Remarkable figures against smuggling in Colombia were delivered on May 11 by the National Federation of Departments (FND), the Fiscal and Customs Police Directorate (Polfa) and the National Federation of Business Merchants (Fenalco).
This, during the launch of the Legal Trade Zones 2023 strategy, an initiative aimed mainly at shopkeepers in the country to accompany their business formalization and encourage linking as allies in the fight against smuggling.
According to the FND, between January and April 2023, 740,118 cigarette packs, 66,198 liquor bottles (750 milliliters) and 288,589 beers (350 milliliters) were seized, illegal merchandise valued at a total commercial value of more than $6.100 million.
Additionally, the entity noted that during the control visits made in the same interval by the operational groups attached to the departmental Treasury secretariats, 216 commercial establishments ended up closed for allowing the sale of illegal products.
In addition, according to the FND study, due to cigarette smuggling, in 2022 the 32 departments and the Capital District stopped collecting close to $900,000 million for consumption tax, which directly affects investment in health, education and sport.
According to figures from Fenalco, the market for neighborhood stores in Colombia is made up of 450,000 establishments, being the most important distribution channel in the country, which consolidates 48% of the family basket in the cities and 62% the same in smaller populations. Similarly, it was identified that shopkeepers derive a good part of their income from the legal sale of cigarettes, where 188,640 have historically marketed the tobacco category.
“It is important to highlight that this category is one of the most relevant for neighborhood stores, since it allows them an average profitability of 25% and boosts the sales of other complementary products,” said Fenalco.
According to the latest study by the firm Kantar, cigarette sales represent the fourth place in order of importance of the categories for shopkeepers.
Cigarette contraband comes from Panama
Panama became a true hub for illegal cigarettes to destinations in Latin America. In the Colombian case, according to Invamer, in 2022, 34% of the cigarettes consumed in the country were contraband.
In other words, one in three cigarettes that circulate in the country are illegal because they do not pay taxes. The departments with the highest rate of illegal cigarette consumption in 2022 were La Guajira (94%), Sucre (91%), Cesar (88%), Magdalena (82%) and Norte de Santander (79%).
But the Colombian case is the tip of the iceberg, since it is estimated that Panama is the gateway for these packs. In fact, some 8,000 million packages of cigarettes enter the Central American country and, in addition, go to markets such as Ecuador, Colombia and Mexico, greatly affecting legal trade, country finances and sanitary measures.
Smuggling equals $25 billion a year in Colombia
Illegal trade is a major problem that must be addressed as a priority, since it is estimated that contraband enters Colombia equivalent to $25 billion in a year, between the open modality, in which the merchandise is moved through unofficial channels, and the technique, in which the documentation is manipulated. The latter has increased in recent years.
These figures were delivered by the president of the National Association of Businessmen of Colombia (Andi), Bruce Mac Master, at the installation of the VIII Meeting of the Latin American Anti-Smuggling Alliance (ALAC) organized with the aim of continuing with contributions to the construction of joint agendas. that counteract illicit trade in the region, with the generation of synergies between all the actors of the public and private sector and the countries.
“This figure ($25 trillion) is higher than that of many sectors of the economy and it could be said that it is around two percentage points of GDP. Recognizing the size of this phenomenon, we meet here in order to advance agreements and make decisions to take a step forward in order to put an end to these activities that are so harmful to the business sector and citizens in general,” said the union leader. .
In this way, the director of the Directorate of National Taxes and Customs (Dian), Luis Carlos Reyes, pointed out that the national government has a clear commitment to fight against smuggling.
According to Reyes, Dian’s calculations indicate that in 2021 smuggling was USD6.374 million ($30 billion) in merchandise that, upon entering the country without paying taxes and tariffs, strengthens illegal economies and takes away resources from health, education and state programs. with Infobae