Mauritius has imposed a temporary ban on imports of live animals, live fish and products of animal origin from China, it said in a press release. Implemented Feb. 3 in response to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak, the ban covers live animals and fish; chilled, frozen and dried seafood including fish products such as fish and oyster sauce; chilled, frozen and dried meat; wool; animal hair/bristles; and animal feed including fish feed.

Egypt recently established a new state entity within the Ministry of Trade and Industry responsible for granting label certifications, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service report released Feb. 3. The agency, ISEGHALAL, was established Jan. 5 and “legitimizes” Egypt’s sole authorized halal certification entity in the U.S., IS EG Halal in New Jersey, which certifies U.S. food and beverages being exported to Egypt.

Israel will conduct individual customs screening on all imported packages sent through the Israel Postal Company valued at more than $75, beginning Feb. 15, according to a Feb. 3 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The screening process will be similar to the screening procedures required for imports to private courier companies, the report said. The move was made in response to a petition from Israeli business and trade organizations, which said private firms are unfairly subjected to import requirements not applied to the postal service. Private firms are required to declare the values of their imports while the country’s postal service was only required to “declare the value based on its samplings of imported items,” the report said. While the postal agency has been working “for some time” on the change with Israeli customs agencies, the “tight deadline” will likely be a “serious challenge” for the postal service, which is “already struggling to keep pace with delivery schedules,” the HKTDC said. The postal service may need to outsource some of its operations to the private sector, the report said, which could lead to increased delivery costs for foreign online vendors.

Nigeria introduced a series of amended tax laws, including new value-added tax rates, according to a Jan. 31 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The changes, which were introduced Jan. 13, will increase VATs on certain companies from 5 percent to 7.5 percent, the report said, but will reduce VATs and other taxes on smaller firms. In addition, companies with “an annual turnover” of less than $69,180 will be exempt from VATs. The changes are aimed at stimulating growth of small and medium-sized companies, the report said.

Iran's Ministry of Industry, Mining and Trade issued 1,000 cryptocurrency mining permits to increase the use of digital currency within Iran’s economy, according to an unofficial translation of a February report from Ibena, an Iranian news agency. The move was intended to allow Iran to “import goods and circumvent the problems of bank sanctions for payments,” a member of Iran’s Blockchain Commission of the Computer Trade Union Organization told Ibena. The report said the move, which is aimed at avoiding U.S. sanctions, could “boost the industry and its revenues.”

Oman’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry will introduce a value-added tax in 2021, according to a Jan. 29 post from KPMG. Companies operating in Oman should prepare now for the VAT implementation based on the existing VAT legislation in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the GCC Common VAT Framework Agreement, KPMG said.

Kenya will issue guidance for certain imports and plans to simplify tax incentives for companies operating in the country’s special economic zones in upcoming regulations, according to a Jan. 21 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. A draft version of the regulations clarified how tax incentives can be applied to the movement of goods and services within the zones, the report said. The final regulations will “make clear” that no customs import duties will be applied to imports of goods into the zones, “regardless of whether they are for purposes of storage, exhibition, assembly, manufacture, further processing, or re-exporting,” the HKTDC said. No “trade-related restrictions” will be applied to any imports into the zones, the report said, and companies will not be subject to “minimum export requirements,” minimum quotas or “quantitative restrictions” when selling goods that originate in the zone, the report said. The comment period for the regulations ended Jan. 15, and Kenya has not yet released a date for final publication.

Jordan’s customs authority will create a pilot zone in the Aqaba Customs Center for processing container shipments using the digital customs platform TradeLens, according to a Jan. 20 Hong Kong Trade Development Council report. TradeLens was jointly developed by IBM and Maersk and its integration is part of a “number of recent initiatives” by Jordan to increase trade and improve customs clearance processes and costs, the report said. TradeLens will provide “efficiencies” for companies and government agencies throughout the supply chain by providing a “single and secure source of shipping data,” the HKTDC said. The online platform is already in use by Thailand (see 1908300043).

Ethiopia recently launched an online customs service intended to improve the speed of customs clearance for imports and exports “dramatically,” according to a Jan. 14 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The service, Ethiopia Electronic Single Window, was launched Jan. 4 and will reduce processing times for imports and exports from 44 days to 15 days. The country expects the processing time to eventually reach three days, the report said.

Egypt plans to increase transit toll rates along the Suez Canal for dry bulk vessels and liquefied petroleum gas carriers by 5 percent, according to a Jan. 9 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The new rates, announced Jan. 4, will not impact tolls for other types of shipping, including container vessels, tankers carrying oil and oil products, liquefied natural gas carriers, car carriers and “general cargo” vessels. The changes were made by the Suez Canal Authority after “careful analysis of developments in competitor routes,” studies on the developing maritime transport market and the “global trade outlook,” the report said. The rates reflect the agency’s desire to “maintain traffic growth momentum at a challenging time for global shipping.”