Non-Tariff Barriers :: Complaints

Resolved complaints

Showing items 1 to 20 of 799

Complaint number	NTB Type Category 1. Government participation in trade & restrictive practices tolerated by governments 1.1. Export subsidies 1.2. Government monopoly in export/import 1.3. State subsidies, procurement, trading, state ownership 1.4. Preference given to domestic bidders/suppliers 1.5. Requirement for counter trade 1.6. Domestic assistance programmes for companies 1.7. Discriminatory or flawed government procurement policies 1.8. Import bans 1.9. Determination of eligibility of an exporting country by the importing country 1.10. Determination of eligibility of an exporting establishment (firm, company) by the importing country 1.11. Occupational safety and health regulation 1.12. Multiplicity and Controls of Foreign exchange market 1.13. "Buy national" policy 1.14. Lack of coordination between government institutions 1.15. Other Category 2. Customs and administrative entry procedures 2.1. Government imposing antidumping duties 2.2. Arbitrary customs classification 2.3. Issues related to the rules of origin 2.4. Import licensing 2.5. Decreed customs surcharges 2.6. Additional taxes and other charges 2.7. International taxes and charges levied on imports and other tariff measures 2.8. Lengthy and costly customs clearance procedures 2.9. Issues related to transit fees 2.10. Inadequate or unreasonable customs procedures and charges 2.11. Lack of control in Customs infrastructure 2.12. Lack of capacity of Customs officers 2.13. Issues related to Pre-Shipment Inspections 2.14. Other Category 3. Technical barriers to trade (TBT) Category 4. Sanitary & phyto-sanitary (SPS) measures Category 5. Specific limitations 5.1. Quantitative restrictions 5.2. Exchange controls 5.3. Export taxes 5.4. Quotas 5.5. Import licensing requirements 5.6. Proportion restrictions of foreign to domestic goods (local content requirement) 5.7. Minimum import price limits 5.8. Embargoes 5.9. Non-automatic licensing 5.10. Prohibitions 5.11. Quantitative safeguard measures 5.12. Export restraint arrangements 5.13. Other quantity control measures 5.14. Restrictive licenses 5.15. Other Category 6. Charges on imports 6.1. Prior import deposits and subsidies 6.2. Administrative fees 6.3. Special supplementary duties 6.4. Import credit discriminations 6.5. Variable levies 6.6. Border taxes 6.7. Other Category 7. Other procedural problems 7.1. Arbitrariness 7.2. Discrimination 7.3. Corruption 7.4. Costly procedures 7.5. Lengthy procedures 7.6. Lack of information on procedures (or changes thereof) 7.7. Complex variety of documentation required 7.8. Consular and Immigration Issues 7.9. Inadequate trade related infrastructure 7.10. Other Category 8. Transport, Clearing and Forwarding 8.1. Government Policy and regulations 8.2. Administrative (Border Operating Hours, delays at border posts, etc.) 8.3. Immigration requirements (Visa, travel permit) 8.4. Transport related corruption 8.5. Infrastructure (Air, Port, Rail, Road, Border Posts,) 8.6. Vehicle standards 8.7. Costly Road user charges /fees 8.8. Issues related to transit Other Policy or Regulatory NTB Not a policy or regulatory NTB Check allUncheck all	Date of incident	Location COMESA Burundi Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Eritrea Eswatini Ethiopia Kenya Libya Madagascar Malawi Mauritius Rwanda Seychelles Somalia Sudan Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe EAC Burundi Democratic Republic of the Congo Kenya Rwanda South Sudan Tanzania Uganda SADC Angola Botswana Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Eswatini Lesotho Madagascar Malawi Mauritius Mozambique Namibia Seychelles South Africa Tanzania Zambia Zimbabwe COMESA EAC SADC	Reporting country or region (additional) COMESA Burundi Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Eritrea Eswatini Ethiopia Kenya Libya Madagascar Malawi Mauritius Rwanda Seychelles Somalia Sudan Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe EAC Burundi Democratic Republic of the Congo Kenya Rwanda South Sudan Tanzania Uganda SADC Angola Botswana Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Eswatini Lesotho Madagascar Malawi Mauritius Mozambique Namibia Seychelles South Africa Tanzania Zambia Zimbabwe COMESA EAC SADC	Status	Actions
NTB-000-805	Existence of several weighbridge stations in the central and Northern corridors.	2014-04-01	EAC	EAC	Resolved 2019-08-21	View
Complaint:	Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi are affected by the existence of several weighbridge stations in the central and Northern corridors (Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda).
