• El-Shadan Tautolo, Richard Edwards, and Heather Gifford.
• Centre for Pacific Health & Development, Pacific Islands Families Study, AUT University, Auckland, New Zealand.
• Tob Control. 2015 Mar 1; 24 (e1): e59-64.

BackgroundHigh smoking rates among Pacific people living within New Zealand (26.9%) are a significant and poorly understood problem. A proposed approach to tobacco control is to enhance restrictions on or ban duty-free sales, a pertinent notion for Pacific people given their frequent travel between New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. This study examines the purchase and distribution of duty-free tobacco by Pacific people, whether it is being used as a strategy to circumvent the tobacco excise tax increases and how duty-free cigarette sales are perceived within the Pacific community.MethodsWe undertook a qualitative research study using six focus groups with Pacific smokers and non-smokers aged between 18 and 54 years. Half of the focus groups consisted of smokers and half non-smokers. We used a thematic analysis approach to identify, explore and report key themes within the data.ResultsPacific smokers and non-smokers frequently purchase duty-free tobacco when travelling, and the usage of duty-free cigarettes for gift giving is a strongly embedded cultural value for Pacific peoples. However, nearly all participants strongly supported a proposal to reduce or ban duty-free tobacco sales.ConclusionsThe findings suggest a ban on duty-free sales could be an important measure to help achieve the smokefree 2025 goal among Pacific communities in New Zealand. This measure would eliminate duty-free tobacco as a cheap form of supply, and efforts to denormalise the practice of gifting duty-free tobacco among Pacific people may also be helpful in reducing high prevalence rates within these communities.Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

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