Tinubu’s Govt Raises Customs Duties, Food Prices to Soar
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has once again adjusted the exchange rate for calculating customs duties at the country’s seaports, raising it by 1.9 per cent to N1.624.732 per US dollar amidst the ongoing Naira crisis.
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Data retrieved from the official portal of the Nigeria Customs Service revealed that the rate was revised upwards from N1,593.888 to N1.624.732 per USD on Tuesday.
This adjustment implies that importers who initiated Form M transactions on Tuesday will incur higher costs to clear their goods, as import duties are pegged against the dollar.
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However, port users have expressed dissatisfaction with the policy of utilizing the exchange rate on Form M for import duty payments, citing concerns about its impact on trade processes.
Emenike Nwokeoji, the National President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, cautioned that using the Form M rate would result in inconsistencies in duties paid on similar imports and could destabilize the pricing structure of goods and services in the country.
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He further warned that such a policy could lead to abnormal increases in the final sale prices of items, primarily driven by uncertainties rather than market fundamentals, which could contribute to inflationary pressures.
It is noteworthy that the CBN has adjusted the exchange rate for import duties several times in recent weeks, reflecting the volatility in the Naira’s value against the US dollar.
In a fresh guideline issued in February, the apex bank advised the Nigeria Customs Service to adopt the foreign exchange closing rate on the date of Form M submission by importers for goods clearance and import duty assessment.
