Taliban administration raises import tariffs on seven goods
The Taliban administration has increased customs tariffs on the import of seven goods and, at the same time, reduced the tariff on one medical item, a decision whose implementation date has not yet been clarified by the finance ministry.
In a statement, the Taliban administration’s Ministry of Finance said the decision was made at the third meeting of the tariff committee in 1405. According to the statement, import tariffs have been raised from 12% to 16% on bottles, from 16% to 30% on repair paint, from 20% to 40% on leather footwear, from 50% to 80% on plastic footwear, from 50% to 80% on plaster, and from 20% to 25% on diapers.
At the same time, according to the Taliban administration’s Ministry of Finance, the import tariff on a “heart spring” has been reduced from 8% to 3.5%. The ministry said these changes were adopted to support domestic production and to develop agriculture and trade.
The statement said the meeting was held under the chairmanship of Mullah Mohammad Nasser Akhund, the acting finance minister of the Taliban administration, and was attended by representatives of several ministries, the economic deputy, the General Directorate of Intelligence, and chambers of commerce and investment, as well as industry and mines.
The Taliban administration’s Ministry of Finance also said the tariff committee had made decisions on standardising tariffs on wires, iron nails, frozen potatoes and flavouring materials, but it did not release details of those decisions.
Customs tariffs are among the main tools for regulating imports in the country, and changes to them can affect the prices of goods in the domestic market. In this statement, the Taliban administration’s Ministry of Finance did not provide further information on the exact time the new tariffs will take effect.
