Act 134/2012 on decreasing smoking among youth and the retail trade of tobacco products (hereinafter Fdvtv.) was announced on 24 September 2012 in order to decrease smoking among youth, to improve public health conditions, to serve smokers in a professional and satisfying way and to ensure the income of domestic enterprises. To achieve the above goals the Act provides that retail trade of tobacco products in Hungary shall be an activity delegated exclusively to the competence of the state, the exercise of which activity may be conceded by the state for a specified term with a concession contract concluded in accordance with the provisions of Act 16/1991 on concession and the Fdvtv. With the introduction of the new retail trade system in 2013 tobacco trade in Hungary changed significantly. As opposed to the 25 000 selling points in Hungary all over the country, operating in a decentralized manner, sale of tobacco products became possible in 6 046 controlled locations from 1 July 2013. It was also a significant change that tobacco products may not be sold in the presence of minors; no persons under the age of 18 may stay in the National Tobacco Shops.
The professional management of organizing the tobacco product retail trade activity is performed by the minister responsible for regulating the management of state property (hereinafter: the Minister). Their activity has to be performed according to the fundamental goal of the Fdvtv, and therefore according to the priority of protecting minors. To perform these tasks the Minister founded the entirely state owned nonprofit private share company, that is, ND Nemzeti Dohánykereskedelmi Nonprofit Zártkörűen Működő Részvénytársaság (ND National Tobacco Trade Nonprofit Private Share Company, hereinafter: the Company).
Our company performs manifold tasks the purpose of which on the whole is to promote, facilitate and make efficient the operation of the domestic tobacco product market. As the neutral actor in the tobacco market, performing the role of supervisors, we are connected to every group of entrepreneurs, and cooperate in facilitating the management of tasks, problems in every issue concerning the market. If required, we give professional opinion, perform mediation activities or organize consultation forums for the tobacco industry branch for these purposes.
As our fundamental task we perform the management of the concession contracts, we check the obligations undertaken in the concluded contracts, conduct concession tenders, and in the case of settlements with no supply we ensure the professional sale of tobacco products by appointment. In order to comply with the provisions of the concession contract ensuring tobacco product retail trade entitlements our Company performs the billing tasks of concession fees, penalties as well. It is a priority goal for our Company to ensure tobacco product supply for the populace in every settlement of Hungary by the professional sale of such products. Therefore we pay special attention to ensuring professional service in yet unsupplied settlements and to facilitating the rightful operation of the National Tobacco Shops already operating.
With the amendment of the tobacco retail trade regulations in 2015 the distribution system became complete. For retail salesmen of tobacco products the establishment of the tobacco retail trade supply meant the centralization of ordering and procuring goods, making logistics, financial and data processing activities significantly less difficult for them. To promote the organized operation of tobacco product retail trade it is also the task of our Company to supervise Országos Dohányboltellátó Kft. (ODBE, National Tobacco Shop Supply Ltd.) that ensures the supply of the domestic tobacco product retail trade system. In this regard, among other things, we check how the operation of the number of warehouses undertaken in the contract is ensured, we check the existence of employees in the number undertaken, the performance of the delivery of ordered products for the tobacco shops by the deadline, the design of the online ordering interface, the provision of a telephone customer service and the existence of the GTC and other documentation obligations concerning the Company.
According to the changes in the legal regulations concerning excise, as of 1 January 2017 tobacco products may be sold at the retail trade sale price determined by the tobacco product distributors and published on the website of the National Tax and Customs Administration. ND Nonprofit Zrt. makes actual sale prices electronically accessible for the National Tax and Customs Administration, Országos Dohányboltellátó Kft. and the national tobacco shops with its information system developed to publish the retail trade sale price of tobacco products in real time.
To handle the problem caused by the illegal trade of tobacco products it became necessary to further develop the tobacconist system, since from May 2019 the European Commission requires from every member state of the EU to use a tracking system for tobacco products. With the introduction of this system the sales chain of every tobacco product on market in the area of the European Union can be tracked. The Government designated ND Nonprofit Zrt. to be the one issuing identifiers for the tracking system concerning Hungary.
Besides promoting the organized operation of the tobacco product retail trade system the Fdvtv requires contribution in health protection-related tasks from our Company as a priority task. In this regard we intend to play a role in decreasing smoking and supporting a healthy lifestyle by organizing media campaigns, social appearances, participating in sports events and health protection programs.
Thanks to our dedicated work among other factors the tobacco retail trade that has been steadily developing since 2012 operates efficiently and effectively, and thus by now the system is entirely closed, is under constant state supervision the benefits of which all actors in the tobacco market perceives and even our international partners acknowledged.
Our goal is to maintain and develop the efficiency achieved so far, considering the interests of every actors in the branch, staying in our role as neutral party, making this special market safer and more predictable, helping the work of retail traders and helping consumers in getting quality products under controlled circumstances.
ND Nemzeti Dohánykereskedelmi Nonprofit Zártkörűen Működő Részvénytársaság
THE CARING TOBACCO SUPERVISION