2023-10-13 02:52:19
To benefit from better prices than in France, many smokers fill their suitcases for themselves or their friends. And the price easily explains it: 10 euros in France on average per package compared to 8 euros in Belgium or 6 in Italy. While throughout Europe the rule is to be able to bring 800 cigarettes (4 cartons) home when returning from vacation, France only allows 200. A threshold which is not in compliance with European law. A 22-year-old student, Sami Gam, has made it his fight since the beginning of the year.
According to the current rule in France (since 2020), it is possible to bring back from a European Union country: 200 cigarettes (1 cartridge), 50 cigars, 250 grams of rolling tobacco, and 100 cigarillos. While the European rule is four times higher: 800 cigarettes (4 cartridges), 200 cigars and 1 kilogram of tobacco and 400 cigarillos.
“If the State does not respect the law, it must be punished”
For this master’s student in “European affairs”, it’s a matter of principle. Holder of a law degree and student at Sciences-po, he led this fight against the State alone, without the assistance of a lawyer. After reading several articles on the subject he took up the matter. “When you run a red light, you can be fined because you violated the law. In the same way, the State must respect the law and the obligations incumbent upon it,” explains Sami Gam, who set out to dissect the applicable law and then develop arguments.
After a letter to Élisabeth Borne, which remained unanswered, the student contacted the Council of State. “The Minister of Economy and Finance was defended by a lawyer, not me,” explains the young man who filed his request alone and who was not sure of winning.
The Council of State has just ruled and is forcing Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne to issue a decree to set a threshold of compliance with European law. The government has six months to align French law with European law. The Prime Minister may decide to set the same threshold as that in force in Europe or to set none at all.
“Either she takes a compliant decree, or she takes a decree with a threshold identical to today and it is illegal, or she does not take it within the deadline and a new procedure could force her to issue said decree,” specifies the young man.
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