Why reports of Uruguay's 'tax free' marijuana are misleading

InSight Crime
Tuesday, May 20, 2014

A new report stating that Uruguay will not tax the sale or production of marijuana has received widespread attention, yet the depiction of the legalization legislation focusing on undercutting the black market and not raising revenue is inaccurate. According to a May 19 report from Reuters, the tiny South American nation -- which became to the first in the world to legalize the drug in December 2013 and released details of the legislation in early May -- will exempt marijuana from production and sales taxes as it attempts to undercut the black market economy.