Starting January 1, 2009, all duty-paid cigarettes sold in Singapore will be legally required to be marked with the letters SDPC, which stands for Singapore Duty Paid Cigarettes.
Photo: Singapore Customs
This new marking requirement, which will visibly differentiate duty-paid cigarettes from contraband cigarettes, is in line with Singapore Customs' intensified island-wide operations to curb the peddling and possession of illegal cigarettes.
All unmarked cigarettes from January 1, 2009 will then be considered illegal. Each illegal packet of cigarette currently costs the offender $500.
Mr Fong Yong Kian, Director-General of Customs, said, 'The availability of cheap duty-unpaid cigarettes will hamper our national effort to discourage smoking. Singapore Customs is committed to keep illegal cigarettes off the streets.'
Arriving travellers and returning Singaporeans who have brought in cigarettes from overseas for their own consumption are advised to keep their receipts as proof of payment of duty and GST when checked by Customs officers.
