New Brunswick seizes cigarettes
Tobacco smuggling in the province is severely penalized.
Provincial authorities in New Brunswick remind that it's not just retailers who face fines for importing and selling illegal cigarettes. Possession of unlabeled cigarettes and tobacco is also illegal. Which means that buying contraband cigarettes can also be treated as a crime.
Possession of illegal tobacco can result in fines ranging from CA$ 300 CAD to CA$ 4,000, depending on the quantity seized. Smuggled cigarettes must be confiscated. If a personal vehicle is used to transport them, it can also be confiscated.
Over the past eight months, Ministry of Justice and Public Security officials have seized more than 848,000 contraband cigarettes, and 22 people have been charged. However, the number of contraband cigarettes seized during these seizures ranged from 1,200 to more than 170,000 at one time.
How can I make sure the tobacco products I buy are legal? Cigarettes must have a New Brunswick stamp on them to indicate that they are certified and have paid all required taxes.