By Callum Ludwig
Pubs and their patrons might see the cost of their drinks increase as the beer excise tax increases from Monday 1 August.
The announcement was made by the Australian Taxation Office as part of its CPI indexation review, deciding on an increase of 4 per cent.
For a beer exceeding 3.5 per cent alcohol volume, the excise has increased from $37.76 to $39.27 for every litre of pure alcohol, meaning beer drinkers will pay $1.51 more per beer. For packaged beer, the increase is even larger, increasing by $2.14 to $55.73 per litre of alcohol.
CEO of the Brewers Association of Australia John Preston said the increase is the largest in more than 30 years.
“Australians are taxed on beer more than almost any other nation. We have seen almost 20 increases in Australia’s beer tax over the past decade alone. Pub patrons will soon be faced with the prospect of regularly paying around $15 for a pint at their local,” he said.
“For a small pub, club or other venues, the latest tax hike will mean an increase of more than $2,700 a year in their tax bill – at a time when they are still struggling to deal with the ongoing impacts of the pandemic.”
Only Norway, Japan and Finland are taxed more on alcohol than Australia found in a report by economist and University of Adelaide professor Kym Anderson AC, commissioned by the Brewers Association in 2020.
Since then, the Australian excise on packaged beer has risen to $2.70 from $2.26, meaning Australians now pay 18 times more than Germany, 15 times more than Spain, seven times more than America, six times more than Canada and almost twice as much as New Zealanders.
