How is duty calculated on ready-to-drink canned cocktails, and what are the duty rates in the UK and France?

Duty on RTD cans depends on the **base of the alcohol** in the product, not just the ABV alone. If the product is over 50% fermented base (e.g. wine), it falls under wine duty; if it's spirit-based, it falls under spirit duty.

**UK Duty Rates:**

- **Wine Duty** applies to made-wines and wine-based RTDs. The rate depends on ABV: - More than 1.2% to 4%: 91.68p per litre - More than 4% to 5.5%: 126.08p per litre - More than 5.5% to 15%: 297.57p per litre - More than 15% to 22%: 396.72p per litre - More than 22% ABV: charged at spirit duty rate - **Spirit Duty** applies to spirit-based RTDs: £28.74 per litre of pure alcohol

- **Fortified wines** (e.g. port, where approximately 1/3 is spirit): duty is calculated based on the wine component percentage, not the spirit content

**France Duty Rates:**

French duty on canned RTDs is significantly higher and is described by members as "basically prohibitive to sell RTDs in France." Members report rates of approximately €110 per litre of pure alcohol, plus additional levies:

- Standard rate plus premix tax: approximately €0.23 + €1.38 = €1.61 per 5% ABV can - Products with no or very low sugar may avoid some of these levies, though confirmation is unclear

**Key caveat:** Members note that French duty makes RTD cans economically unviable for export to France, and several have flagged this as a significant cost burden across the spirits industry more broadly.