The Spring Budget on 15th March 2023 announced an overhaul of the current rates of alcohol duty. These changes come into effect from the 1st August 2023. The changes announced will see alcohol duty transition to a new ‘Alcohol-By-Volume’ (ABV) based system, meaning that beverages with a higher alcoholic percentage will be subject to higher rates and, simultaneously, be subject to a 10.1% RPI-linked increase.
During a transition period from August 1st 2023 to January 31st 2025, there will be a temporary fixed rate for all wines with an ABV between 11.5% and 14.5%, with a sliding scale either side of those ABVs.
Duty will increase for most wines on the 1st August, particularly wines above 14.5% ABV and fortified wines given their higher ABV. However, at the same time, the separate duty rate currently applied to sparkling wines will be abolished; the same calculation will apply as to still wines. This change will result in a decrease in duty for sparkling wines. The changes mean that on the 1st August 2023:
- A 75cl bottle of still wine at 11% ABV duty will move from £2.23 per bottle to £2.35 - an increase of 12p per bottle on the current rate of duty.
- A 75cl bottle of still wine of 11.5% - 14.5% ABV duty will move to £2.67 - an increase of 44p per bottle (20%) increase on the current rate of duty.
- A 75cl bottle of still wine at 15% ABV duty will move from £2.23 to £3.21 - an increase of 98p per bottle on the current rate of duty.
- A 75cl bottle of sparkling wine of 11.5% - 14.5% ABV will pay £2.67 duty - a 19p per bottle (-7%) reduction.
- A 75cl bottle of fortified wine of 20% ABV will now pay £4.28 duty from 1st August 2023, a £1.30 per bottle (44%) increase.
- A 75cl bottle of spirit at 40% ABV duty will move from £8.05 to £8.86 per 70cl – an increase of 81p. This increase will be proportional to the precise ABV, as is usual for spirits.
The full Policy Paper on Alcohol Duty Rate Changes can be found here: Changes to Alcohol Duty from 1 August 2023