Resolution status note:	During the meeting of Focal Points held on 19- 21 August 2019 , EAC NTBs Focal Points reported that this matter had been resolved. The weigh bridges have been reduced to 3 in the central corridor .
NTB-000-844	Insurance	2018-09-28	Uganda: Police	Burundi	Resolved 2018-09-28	View
Complaint:	Non-recognition of the COMESA Insurance by Uganda in case of accident.
Resolution status note:	Uganda reported that under the Law, in case of a fatal accident, the drivers are supposed to be taken to court unless you opt to resolve it. The meeting agreed that this NTB has been resolved.
NTB-000-951	Quarantine for All Truck drivers	2020-04-05	Zambia: Kazungula Ferry	Zimbabwe	Resolved 2020-04-10	View
Complaint:	Zambia imposeS a mandatory 14 day quarantine for all truck drivers entering Zambia during the covid 19 pandemic. From 28 March 2020, drivers using the Kazungula Ferry border post were detained at Kazungula border post and later moved to different sites in Lusaka such as UNZA. It is not clear whether all drivers were screened at the border post to establish if they showed symptoms COVID 19 . All driver are being quarantined including drivers without COVID 19 symptoms. This is not in line with SADC guidelines that stipulates that Member states will undertake initial screening and only quarantine those that show symptoms of COVID 19. Zambia should have notified all SADC member states of their mandatory quarantine period in advance as required by the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation and WHO Interim Guidance on Quarantine of individuals in the context of the containment of corona virus disease (COVID-19) so that traders could plan accordingly. Zambia ambushed traffic in transit. Zambia should implement the SADC guidelines which were recently adopted.
Resolution status note:	On 19 Appril 2020, FESARTA reported that all drivers under quarantine have since been released. Also Zambia has now produced a COVID - 19 Guidelines on Screening for Trucks carrying essential commodities. At certain Zambian border posts such as Vic Falls, Kazangula, Chinade and Chipata drivers are required to be screened and tested for COVID-19, meaning that they are quarantined until the test results are available and if negative for COVID-19 are released to proceed and deliver the cargo to the final destination, if they test positive they are quarantined for 14 days and the transporter must send another driver to replace the quarantined driver to deliver the load. Other border post such as Chirundu, Kasumbalesa and Nakonde, drivers are screened for temperatures and if no symptoms they are allowed to proceed and deliver the cargo to the final destination.
NTB-000-973	We are asked to pay 500mts to gain entry and exit to and from Mozambique (250 in/250 out) under the guise that the trucks need to be inspected.	2020-08-04	Mozambique: Delegação Aduaneira de Namaacha	Eswatini	Resolved 2021-07-09	View
Complaint:	Eswatini Company is asked to pay 500mts to gain entry and exit to and from Mozambique (250 in/250 out) under the guise that the trucks need to be inspected in line with Ministerial Diploma NO 18/2007 of February 9, which approves the table of various fees for Border Posts, effective from August 2, 2020. However inspection cargo is not done and therefore we are made to pay for services not rendered. Further , the drivers have t pay to get their passport stamped. How do we dertermine the time the vehicles stays at the border if we are billed a hourly charge all documentation and taxes dues are paid in advance to try and speed the process up why does the driver need to pay to have his passport stamped on arrival and more strangely on exiting with an empty vehicle.
