Iraq announces customs tariffs on imports, including gold, to regulate financial transactions

Shafaq News / The Border Crossings Authority announced on Sunday the customs fees and tariffs for cargo containers and gold entering Iraq, indicating the government's adoption of a set of decisions to control revenues and financial transfers.

Maj. Gen. Omar Al-Waeli, the Director of the Crossings, stated that "under the direct patronage of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani, Cabinet Resolution No. 23672 for the year 2023 has been issued to support the commercial process in Iraq and regulate the import process, by imposing customs tariffs which are crucial in providing financial revenues to the state treasury and to simplify procedures for importers through our federal crossings."

He explained that "the resolution stipulates a fixed customs duty for a (20) feet container at two million IQD and for a (40) feet container at three million IQD. It also delineates the tariff for individual goods without a container based on the approved customs duty quantities."

The decisions also included "suspending the import license and obliging the General Customs Authority to accept the origin certificate and invoice issued by the commercial chambers, relying on the national project of the electronic Certificate of Conformity (QR) system to facilitate procedures and ensure their accuracy."

Additionally, he mentioned "modifying the additional customs duty percentage for tobacco and cigarettes to be 20% while the customs tariff percentage will be 10%, with the General Customs Authority being required to match the coordinated code of the incoming goods with the code on the SWIFT transfer platform at the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), applicable to phones, cigarettes, and cars."

Maj. Gen. Al-Waeli highlighted "granting importers of goods (phones, cigarettes, and cars) a one-month period to rectify their customs and legal situations. Subsequently, joint committees from relevant authorities will be formed to investigate and inspect warehouses, stores, and routes containing contraband goods, dealing with them according to customs and anti-money laundering laws."

Regarding imported gold, the Council of Ministers issued Resolution No. 23671 for the year 2023, specifying that the gold importer must be a formally registered company in the Companies Registration Office and is allowed external transfer.

Gold importation is exclusively allowed through airways, marked by Customs, examined, and stamped by the Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control.

Fees and charges for gold importation are detailed as follows:

-For raw gold and alloys, inspection fees per kilogram are 50,000 IQD, with a customs fee of 100,000 IQD per kilogram.

-For gold jewelry, a customs fee of 250,000 IQD per kilogram and inspection fees of 50,000 IQD apply.

-Adjustments to the regulations on gold reprocessing and re-export outside Iraq.

-Any gold imported or exported in violation of the mentioned regulations will be dealt with according to Customs Law No. 23 of 2018, as amended, and the Anti-Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Law No. 39 of 2015. Joint teams comprising customs and national security personnel will investigate and inspect the gold imported or exported outside the regulations.

In conclusion, the Border Crossings Authority, as the supervisory and regulatory body for the functioning of departments at the border crossings, is directly overseeing the implementation to achieve the desired objectives of the decision. This step is part of several measures adopted by the government to tighten control over revenues and financial transfers.