Price of beer set to top $15 a pint as tax hike takes effect next week
Beers are about to get more expensive with a new round of tax increases scheduled for next week.
Brewers Association of Australia CEO John Preston confirmed the price of a pint will increase by 90 cents from February 5.
Australia is already the third highest taxed country in the world when it comes to beer, behind only Norway and Finland.
The 2 percent increase in beer prices is an even bigger blow to Australians who have faced a cost-of-living crisis over the past 24 months.
Beers are about to get more expensive with the next round of tax increases scheduled for next week
Brewers Association of Australia CEO John Preston confirmed the price of a pint will increase by 90 cents from February 5
Mr Preston said the cost of a pack of beer could soon become unaffordable for many.
“The increase brings the tax per item to about $20, with an additional GST on top of that. Today, about half the cost of a $55 plate is duty and GST,” he says told news.com.au.
Taxes levied on liquor and beer are considered excise taxes and vary depending on the alcohol content of each beverage.
The excise duties are also linked to inflation, which has also increased by 4.1 percent since December 31.
Every year in August and February, the government reconsiders the excise tax about the movement of inflation.
Brewers Association of Australia CEO John Preston (pictured) calls for law reform following a 15 per cent increase in excise duties since 2022
The hospitality sector is in turmoil over the looming increase, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese facing calls to freeze the ‘un-Australian’ tax
Since the last federal election in May 2022, excise duty has increased by almost 15 percent andThe alcohol industry is calling for tax reform.
“We are calling on the government to step in and take action before a trip to the pub or dinner with the family becomes an unaffordable luxury for most Australians,” Porter told the publication.
Stephen Ferguson, chief executive of the Australian Hotels Association, told the Herald-Sun: “If the rise in the cost of living is affecting so many Australians, the government should consider freezing duties in the coming years.”
The increase on February 1 will increase the excise tax to $60 per liter of pure alcohol.
This will increase the tax on a pint by around 90 cents, with a $55 carton of beer attracting a $20 charge on top of the GST.
Last August, the tax on a barrel of beer rose by $2 to $78, with indexation in February likely to increase the tax to $80.
There’s even worse news for alcohol drinkers: some cocktails in Australian bars will cost more than $24 from February 1.
Australia’s liquor tax already exceeds $100 per liter of alcohol, which is the third highest in the world after Iceland and Norway.
Industry group Spirits and Cocktails Australia (SCA) said the “biennial indexation continues to fuel inflation and pressure on the cost of living”.
“The federal government’s own data is beginning to confirm the folly of this outdated excise tax regime,” SCA CEO Greg Holland said.