Customs Revenues Drop 8.2% in May to €16.4M for Fifth Straight Month

Customs revenues continued their downward trend in May, falling 8.2% for a fifth straight month to €16.386 million, mainly due to lower tobacco imports along with declines in beverages and fuel, despite gains in other goods, Finance Ministry data show.

The May figure compares to €17.844 million the previous year and represents a 42.2% drop from €28 million in May 2023. Over the first five months, collections totalled €84.419 million, down 7.9% from €91.6 million in the same period last year and 25.3% below €113 million in early 2023.

Tobacco duties led the decline, generating €6.5 million last month—a 20.1% decrease from €8.1 million in May 2024 and 64.5% less than €18.3 million in May 2023. Year-to-date tobacco revenues reached €32.1 million, reflecting an 18.3% fall from €39.3 million last year and a 48.1% reduction compared to €61.9 million in 2023.

Beverage import taxes yielded €671,331 in May, down 3.3% from €694,385 the year before and 4.5% below 2023 levels. Cumulative beverage duties for the five months stood at €3.118 million, a 13.3% decline from the prior year and 7.7% less than early 2023.

Fuel duties brought in €3.792 million for the month, marking a 3.4% drop from May 2024. The year-to-date total hit €21.8 million, down 4.1% from last year.

Other goods offered partial offset, with €5.408 million collected in May—up 6.6% from €5 million in 2024 and 10.2% above €4.9 million in May 2023. Five-month totals for these items reached €27.2 million, a 5.2% increase from early 2024.