Recent estimates suggest illicit tobacco now accounts for between 50% and 60% of tobacco consumed in Australia. Rapid growth in the Australian illicit tobacco market raises concerns a similar situation could evolve in New Zealand.

The high cost of tobacco and substantial price differences between legal and illegal tobacco – between NZ$40 to $60 for a pack in the supermarket compared to NZ$10 to $25 on the illegal market – mean illicit tobacco offers substantial savings.

However, our recent in-depth research with 20 people who use illicit tobacco in New Zealand suggests cost savings are only one reason why they engage with this market.

Illicit tobacco purchases enable people to resist government policies they consider unfair. People also engage in complex rationalisations that reframe illicit tobacco use as normal and legitimate.

Understanding these rationalisations provides important insights into how illicit markets arise and expand; this knowledge could inform policy responses and counter strategies.

Many participants described struggling with the cost of living and felt forced to make difficult choices about how they spent their limited income. Cheaper tobacco enabled them to keep smoking and manage the costs of food, power and clothing.

However, they recognised........

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