Resolution status note:	Mozambique Focal Point reported that the inspection fee for motor vehicles at the Namaacha border was charged under Ministerial Diploma nº 18/2007, of 9 February. However, said fee was revoked by Ministerial Diploma nº 28/2021, of 30 April 2021
Products:	3214.10: Glaziers' putty, grafting putty, resin cements, caulking compounds and other mastics; painters' fillings
NTB-001-045		2021-11-22	Kenya: Poultry products from Uganda have been banned from entering the Kenyan market.		Resolved 2022-06-14	View
Complaint:	The government of Kenya without giving any reason arbitrarily banned all poultry products from Uganda from accessing the Kenyan market. It is not clear when the ban will end or if it will end. My clients have lost and continue to lose a lot of money thanks to this arbitrary and protectionist measure by the government of Kenya going against all the principles of the International Trade especially Kenya's obligations as a part of the East African Community Customs Union.
Resolution status note:	On 14 June 2022, the EAC Secretariat reported that the ban was lifted as a result of the Bilateral meeting of the two Partner States in December 2021. So, the matter is resolved
NTB-001-066		2022-01-01	Mozambique: Delegação Aduaneira de Ressano Garcia (Road)	Mozambique	Resolved 2024-03-31	View
Complaint:	Introduction by Autoridade Tributária de Moçambique of a SINGLE ENTRY Temporary Import Permit (TIP) at a cost of MZN700, which is currently processed manually for the majority of vehicles at Ressano Garcia's KM4 facility. The costs are prohibitive for companies moving transit cargo from South Africa to the Port of Maputo, with 15 loads per week per vehicle a common achievement. In addition, the delays experienced by the manual processing of the TIP document adds significant cost on account of the waiting time that drivers are subjected to. The Port of Maputo has collaborated with Customs in Mozambique to collect electronic payments for the TIPs, but so far only 10 companies have taken up the use of the facility. Even those companies registered on the Port's electronic system are not guaranteed speedy processing, and delays are still experienced by drivers as they still have to queue to collect the TIP document. Electronic payments should take precedent over manual payments, but in reality this is not the case. It is common knowledge that a R50 bribe will speed up the processing of the TIP document. The SADC Protocol on Trade is clear in its reference to the removal of tariffs and non tariff barriers. At this point, the TIP cost to one company moving 180 trucks per month, is in excess of R1,4million ZAR or USD88,000. The manual processing compromises the integrity of the system and the costs directly impact the competitiveness of the trade route for imports and transit imports into Mozambique. With the push towards the harmonization of regulations within the SADC and TRIPARTITE region, the TIP process should be harmonized with that of South Africa which has a multiple entry TIP valid for 6 months and is processed at no cost to the user.
Resolution status note:	The NTB-001-066 was resolved, and the withdrawal of fees concerning the 750 Meticais fees paid for issuing and extending the Vehicles Temporary Import License on the foreign carriers was reviewed and published in Ministerial Diploma no. 33/2023 of February 14th, attached above.
NTB-000-475	1.13. "Buy national" policy	2011-10-06	Uganda: Uganda National Police	Rwanda	Resolved 2012-12-03	View
Complaint:	Removal of plate numbers on vehicles that have had accidents.The argument given is to force the driver to report to the police. The consequence is loss of goods and vehicle parts because with no plate number the truck/vehicle seems to belong to nobody.
Resolution status note:	On 21st December 2015, Uganda Focal Point reported that the NTB was resolved in 2012 by Uganda
NTB-000-088	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2009-07-23	South Africa: South African Revenue Services	Namibia	Resolved 2011-06-08	View
Complaint:	South Africa charging an import levy on beer
Resolution status note:	South Africa reported that beer is traded free under SADC and 5%/litre under SACU (Source: Jacobsens tariff book)
NTB-000-084	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2009-07-23	South Africa: Ministry of Trade	Namibia	Resolved 2010-11-22	View
Complaint:	South Africa is charging import levy on UHT milk
Resolution status note:	South Africa reported that , according to the tariff book, the applied tariff rate for SACU/SADC countries for this product is zero.
