National Customs building in Luanda. [Photo – Lino Guimarães.]

Angola’s new customs tariff, which came into effect on 1 March, is expected to increase tax revenues by around 23 billion kwanzas per year, according to Angolan news agency Angop.

Citing official figures, the agency said that the figure was a 10 percent increase on customs taxes provided by the previous tariff list, which came into effect in 2007.

The director of the Tariff and Trade department of the Angolan National Customs Service said recently that of a total of 6,651 products on the new tariff list, 2,942 are free from taxes and 1,150 products had their tariff reduced to 2 percent.

On the 2007 tariff list there were 2.576 tax-free products and 914 charged at a rate of 2 percent, of a total 6,011 products.

Amongst the items that can no longer enter the country, according to the new tariff list, are home-made medications, goods that breach copyright and industrial copyright and pornography.

The new customs tariff, which will be in place until 2017, is intended to improve circulation of Angolan goods and encourage exports. Source: macauhub