The EC closed the former infringement procedure after it found the new excise tax law, in force from the start of 2016, was in line with European Union rules. The EC launched the second procedure because it deemed the tax systemʼs preferential treatment of local products is in violation of EU directives. 

In 2015, Hungary introduced a health tax of HUF 20-900 per liter on spirits, dependent on alcohol content. Pálinka and spirits containing at least seven kinds of medicinal herbs are exempt from the tax.