NTB-000-085	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2009-07-23	South Africa: Ministry of Trade	Namibia	Resolved 2010-11-22	View
Complaint:	South Africa is charging import levy on imports of pasta
Resolution status note:	South Africa reported that all tariffs applied by SA to SADC countries have been agreed to on the SADC Protocol on Trade, According to the tariff book, this product is traded free under
NTB-000-086	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2009-07-23	South Africa: Ministry of Trade	Namibia	Resolved 2010-11-22	View
Complaint:	South Africa applying a levy on imports of sorgum
Resolution status note:	South Africa reported that, according to the tariff book this product is traded free under SADC, for SACU, a tariff of 3% /kg is charged. .This has been discussed by SACU Member Countries, again this complaint does relate to NTBs,
NTB-000-504	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2012-03-14	Kenya: Kenya Revenue Authority	Uganda	Resolved 2013-12-05	View
Complaint:	Kenya has introduced Customs warehouse rent that starts after the release of cargo manifest.
Resolution status note:	On 5 December 2013, Kenya focal point reported that this issue was resolved with the signing of Service Level Agreement between the Kenya Ports Authority and the Container Freight Stations. This ensures that there is no double or additional charges
NTB-000-527	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2012-08-20	Zambia: Chirundu	Zimbabwe	Resolved 2013-04-12	View
Complaint:	The 16th Zimbabwe/Zambia Joint Commission held in Masvingo from 23-25 August 2012 learnt that Zambia had introduced a law which compels informal traders from outside that country to pay 1 Million Kwacha for a trading permit. The permit is valid for six months. Zimbabwe viewed the Zambia action as against the principles of the COMESA Simplified Trade Regime (STR) and also constituting an NTB.
Resolution status note:	On 25 September 2012, Zambia Focal point reported that the complaint from Zimbabwe with regard to the introduction of the Cross Border Permit valued at ZMK,000,000 as provided for under the new Immigration laws is valid. In a follow up with Zambia Immigration at Kariba Border post on 12 April 2013, it was reported that the ZMK 1 million was reasonable because the permit is a multi-entry and does not restrict traders to number of days per visit during in the six months validity of the permit. Further, the Focal point reported that Zambia was in the process of reviewing the fee downwards. The signing of the statutory instrument by the Hon. Minister of Home Affairs so as to operationalise the same is still being awaited.
NTB-000-570	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2013-02-26	Mozambique: Delegação Aduaneira de Namaacha	Eswatini	Resolved 2013-04-10	View
Complaint:	I'm doing the carton business in Mozambique but factory is in Swaziland. Every time I'm going to pass the border my company always pay 100 USD for every truck of goods I only deliver in Maputo they say it is a road fund every week I use at least 8-10 trucks I'm doing this business since 2009 and until now i need to pay that road fund I want to know why I'm paying this Money.
Resolution status note:	At the Tripartite NTBs Online Reporting, Monitoring and Eliminating Mechanism Meeting to Launch the SMS Reporting Tool held from 9-10 April in Lusaka Zambia, Mozambique reported that this is a levy on use of national roads and that this amount ranges from US$75-US$100 per trip. Almost all countries in the region have road tax specially for foreign trucks crossing the border. With this explanation, meeting agreed to resolve the matter.
