Diplomatic tobacco allowance halved

Emily Pacey

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The Belgian government has halved the tobacco allowance for diplomatic workers

The Belgian government has halved the duty-free tobacco allowance for diplomats in the country to 10,000 sticks a year, according to diplomatic supplier Chacalli De-Decker. The new law came into effect on January 1.

Chacalli managing director Mike Sheriff told RavenFox.com that the government did not inform the company of the change in legislation. Sheriff was told of the change by a customer.

He said: “Since Brussels is at the forefront of European legislative changes, any cut in quotas here is of great concern to us. However, it is not likely to have a big impact on us because not many of our customers use their full quota of cigarettes - 10,000 sticks is still a fair annual allowance. We will have to wait three to six months to see the true effect it has on our business.”

Total sales at Chacalli De-Decker were up by 7% in November and December compared with the previous year as the company implemented changes which included a new management information system, website and corporate identity.