The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has commenced the implementation of a zero percent import duty and Value-Added Tax (VAT) exemption on essential food items, as directed by the Federal Government.
In a circular issued on Wednesday, the NCS referenced a letter from the Ministry of Finance, which stated that President Bola Tinubu has approved the implementation.
Effective July 15 to December 31, the duty waiver applies to critical food staples imported through land and sea borders, aimed at mitigating inflation.
The Federal Government initially announced the suspension of duties, tariffs, and taxes on food imports on July 10.
Subsequently, on August 7, the NCS confirmed that the duty waiver would be implemented within a week.
The exempted food commodities, as outlined in the circular signed by Deputy Comptroller-General C.K Niagwan, include maize, husked brown rice, wheat, grain beans, and millet.
In the letter, Wale Edun, the minister of finance, said the “measure which is geared towards ameliorating the high cost of food items in the Nigerian market shall be limited to the national supply gap to be determined by a committee set up by the Minister”.
- Requirement For Duty Waiver
Edun said importers applying for the duty waiver must have milling capacity and a verifiable backward integration programme (BIP).
BIP is the sourcing of raw materials locally to reduce dependence on foreign raw materials.
“The importation of these items shall also be limited to investors with milling capacity and verifiable Backward Integration Programme (BIP) for some of the items,” the minister said.
Also, he said from time to time, during the implementation period, the ministry will furnish customs with the list of importers and their approved quotas to guide the importation of the basic food items.
Edun said customs must ensure strict compliance.
On Tuesday, Bashir Adeniyi, comptroller-general (CG) of NCS, said the federal government would lose about N188 billion in revenue due to the suspension of import duties on food commodities.
Adeniyi said the service would ensure adequate implementation by enlisting special corridors to clear imports of food items.
