{"id":541185,"date":"2026-03-15T03:21:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T03:21:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/541185\/"},"modified":"2026-03-15T03:21:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T03:21:20","slug":"victoria-to-shut-down-dodgy-smoke-shops-under-new-laws","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/541185\/","title":{"rendered":"Victoria to shut down dodgy smoke shops under new laws"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Rachael<\/p>\n

Updated March 15, 2026 \u2014 2:19pm,first published 11:31am<\/p>\n

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Victorian authorities will be given the power to shut down dodgy smoke shops, and landlords will get the power to terminate the leases of illegal tobacco shops, under what the Allan government is touting as \u201cAustralia\u2019s toughest illicit tobacco laws\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Minister for Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Enver Erdogan, detailed the proposed legislation on Sunday, marking a significant escalation in the state\u2019s efforts to extinguish a violent black market trade<\/a> linked to more than 200 firebombings.<\/p>\n

\"IllicitIllicit Double Happiness cigarettes, which are sold for as low as $13 in stores.Janie Barrett<\/p>\n

Under the proposed changes to be introduced before the state election this year, building owners who knowingly lease stores to illicit operators will also face massive financial penalties.<\/p>\n

While Erdogan was circumspect on exact figures during a press conference on Sunday, he indicated fines would be commensurate with those in other states and \u201ca lot more than tens of thousands of dollars\u201d. However, landlords will also be granted new legal powers to kick out businesses caught selling illegal products.<\/p>\n

The laws would grant new regulator Tobacco Licensing Victoria (TLV) and Victoria Police the authority to issue immediate 90-day closure orders. The courts would also be empowered to impose permanent or indefinite closures.<\/p>\n

Related Article\"Rising<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIllicit tobacco fuels organised crime, and we\u2019re shutting down the operators who think they can get away with it,\u201d Erdogan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe message should be very clear: if you\u2019re involved in this illicit trade, there will be tough new penalties.\u201d<\/p>\n

The announcement follows the first month of TLV enforcement, in which $5 million worth of illicit stock was seized from shelves, including more than 3.19 million cigarettes, 2243 cigars, 40 kilograms of loose-leaf tobacco and 32 kilograms of shisha tobacco.<\/p>\n

The new regulator faced a slow start. In February, on the first day a new licensing requirement for businesses selling tobacco products was in full effect, The Age found smuggled cigarettes being sold<\/a> from an unlicensed shop just 100 metres from the regulator\u2019s own headquarters.<\/p>\n

The state faces an enormous task to wrestle back control from a prolific black market. It is estimated that up to 60 per cent of all cigarettes sold in Australia come from black market sources.<\/p>\n

The multibillion-dollar illicit trade has been dominated by rival crime families, including a cartel known as \u201cThe Commission\u201d run by gangland boss Kazem \u201cKaz\u201d Hamad.<\/p>\n

While Hamad is currently in an Iraqi prison<\/a>, the vacancy has sparked a renewed wave of violence across Melbourne as new players compete for a slice of the lucrative market.<\/p>\n

Erdogan confirmed there were only 14 TLV inspectors dedicated to taking on the thousands of stores believed to be selling illegal products. On Sunday, he defended the small workforce, arguing the regime is \u201cintelligence risk-based\u201d and will be bolstered by the frontline powers of Victoria Police.<\/p>\n

Erdogan conceded some TLV inspectors had already faced threats on the ground. Police sources previously described the planning for the crackdown to The Age as a \u201ctotal mess,\u201d with significant friction between the new regulator and Victoria Police over providing escorts for inspectors. Victoria Police was not present at the announcement on Sunday, and has been contacted for comment.<\/p>\n

\"MinisterMinister for Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation Enver Erdogan announces the government\u2019s planned changes on Sunday.Wayne Taylor<\/p>\n

Police Association Victoria secretary Wayne Gatt welcomed the new powers but warned that effective enforcement requires a properly resourced police force. He called on the government to restore the force to its intended strength of 17,020 officers, citing the \u201cgravity and scale\u201d of the state\u2019s crime crisis.<\/p>\n

A key plank of the new laws is the accountability of property owners. The Shopping Centre Council of Australia welcomed the latest move, saying legislated lease termination rights have proved effective in other jurisdictions.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur industry welcomes the Victorian government\u2019s announcement,\u201d council chief executive Angus Nardi said. \u201cThe proposed reforms will make a real difference on the ground\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Real Estate Institute of Victoria has been approached for comment regarding the culpability of agents and the definition of \u201cknowingly\u201d allowing illegal sales. Real estate agents often act as intermediaries for overseas investors who may have no direct knowledge of their tenants\u2019 activities.<\/p>\n

Related Article\"Tobacco<\/a><\/p>\n

Legal businesses, which have long called for stronger enforcement as they struggle to compete with $20 illegal packets of cigarettes, welcomed the government\u2019s proposed laws \u2013 including the heads of independent supermarket chains present at the announcement.<\/p>\n

Ritchies IGA chief executive Fred Harrison, who is also a landlord, said professional property managers had no excuse for ignoring red flags. He cited examples he had seen himself of supposed \u201cbarber shops\u201d opening that did not even contain a barber\u2019s chair and sold illegal tobacco.<\/p>\n

\u201cLandlords, smart people, have come to the conclusion that it\u2019s a waste of time putting a tobacco outlet in,\u201d Harrison said, noting that insurance companies are now refusing to cover centres that house illicit traders.<\/p>\n

Under the new regime, inspectors will be authorised to destroy seized illicit tobacco pre-trial to ensure the product cannot be recirculated. Shops that are shut down will be identified by \u201cbold stickers\u201d, Erdogan said and publicised on the TLV website.<\/p>\n

The public is encouraged to use an anonymous tip-off line on the regulator\u2019s site to report non-compliance in their local shopping strips.<\/p>\n

Start the day with a summary of the day\u2019s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"RachaelRachael Dexter<\/a> is a journalist in the City team at The Age. Contact her at rachael.dexter@theage.com.au, rachaeldexter@protonmail.com, or via Signal at @rachaeldexter.58Connect via Facebook<\/a> or email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Updated March 15, 2026 \u2014 2:19pm,first published 11:31am Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":541186,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":["post-541185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=541185"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541185\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/541186"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=541185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=541185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=541185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}