South Africa
Principal exports
Gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and
minerals, machinery and equipment.
Import/Export documentation
Within SACU: no documentation
requirements, but a commercial invoice is
typically included.
Outside SACU: commercial invoice, customs
declaration, bill of lading, packing list and,
sometimes, a certificate of origin.
As of 2011, an electronic SAD 500 Customs
Declaration Form is required for all exports.
Licences
Imports
Armaments, radioactive materials, ozone-
depleting substances, waste, scrap, various
minerals (including fuels), gold, gambling
machines, pneumatic tyres, fish, shellfish
and molluscs.
Licences with quotas: various agricultural
and manufactured products (including textile
and clothing products from Zimbabwe).
Imports from Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi,
Namibia, Swaziland and Zimbabwe do not
usually require licences.
Exports
Agricultural and manufactured products
exported to countries outside SACU.
Permits from the Department of Defence:
military equipment, armaments and
ammunition.
Tariffs/Taxes
Imports
Only 14 percent VAT is levied on imports
from other SACU member states.
Tariffs of up to 45 percent for commercial
goods and up to 60 percent for motor
vehicles apply to imports from outside
SACU.
Exports
None.
Financing requirements for imports/
exports
Goods imports are allowed with advance
payment of up to 50% (previously 33.3%) of
the e-factory cost without requiring Reserve
Bank approval.
Exporters are usually permitted to grant
credit for up to one year.
Prohibited items
Imports
Imports prohibited in accordance with UN
Security Council resolutions, such as items
deemed a threat to fauna, flora and national
security or those deemed morally dubious.
Exports
Exports that are prohibited in accordance
with UN Security Council resolutions.