NTB-000-582	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2013-03-18	Zimbabwe: Kariba	Zimbabwe	Resolved 2013-07-30	View
Complaint:	Customs charging duty on STR goods which are exempted from paying duty under the Comesa Simplified Trade Regime
Resolution status note:	On 30 July 2013, Zimbabwe Focal point confirmed ZIMRA report that Zimbabwe does not charge customs duty on goods that qualify under STR if the goods have been properly declared as per the requirement. It should however be taken into cognizance that Import Value Added Tax (VAT) at a rate of 15% is payable. Also where the importer does not have a Tax Clearance Certificate (ITF 263) Presumptive Tax at a rate of 10% of the Value of the goods being imported is payable. Clearance under STR is limited to a consignment of us$1000. If the consignment exceeds the US$1000 duty is paid on the excess List of goods which qualify under STR are displayed at the respective Border Posts. Furthermore TIDOs are placed at the respective Border Posts to assist persons importing such goods understand the clearance procedures.
Products:	5402.11: High-tenacity filament yarn of aramids (excl. sewing thread and yarn put up for retail sale)
NTB-000-577	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2013-04-12	Zimbabwe: Zimra Head Office	Zimbabwe	Resolved 2013-07-30	View
Complaint:	Customs and Excise (Surtax Tariff) Notice ,2012, Statutory Instrument 112 of 2012, Customs has introduced surtax on almost most of the agricultural products on the STR list of Eligible products, instead of paying 10% as presumptive tax there are now required to additional tax 25% as surtax that will amount to 35% and those which are not agriculture products instead of paying 25% as vat and presumptave tax there is additional 25% that means they will pay 50%, this a barrier, this will disturb the spirit of STR and all efforts to formalise transactions, and inrease cases of smuggling and corruption ,can there be clarity from Customs/Zimra for this surtax
Resolution status note:	On 01 June 2013, Zimbabwe Revenue Authority ( ZIMRA) reported that the introduction of surtax was not targeted at STR products as the surtax is also levied on importations of the same goods from other countries taking into consideration the terms of any trade arrangements or protocols that may exist between Zimbabwe and that trading partner or block. The On 30 July 2013, Zimbabwe Focal Point advised that the NTB be conisdered resolved by the confirmation from ZIMRA that the surtax was not discriminatory.
NTB-000-643	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2014-12-09	Tanzania: Dar-es-Salaam Port	Burundi	Resolved 2015-03-26	View
Complaint:	Tanzania Ports Authority is charging all Transit containers located at at Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) a miscellaneous Port Charges. On 05 June 2014, a transporter from Burundi was charged US$90 being for miscellaneous port services for a 20ft container
Resolution status note:	At the 16th EAC regional forum on non tariff barriers held in Kigali in December 2014, Tanzania reported that the double handling charges were abolished. This NTB is therefore resolved.
NTB-000-643	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2014-12-09	Tanzania: Dar-es-Salaam Port	Burundi	Resolved 2015-03-26	View
Complaint:	Tanzania Ports Authority is charging all Transit containers located at at Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS) a miscellaneous Port Charges. On 05 June 2014, a transporter from Burundi was charged US$90 being for miscellaneous port services for a 20ft container
Resolution status note:	At the 17th NTB forum held in Nairobi on 24th to 26th March 2015, Tanzania confirmed that these charges were no longer applicable and therefore the NTB was resolved.
NTB-000-712	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2016-06-30	Tanzania: Tanzania Revenue Authority	Kenya	Resolved 2016-12-07	View
Complaint:	A Kenyan Exhibitor for the 40th Dar es Salaam International Tradefair charged duties on goods by TFDA and TRA.
Resolution status note:	The 22nd Meeting of the EAC NTBs Forum held in December 2016 accepted Tanzania report that this was a once off incidence and that adequate arrangements had been put in pace to facilitate clearance of exhibitors goods during trade fair.
NTB-000-713	2.6. Additional taxes and other charges	2016-06-30	Uganda: Busia	Kenya	Resolved 2016-12-07	View
Complaint:	Exports to DRC are subjected to verifications at Busia border and consignments sealed but an additional charges and verification is done at Busitema where the seal is broken and customer/transporter is charged.
Resolution status note:	The NTB was resolved during the 22nd EAC NTBs Forum held in December 2016

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