OBJECTIVES: Imposing taxes upon harmful products, such as tobacco, alcohol, unhealthy foods and beverages are getting more common around the world. Their aim is to create revenue for health care and to change the population’s health awareness and health status. The aim of our study is to assess these dues in Hungary between 2011-2016.

METHODS: A quantitative, retrospective study was carried out. We assessed changes of the public health product tax (unhealthy foods, beverages, alcohol) and the health contribution of tobacco industry businesses. Data derived from the National Tax and Customs Administration and the National Health Insurance Fund Administration of Hungary.

RESULTS: Public health tax income and number of taxable products increased over the years. The Act’s extension to alcoholic beverages resulted in a >24% increase of the tax income since 2015, while the sales of taxable alcoholic beverages decreased by 16.92% in 2016. Most of all tax income came from prepacked sweetened products (36.8%, $38.659 million) and alcoholic beverages (24.15%, $25.370 million) in 2016. Prepacked sweetened products (72.83%) and salty snacks (13.78%, $14.069 million) were the biggest tax bases (in kilogram), increasing continuously over the years. Sugary drinks were the main product of tax bases (in liter) (81.02%), although only 17.54% of income can be linked to this item. Tobacco industry’s contribution was supposed to bring $41.573 million to the Fund since 2015, however the income was only $1.948 million that year, and it had to be paid back in 2016.

CONCLUSIONS: Public health tax on unhealthy foods and beverages was established successfully, it created a small but stabile income source for the Health Insurance Fund, and was able to change the population’s consumption habits positively in some cases (energy drinks, alcoholic drinks). Contribution of tobacco industry could not remain a revenue source and was repealed after one year.