Hong Kong customs seizes 600 million illicit cigarettes in first 9 months of 2026

Hong Kong customs officers seized 600 million illicit cigarette sticks during the first nine months of 2026, nearly matching last year's annual total, according to Commissioner of Customs and Excise Chan Tsz-tat. The seizures included 200 million sticks intended for destinations other than Hong Kong, which were intercepted after intelligence was received.

Of the 600 million sticks seized, 18,000 cases involved passengers who did not declare carrying over 19 cigarettes each. These cases constitute 16,000 of the 18,000 illicit cigarette cases detected in this period. The revamped Huanggang Port, which began operations on Monday, has so far seen no serious drug cases among the illicit cigarette seizures.

Customs clearance at the revamped port has remained smooth, with both passenger and cargo clearance processes proceeding without significant bottlenecks. To address manpower pressure, the department has reassigned staff from other border checkpoints, cancelled leave for some employees, and hired retired personnel to assist at the newly opened land boundary checkpoint.

The department plans to introduce more advanced technology, such as the active millimetre wave detector, to further alleviate manpower demands by potentially reducing the need for body searches. The joint clearance system at the revamped Huanggang Port could cut processing time to five minutes from around 30 minutes, with the port expected to handle up to 300,000 travelers per day.