The East African Community introduced several revisions to its import duty measures, including “duty remissions” for industrial imports and tariff exemptions on a range of medical goods, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council said in a July 22 report. The measures also allow EAC member states -- Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda -- to impose higher duty rates on garments, textiles, leather products, metal products, meat and tea imports to protect domestic production against cheaper imports. Member states can also issue “stays” of the EAC’s common external tariff application, which allow the states to defer imposing the CET rates for one year.

Egypt’s trade ministry recently suspended imports of refined and raw sugar for three months, a July 15 U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service report said. The measure, which took effect in early June, may be renewed and includes an exemption for imports of white sugar for the pharmaceutical industry. USDA said Egypt's sugar imports come primarily from Brazil and the European Union, with small quantities from China. It produces 80% of its domestic sugar demand.

Kenya’s new finance bill includes several provisions that may be a disincentive to imports, including a new customs fee, additional duties and the removal of certain exemptions, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council said in a July 15 report. The bill, which took effect June 30, changed the import declaration fee for goods imported under the East African Community Duty Remission Scheme from a flat fee of $93 (U.S. dollar equivalent) to1.5% of the import's customs value. The new rate also “is chargeable regardless of the goods’ final destination,” unlike the flat-rate fee that applied to “imported goods that were subsequently destined for the Kenyan market.” The bill also removed fee exemptions for imports of certain aircrafts and other goods used for “promoting investments” or for “framework arrangements with the government.” Another measure will impose an additional 2.5% duty on certain goods imported for domestic use by companies in an “Export Processing Zone.” Kenya’s Parliamentary Budget Office has warned the bill may affect the competitiveness of the Port of Mombasa, which is used by other countries in the region, the report said. It is the largest port in East Africa.

The South African Development Community recently approved official guidelines for cross-border movement of goods during the COVID-19 pandemic, a July 3 Hong Kong Trade Development Council report said. The guidelines detail mandatory procedures for truck drivers and other transportation crews that are moving goods, including virus testing requirements, checkpoint management, hygiene practices, personal protective equipment requirements, loading procedures and record keeping.

Nigeria issued a June 24 guidance to clarify which goods are exempt from value-added taxes, KPMG said in a June 25 post. The country also listed the following as not exempt: natural gas, “essential” raw materials for producing pharmaceuticals, renewable energy equipment, and raw materials for producing baby diapers and sanitary towels, the post said. Those goods are, however, subject to a 7% VAT rate.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service issued a report June 22 on a series of Saudi tariff increases on agricultural goods. The measures, which took effect June 20, raised duties on livestock, seafood, vegetables, fruit, potato products, dried yeast and more. USDA said the category most impacted is dairy products, which accounted for more than 80% of the 224 food and agricultural products subject to increased tariffs. The report contains a list of all the impacted products with their new tariff rates. The list does not include many items that were on a now-rescinded list of increased tariffs that were scheduled to take effect June 10, the USDA said (see 2006020028).

Morocco recently announced plans to establish a free-trade zone on its northeastern coast to try to reduce illegal imports, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council said June 24. The FTZ, which will be located in the town of Fnideq, near Ceuta, will include several customs warehouses dedicated to “high-demand goods” such as textiles and food products, the report said. The area will benefit goods imported through Morocco’s Tanger Med port and is expected to be completed within a year. The report said food and textiles are among “the most commonly smuggled commodities through Ceuta,” a Spanish autonomous city on the north African coast, near the Morocco border.

Turkey plans to ban production and imports of 16 active substances found in plant protection products, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in a June 19 report. The import ban, which will take effect for each of the substances over a “transitional period” from June 30 through Dec. 31, will impact difenacoum, fenamidone, triadimenol, chlorothalonil and other substances because of their harmful effects on humans and the environment, the report said. The move is aimed at harmonizing Turkish regulations with European Union rules.

Importers of certain consumer goods in Kenya will be banned from using bonded warehouses to delay duty payments starting Aug. 12, according to a June 17 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Those importers will instead be required to pay customs duties when the goods arrive, the report said. The measure, which is expected to hit smaller businesses the hardest, will impact imports of alcohol, used motor vehicles, textiles, office supplies, “foodstuffs of any form,” a range of bulk commodities, cigarettes, spare parts, electrical parts, cameras, phones, used footwear and more. It is not yet clear what will happen to commodities currently stored in warehouses, the report said.

Abu Dhabi’s customs authority recently introduced a series of measures to help importers during the COVID-19 pandemic, a June 8 Hong Kong Trade Development Council report said. The incentive package allows importers to defer customs duties for 90 days from the date of their customs statement, and provides “pre‑clearance services” for imports through the agency’s “customs online operations system,” which is expected to save importers time and money. The agency will also offer “self-clearance services,” allowing companies to clear cargo “without the need for intermediary customs brokers.” Certain firms may also issue a customs warehouse license without paying license fees, and deposit and withdraw goods from warehouses without paying service fees, the report said.