The Central Bank of Nigeria has revised the exchange rate utilized by the Nigeria Customs Service for calculating import duty at the country’s seaports.
Import duty, or Customs duty, is a tax collected by customs authorities on behalf of the federal government from importers during the clearance of goods at the seaport. The amount paid is typically determined by the value of the imported goods, calculated in foreign currency.
According to data from the federal government trading portal, starting Friday, February 16, 2024, importers will face a charge of N1,472.756 per dollar when paying for import duty. This reflects a 2.79% increase or N42.33 from the previous rate of N1,515.092 per dollar. Since June 2023, the CBN has consistently raised Nigeria Customs’ import duty rate, starting from N422.30 per dollar and reaching as high as N1515.092 per dollar.
This adjustment follows the earlier announcement that the CBN is planning to introduce a unified foreign currency gateway bank.
The apex bank aims to centralize all correspondent banking activities, facilitating international trade and economic activities. Additionally, the CBN has revealed plans to streamline the number of BDC operators in Nigeria, aiming to enhance the nation’s forex inflows and stabilize the Naira.
