The Tobacco Authority Workers' Union revealed that the illegal cigarette network remains widespread despite ongoing crackdowns, resulting in an annual state revenue loss of 24 billion baht. They recommend making this an urgent agenda comparable to the fight against scammers.
On 16 Feb, Mr. Suthep Timsin, chairman of the Tobacco Authority Workers' Union of the Tobacco Authority of Thailand (TOAT), said that a survey of illegal cigarette consumption in Thailand during Q4 2025 found that illegal cigarettes still account for as much as 25% of the total consumption nationwide, approximately 700 shipping containers flowing into the country. This situation is severely undermining the national economy in multiple dimensions.
The transnational illegal cigarette networks adapt quickly. For example, the currently most popular brand may originate from the Middle East or ASEAN countries, then enter another ASEAN country to be smuggled into southern Thailand. The same brand has been found in neighboring countries bordering Songkhla Province, with smuggling routes landing in Narathiwat or Pattani and then forwarded to Hat Yai in Songkhla, which serves as a hub distributing products rapidly nationwide via state and private parcel delivery services. These cigarettes are sold at storefronts in southern provinces through mobile stock kept in covered pickup trucks after receiving orders via online platforms, especially Facebook, where they are openly advertised and sold illegally but continue to operate covertly.
Mr. Suthep added that the damage caused by illegal cigarettes is threefold: loss of state revenue, problems within the industry supply chain, and unequal law enforcement. Every pack of cigarettes generates tax revenue for the country, including excise tax, interior ministry tax, and provincial administration organization tax. When illegal cigarettes enter the market, the state loses over 24 billion baht annually in tax revenue. Additionally, legal cigarette sales suffer, causing hardship primarily to tobacco farmers and small retailers who cannot compete with prices, while illegal cigarette mafias openly defy laws both offline and online.
Previously, law enforcement agencies have continuously made arrests, and numbers slightly decreased from a peak of 28.1% in early 2025. However, it is noteworthy why this decline has not been greater despite external factors that should have hindered smuggling, such as unrest along the Thai-Cambodian border or severe flooding in the south, which is a main entry point for illegal cigarettes coming from neighboring countries. Thailand has become both a final destination and a transit country for these goods to third countries.
The chairman of the Tobacco Authority Workers' Union further said that the illegal cigarette problem is a deeply hidden issue. If the government only focuses on frontline interception without tackling the major channels such as online platforms and parcel delivery systems, the problem will never end, regardless of which government or political party is in power. The mission to combat corruption and illegal goods must be an urgent agenda equal to the issue of scammers. The government is already clearly aware of the total damage exceeding 31 billion baht and is urged to take serious and intensive action.
Regarding proposals to address the illegal cigarette problem in 2026, it is necessary to expand crackdowns, investigations, and uproot the networks, while imposing strict legal measures, especially on money laundering offenses. At the same time, increased inspections of small retailers and patrolling border areas by land and sea are needed. Furthermore, reviewing and amending regulations related to transit goods and false declarations, which are loopholes allowing illegal cigarettes to re-enter the Thai market, is essential. Most importantly, the vicious cycle must be cut off by ordering online platforms to stop advertising illegal cigarette sales and implementing measures to block and screen illegal pages and stores, holding platforms accountable instead of neglecting the issue as currently. However, the damage cannot be allowed to exceed 30 billion baht any further. The state must protect lawful operators and the public, not allow fraudulent groups to undermine the interests of law-abiding parties amid Thailand's economic hardship.