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Bringing it all back home: alcohol taxation and cross-border shopping

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  • Ian Crawford

    (Institute for Fiscal Studies and University of Surrey)

  • Sarah Tanner

Abstract

Taxes on alcohol are among the oldest in the UK and are still an important source of tax revenue. In 1992, for example, just prior to the completion of the Single European Market, revenues from excise duties on alcohol totalled over £5 billion, equivalent to 2 per cent on value added tax or 2.5 pence on income tax. Recently, the future of this source of revenue has become uncertain with the relaxation of limits on personal imports of excisable goods by domestic consumers and the increase in cross-border shopping. In this paper, we investigate the effect of increased cross-border shopping on the revenue return to alcohol taxation.

Suggested Citation

  • Ian Crawford & Sarah Tanner, 1995. "Bringing it all back home: alcohol taxation and cross-border shopping," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 16(2), pages 94-114, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:ifs:fistud:v:16:y:1995:i:2:p:94-114
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    File URL: http://www.ifs.org.uk/fs/articles/fscrawford.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    6. Ian Crawford & Sarah Tanner, 1999. "Alcohol taxes, tax revenues and the Single European Market," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 20(3), pages 287-304, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Aronsson, Thomas & Sjögren, Tomas, 2005. "Externalities, Border Trade and Illegal Production: An Optimal Tax Approach to Alcohol Policy," Umeå Economic Studies 654, Umeå University, Department of Economics.
    2. Lesley Chiou & Erich Muehlegger, 2014. "Consumer Response to Cigarette Excise Tax Changes," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 67(3), pages 621-650, September.
    3. Ghoddusi, Hamed & Rafizadeh, Nima & Rahmati, Mohammad H., 2018. "Price elasticity of gasoline smuggling: A semi-structural estimation approach," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 171-185.
    4. Thomas Y. Mathä & Alessandro Porpiglia & Michael Ziegelmeyer, 2017. "Cross-border commuting and consuming: an empirical investigation," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(20), pages 2011-2026, April.
    5. Jørgen Aasness & Odd Erik Nygård, 2009. "Revenue functions and Dupuit curves for indirect taxes with cross-border shopping," Discussion Papers 573, Statistics Norway, Research Department.
    6. Hella, Heikki & Mankinen, Reijo, 1999. "Alcoholic Beverage Taxation: Alternatives and Impacts," Discussion Papers 696, The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy.
    7. repec:kap:iaecre:v:16:y:2010:i:2:p:135-148 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Thomas Aronsson & Tomas Sjögren, 2010. "An Optimal-Tax Approach to Alcohol Policy," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 66(2), pages 153-169, June.
    9. Rinaldi, Gustavo, 2007. "The use of economic tools to develop a consensus on alcohol policies within and between jurisdictions," MPRA Paper 21941, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 18 Apr 2007.
    10. Chiou, Lesley & Muehlegger, Erich, 2008. "Crossing the Line: The Effect of Cross Border Cigarette Sales on State Excise Tax Revenues," Working Paper Series rwp08-012, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    11. Ana Gil & José Molina, 2009. "Alcohol demand among young people in Spain: an addictive QUAIDS," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 36(3), pages 515-530, June.
    12. Andrés Leal & Julio López-Laborda & Fernando Rodrigo, 2010. "Cross-Border Shopping: A Survey," International Advances in Economic Research, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 16(2), pages 135-148, May.
    13. Lacruz, Ana Isabel Gil & Lacruz, Marta Gil, 2010. "Does alcohol consumption reinforce mental problems in adolescence?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 39(2), pages 223-232, April.
    14. Sijbren Cnossen, 2006. "Alcohol taxation and regulation in the European Union," CPB Discussion Paper 76.rdf, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
    15. Katarina Nordblom, 2011. "The complex attitudes to alcohol taxation," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(24), pages 3355-3364.
    16. Gandelman Néstor & Hernández-Murillo Rubén, 2004. "Tax Competition and Tax Harmonization With Evasion," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 4(1), pages 1-24, May.
    17. repec:mea:meawpa:14284 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. Leal, Andrés & López-Laborda, Julio & Rodrigo, Fernando, 2009. "Prices, taxes and automotive fuel cross-border shopping," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 225-234.
    19. Chiou Lesley & Muehlegger Erich, 2008. "Crossing the Line: Direct Estimation of Cross-Border Cigarette Sales and the Effect on Tax Revenue," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 8(1), pages 1-41, December.
    20. Ian Crawford & Sarah Tanner, 1999. "Alcohol taxes, tax revenues and the Single European Market," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 20(3), pages 287-304, September.
    21. James Fogarty, 2010. "The Demand For Beer, Wine And Spirits: A Survey Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(3), pages 428-478, July.
    22. Sijbren Cnossen & D. Forrest & S. Smith, 2009. "Taxation and regulation of smoking, drinking and gambling in the European Union," CPB Special Publication 76.rdf, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
    23. Stéphanie Guichard & Claire Lefebvre, 1997. "Pour ou contre le système commun de TVA ?," Working Papers 1997-13, CEPII research center.

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