Buhari’s administration has increased the import tariff.
Nigerians are expected to pay more on rice, bread, and others.
The Nigerian Federal Government has announced a review of the Import Adjustment Tax (IAT) in line with the implementation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Common External Tariff (CET) 2022-2026. This move will result in increased tariffs on the importation of 189 items, including rice, wheat, and alcohol.
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Import tariffs have increased.
In a recent development, the revised 2023 document revealed an increase in tariffs on rice packing weighing more than 5kg or in bulk, as well as packing weighing 5kg or less. The tariff has been raised from 50 percent to 60 percent. The tariffs for importing wheat or meslin flour have increased from 50 percent to 70 percent in the ECOWAS CET for the years 2022–2026.
The Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, has made this known in a recently released document bearing the title “Revised Import Adjustment Tax (IAT) for Implementation of ECOWAS CET (2022-2026), 2023 Fiscal Policy Measures.”.
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According to a statement released by an official, it has been confirmed that the President has given his approval for the implementation of the 2023 fiscal measures. These measures include Supplementary Protection Measures (SPMs) for the implementation of the ECOWAS Common External Tariff 2022–2026, a revised excise duty rate on alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, and tobacco products, and the introduction of excise duty on single-use plastics (SUPs).
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The Common External Tariff has been identified as a key tool in the effort to unify ECOWAS member nations and bolster the region’s shared marketplace.
Nigeria has announced that it will maintain the inclusion of a national list of items with reduced import duties in Chapter 99 of the ECOWAS Common External Tariff. This move is aimed at promoting and stimulating growth in critical sectors of the economy. Under the new Chapter 99, only investors and manufacturers with verifiable needs for import duty concessions as production inputs will be eligible to access them.
Importers who had opened Form ‘M’ and entered into irrevocable trade agreements before the implementation of the new circular will be granted a 90-day grace period starting May 1, 2023, to process and clear their goods at the current duty rates. Starting May 1, 2023, all new import transactions will be subject to the new import duty regime.
The government has announced that the excise duty rate on alcoholic beverages and tobacco products will be revised in accordance with the existing excise regime implementation period. This change will come into effect on June 1, 2023, and will be reviewed upward in line with the new regime by June 1, 2024. According to a memo, the excise duty on single-use plastics (SUP) is set to take effect on June 1, 2023.
