Tamil Nadu Imposes New Fee on IMFS, Beer & Wine Amid CM Thalapathy Vijay's Crackdown on TASMAC Leakages

In one of its first major policy moves, the newly sworn-in Tamil Nadu government under Chief Minister Joseph Vijay has also imposed additional taxes on manufacturers of Indian-Made Foreign Spirits (IMFS), beer and wine and launched a wide-ranging crackdown on alleged financial leakages in the state’s TASMAC network.

Myfinbright

The twin measures, which came within a few days of TVK government taking office, represent a major shift in the state’s liquor administration. The government has amended rules under the Tamil Nadu Prohibition Act, 1937, introducing an additional fee of ₹90 per standard case of IMFS, ₹40 per case of beer and ₹20 per case of wine. The levy will be collected before products are cleared from manufacturing plants and is expected to generate nearly ₹600 crore annually for the state exchequer.

A standard case of IMFS contains nine 1,000 ml bottles or twelve 750 ml bottles, while a beer case contains twelve 650 ml bottles.

The revenue move comes in the midst of a heavy-handed crackdown on alleged “party fund” collections in TASMAC’s wholesale and retail network. In his first Cabinet meeting, Chief Minister Vijay reportedly instructed officials to immediately dismantle unofficial cash collection systems that had allegedly become institutionalized over nearly two decades.

According to Excise Department sources, nearly ₹102 crore was being diverted every month through these informal channels, with an estimated ₹1,600 crore siphoned over the last five years. Officials said that ₹90 per liquor case, ₹40 per beer case and ₹20 per wine case were being routed as unofficial political funds.

The Chief Minister made it clear that his government does not need revenue generated through corruption or through the suffering of people. Every rupee earned must go to the treasury, not into unofficial systems," said K Vignesh, Prohibition and Excise Minister.

The government is also reviewing the controversial ₹10 empty-bottle deposit system, which officials said created significant scope for unaccounted cash transactions. And the government has already ordered the closure of 717 TASMAC retail shops across the state as part of its broader anti-addiction agenda.

These are just the beginning of a wider anti-corruption exercise and the mining department will be under similar scrutiny in the coming weeks.