CBN Raises Import Duty 14% to N1,327.35/$1 as Naira Weakens

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has once again raised the customs import duty at the nation’s ports with importers now charged N1,327.35/$ per Dollar, signifying a 14 per cent rise.

Information obtained from the official trade portal of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) shows that the apex bank raised the Customs FX duty rate from N1,164.84/$ to N1,327.35/$ on Monday, April 29.

The current Customs rate is now higher than the Nigerian currency against the US Dollar, which is trading at around N1,300 per Dollar.

Customs duties are taxes and levies paid on goods imported into the country. The duties are paid through a commercial bank to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), which receives the payment on behalf of the federal government.

According to data from the federal government trading portal, the CBN has set a new exchange rate to calculate customs import duties.

With the apex bank’s policy that Customs should be using the rate on the date of submitting Form M for calculating duties, the adjustment means that importers opening Form M on Monday, April 29, 2024, for any import trade, will have to look for more money to pay as import duties compared to the importer who opened Form M on Friday, April 26, 2024.

Form M is a mandatory online documentation process for importing physical goods into Nigeria.

The rates which used to move alongside the rate at the FX market come as the Naira had its worst run since the devaluation in January, falling almost 8 per cent to N1,339.23 on Friday from N1,234.49 at the beginning of the week, according to data by FMDQ Securities Exchange.

The recent downturn of the Naira comes after appreciating to a level where the Naira was briefly touted as the best-performing currency globally. This was bolstered by the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) foreign exchange reforms and strategic economic policies.

Earlier this month, the exchange rate had strengthened impressively to around N1,072.74, with market traders projecting that it might even breach the N1,000/$1 mark, however, this has changed course in the last two weeks.