Cigarettes to cost more from February 1

04-Jan-2026

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Smoking your favourite cigarette could soon cost more. Cigarette prices in India are set to rise from February 1, 2026, after the government notified a new tax system.

The new system brings back a separate central excise duty on cigarettes over and above the Goods and Services Tax, or GST.

How much more you pay will not depend only on the brand name, but largely on the length of the cigarette. This change marks the first major shift in cigarette taxation since GST was introduced in 2017.