Tobacco growers and exporters in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province have criticized what they describe as a “tax upon tax” regime on tobacco, claiming the sector is subject to 11 separate taxes from cultivation to sale. They say provincial charges include a Tobacco Cess of Rs 27.50 ($0.10) per kg and an additional Rs 50 ($0.18) per kg levy, alongside federal and other taxes that they argue reduce export competitiveness.
Industry representatives claim tobacco supports thousands of families and is a key provincial crop, but say it is being disproportionately taxed compared with other agricultural sectors, with calls for the removal of what they describe as discriminatory levies affecting production and exports.
