of non-alcoholic beverages with an actual alcoholic strength in volume not exceeding 1.2%;
  15. ethyl alcohol intended for scientific research;
  16. ethyl alcohol used in processes for the manufacture of medical products, provided that the final product does not contain ethyl alcohol;
  17. delivered from a certified consignor to a certified consignee to another Member State for commercial purposes and excise duty for these products has been paid in the Republic of Lithuania;
  18. delivered from the Republic of Lithuania by a consignor of the goods, who carries out economic activity, or by another person on the order of a consignor of the goods to another Member State to a person, who is not a registered consignee or is not a certified consignee, to a person, who is not a registered consignor or is not a registered consignee, and does not carry out economic activity within the meaning of the Law on Value Added Tax, or to the place other than a tax warehouse, purposes, and excise duty for these products has been paid in the Republic of Lithuania;
  19. under other cases, where exemption from excise duty is granted or where reduced excise duty is applicable.

Return and payment:

Excise duty must be paid no later than by the deadline for the submission of excise duty returns.

However, in cases where an advance payment of excise duty has been made for the taxable period, the amount of excise duty payable in respect to that tax period is reduced by the amount of the advance payment made.

In cases when the owner of a certain warehouse of excise goods or registered trader exceeds the average payable amount of 15 000 EUR of excise duty for 3 consecutive past tax periods, advance excise duty shall be paid by the 15th day of the current tax period, starting with the next tax period after the above mentioned condition proves. The amount of excise duty advance payment shall be equal to 1/3 of the total average payable excise duty, which was (or had to be) declared for 3 consecutive past tax periods, as set forth.

Other cases - No excise duty is applied if goods are moved from a warehouse to another warehouse under excise duty suspension arrangements. In such case, a movement document must be issued for the excise goods (i.e. electronic Administrative Document or e-AD), indicating that no excise duty has been paid for the goods transported under excise duty suspension arrangements.