Czech government declares war on illegal kratom sales, raises purchasing age
The Czech government has approved an amendment to the addictive substances law that aims to curb kratom use among young people and crack down on illegal sales. Dubbed Lex Kratom, the bill would raise the minimum age for buying kratom from 18 to 21 and ban its sale through e-shops.
Kratom is a psychomodulatory herbal substance made from the leaves of a Southeast Asian tree that interact with the brain to alter mood and energy levels. Its popularity among teenagers has seen a steep rise in recent years – accompanied by a rise in cases of severe poisonings and physical collapses linked to kratom. Earlier measures to limit its accessibility to minors proved ineffective and the government is now taking comprehensive action with a law that will reduce the purchasing age, ban online sales and crack down on illegal sales. The legislation was prepared jointly by the health and finance ministries and is a combination of restrictions and higher taxes.
Finance Minister Alena Schillerova said the government wants the law to come into force as of 2027.
“This law aims to push kratom out of the “grey zone”. As much as 500 tons of kratom are sold on the Czech market each year. What is worse, much of it is sold outside the legal market, with all the health risks this involves and without proper taxation. I want to say loud and clear: this government is declaring war on all illegal sellers.”
Health Minister Adam Vojtech stressed that the restrictive measures are being taken in order to protect public health, particularly that of children, adolescents and young adults.
“We are raising the minimum age for the legal purchase and use of psychomodulatory substances from 18 to 21. We are also tightening the rules for specialised shops, including product labelling, hygiene requirements and checks on the origin of products. We are also banning sales through e-shops. Kratom sales will only be possible in brick-and-mortar shops, so that we can better target inspections and make sure that kratom reaches only those who are legally entitled to buy it, rather than ending up in the hands of children and adolescents.”
Under the proposal, municipalities could ban licensed shops from operating on their territory. The annual fee for a shop selling such products is to rise from 20,000 to 30,000 crowns.
Hand in hand with that, the government has moved to tax kratom sales more heavily. Finance Minister Alena Schillerova said the principle was simple: the greater the risk, the higher the tax rate.
“For ordinary kratom with a lower concentration of active substances, the rate will be two crowns per gram. For concentrated products, the rate will be 10 crowns per gram. For illegal kratom, the rate will be 20 crowns per gram. That is the tax that anyone who wants to put kratom on the Czech market without the proper tax stamp will have to pay the state. The tax stamp will help us monitor the collection of excise duty while also protecting consumers.”
The finance minister also announced a hike in the VAT rate which will rise from 12 to 21 percent, arguing that it makes no sense for any addictive substance to be taxed at a preferential rate, in the same way as basic foodstuffs.
The state budget is expected to receive an additional 400 million crowns a year from VAT and 800 million crowns from excise duty, but the minister said the main aim of the proposed amendment is not to raise more money for state coffers, but to protect people's health.
Some experts have criticized the ban on e-sales, arguing that it will backfire and only boost kratom sales on the black market. The government says it is ready to counter that. The powers of customs officers and public health authorities will be strengthened and fines for breaking the rules will rise to as much as 20 million crowns. The police have reportedly acquired sniffer dogs specially trained to detect kratom and eight mobile laboratories that can analyze illegal substances directly on site.
