Complaint

Complaint number
NTB-001-137  
NTB Type
1.7. Discriminatory or flawed government procurement policies  
Complaint
Rwanda has introduced higher excise duties on confectioneries transferred from Kenya to Rwanda thus making the products uncompetitive. We request Rwanda to waive these higher excise duties on confectioneries from Kenya

The Rwanda new excise tax is vide Rwanda Official and special gazette of 14/09/2023 under article 4: products and corresponding rates section 2 at FRW 322/kg to confectionary and Chocolate at FRW 1930/KG and other products. This will greatly increase the tax burden on confectionery and discourage Kenya trans-fer/export to Rwanda.  
Status note
Rwanda advised that " According to Article 1 of the Law nº 050/2023 of 05/09/2023 establishing the excise duty, which provides that “This Law establishes the excise duty levied on some of the imported products and products manufactured in Rwanda”. It is clear that provision of Article 4 applies to Rwandan manufactured products and foreign manufactured products equally. Therefore, is no issue of discrimination.
On the other hand, this claim related to confectioneries is not an NTB because a non-tariff barrier is any measure, other than a customs tariff, that acts as a barrier to international trade. This issue is related to fees paid by manufacturers of confectioneries be they manufactured in Rwanda or in Kenya. Therefore, this claim of NTB should be withdrawn"  
Progress update note
1. In November 2023, Rwanda Focal Point reported that they were consulting relevant institutions on this specific case, and would provide feedback soon
2. On 20 March 2024, Rwanda Focal Point provided following feedback :
According to Article 1 of the Law nº 050/2023 of 05/09/2023 establishing the excise duty, which provides that “This Law establishes the excise duty levied on some of the imported products and products manufactured in Rwanda”. It is clear that provision of Article 4 applies to Rwandan manufactured products and foreign manufactured products equally. Therefore, is no issue of discrimination.
On the other hand, this claim related to confectionaries is not an NTB because a non-tariff barrier is any measure, other than a customs tariff, that acts as a barrier to international trade. This issue is related to fees paid by manufacturers of confectioneries be they manufactured in Rwanda or in Kenya. Therefore, this claim of NTB should be withdrawn  
Policy or regulatory NTB
No 
Location
Rwanda: Rwanda Revenue Authority (Government institution)  
Reporting Country or Region
Kenya  
Country specific trade issue
No  
Date of incident
2023-09-04  
Status
Resolved  
Date of resolution
2024-03-20  
Product Description
Confectionary/Chocolate


 
Total value
0  
Date reported
2023-11-03 15:35  
Modified
2024-04-29 13:04  

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