Nigeria began implementing ECOWAS’ five-band regional CET on January 1, 2015. The CET hasn’t been fully harmonized by 2020. ECOWAS CET aims to liberalize trade following WTO requirements by coordinating tariff rates among member states and strengthening its single market. Nigeria is one of ten ECOWAS countries to embrace CET. ECOWAS expects five members to approve the CET by January 2017.
Nigeria keeps adding taxes and charges to imports, raising effective tariffs. In Nigeria, over 80 tariff lines are subject to a 50% effective duty (tariff, levy, excise, and VAT when applicable). 35 tariff lines have effective rates over the 70% ECOWAS threshold. The majority of these commodities are high-end luxury items (75%), alcohol (75% to 95%), and tobacco products (95%). Nigeria imposes hefty tariffs on imports into crucial areas to improve local industry competitiveness. Wheat (85%), sugar (75%), rice (70%), and tomato paste make up agriculture (50% ).
The GON introduced the NAIDP in October 2013 to boost local car manufacture. The NAIDP adds a 35% surcharge to the existing 35% tax on imported cars, increasing the total duty to 70%. The NAIDP permits Nigerian automakers to import one car for every indigenous vehicle produced.
Imports prohibited and restricted
The following items are forbidden or restricted imports in Nigeria:
- Live or frozen poultry, including live or dead birds – Pork
- Beef
- Bird eggs (excluding hatching eggs)
- Cocoa butter, powder, and baked goods
- Spaghetti or noodle
- Retail packs of fruit juice
- Cement in bags
- Tablets and syrups containing paracetamol
- Tablets and syrups containing cotrimoxazole
- Metronidazole syrups and tablets
Refined vegetable oils and fats (including mayonnaise), but not refined linseed, castor, or olive oil Importation of crude vegetable oil is NOT prohibited. In retail packaging, cane or beet sugar and chemically pure sucrose in solid form with added flavoring or coloring materials. Waters, including mineral waters and aerated waters with added sugar, sweetening substance, or flavoring; ice snow; other non-alcoholic beverages; beer and stout (bottled, canned, or otherwise packed), but not energy or health drinks.
Imports prohibited and restricted items cont’
- Tablets and syrups containing chloroquine
- Multivitamin capsules, pills, and syrups (except special formulations)
- Tablets of aspirin (except modified released formulation and soluble aspirin)
- Tablets and suspensions of magnesium trisilicate
- Piperazine syrups and tablets
- Tablets and syrups containing levamisole
- Clotrimazole lotion
- Penicillin/gentamycin ointments – Pyrantel pamoate pills and syrups
- Fluids injected intravenously (dextrose, normal saline, etc.)
- Pharmaceutical waste
Haematinic formulations include iron sulfate and ferrous gluconate tablets, folic acid tablets, and vitamin B complex tablets (except modified released formulations). Mineral or chemical fertilizers that contain two or three of the fertilizing elements nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK 15-15-15), but not organic fertilizer
Items forbidden or restricted imports in Nigeria cont;
- Retail packs of soaps and detergents only
- Mosquito repellant coils
- Rethreaded and used pneumatic tires, excluding used truck tires for rethreading of sizes 11.00 x 20.
- Rechargeable telephone cards and coupons
- Carpets and other textile floor coverings
- Used compressors and used fridges/freezers
- Used motor vehicles older than fifteen (15) years from the year of manufacture
- Ballpoint pens and parts, including refills (excluding tip)
- Retail sale of tomato paste or concentration
- Air rifles
- Airmail photographic printing paper
- All counterfeit/pirated goods or articles, including any country’s base or counterfeit coin
- Beads made of flammable celluloid or other comparable materials.
- Blank invoices
- Coupons for overseas football pools or other forms of betting
- Cattle
All sorts of footwear, backpacks, and suitcases but excluding oil industry safety shoes, sports shoes, canvas shoes, and all complete knock-down (CKD) blanks and parts. Hollow glass bottles of all sizes with capacities greater than 150mls (0.15 liters) are used for beverage packaging by breweries and other beverage and drink companies. Corrugated paper and paper boards, cartons, boxes, and cases made from corrugated paper and paper boards, toilet paper, cleaning or facial tissue, excluding baby diapers and incontinent pads for adult use. Furthermore, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has declared the following commodities “totally prohibited” from being imported into Nigeria.
