Questions, answered.

No. We provide estimates based on publicly available 2026 GRA tariffs and levies. The Ghana Revenue Authority makes the final assessment via ICUMS, and results may differ — especially for vehicles where the HDV database determines CIF.

All payments are in Ghana cedis. You can pay with Mobile Money (MTN, Vodafone, AirtelTigo), debit/credit cards, or bank transfer — through our secure payment partner.

Our AI reads Bills of Lading, commercial invoices, and packing lists with high accuracy and suggests a 6-digit HS code per line item. You can review and correct items before finalising.

We do not store your documents. They're sent to the AI provider, parsed, and deleted from our servers immediately — whether the parse succeeds or fails. Nothing is retained or used to train any model.

Estimates are delivered immediately upon successful payment, so refunds are not generally provided. If you experience a technical issue, contact us and we'll make it right.

Reach us on WhatsApp at 0206338006 (WhatsApp only — please don't call). We're online during Ghana business hours and reply within a few hours on weekdays.

Most people say "duty" but mean the whole tax stack. Your total bill at the port includes: Import Duty (5/10/20% depending on HS code), VAT (15%), NHIL (2.5%), GETFund Levy (2.5%), ECOWAS Levy (0.5%), African Union Levy (0.2%), EXIM Levy (0.75%), and processing/examination/network charges (~2.4%). Vehicles 10+ years old also get an age penalty. The COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy was abolished on 1 January 2026.

CIF = Cost + Insurance + Freight. It's the value Ghana Customs uses as the base for almost every duty and levy calculation. If your invoice is FOB (Free On Board) or EXW (Ex Works), GRA will add freight + insurance back in to arrive at CIF. Always know your CIF — it's the single biggest input to your final bill.

The Harmonized System code is a 6–10 digit international classification for goods (ECOWAS extends it to 10 digits for Ghana). It tells customs exactly what you're importing and which duty rate applies. Get it wrong and you risk overpaying, underpaying (which gets reclassified at the port + a fine), or having your shipment held. Our goods estimator suggests an HS code per line item via AI.

The ECOWAS Common External Tariff. Ghana applies five duty bands across all imports: 0% (essential social goods like medicine), 5% (raw materials, capital goods), 10% (intermediate goods), 20% (finished consumer goods), and 35% (a small list of specially-protected products like certain agricultural items).

The Home Delivery Value is GRA's internal database of standardised CIF values per make/model/year/trim of vehicle. ICUMS uses HDV (not your invoice) to assess duty on used cars. So even if you bought a 2018 Camry for $4,000 at a US auction, GRA may value it at $9,500. Our vehicle estimator has a free Car Value lookup that pulls the official HDV for your VIN.

For 2026: vehicles aged under 10 years have no penalty, 10–12 years add 12.5% of CIF, 12–15 years add 20% of CIF. Vehicles over 15 years are generally restricted from import — verify eligibility before shipping. Age is calculated from the year of manufacture, not first registration.

Yes — Ghana waived the import duty on pure EVs to encourage adoption. You still pay VAT, NHIL, GETFund and the standard levies on the CIF, but the import duty line is zero. Hybrids do not qualify; only fully battery-electric vehicles.

Technically yes, but it's complicated. Salvage titles still get assessed at the standard HDV — meaning you pay duty on a 'whole car' value even if you're importing a wreck. Most buyers find this uneconomical unless the vehicle is for parts or a rebuild project.

GRA's HDV database overrides your declared value, so underdeclaring rarely works for vehicles. For other goods, ICUMS routinely cross-checks declared CIF against international price databases. Material undervaluation can result in reclassification, fines, prosecution, and in extreme cases seizure.

For most shipments: Bill of Lading (or Air Waybill), Commercial Invoice, Packing List, Tax Identification Number (TIN), and a Customs Classification & Valuation Report (CCVR) issued by a GRA-approved Destination Inspection Company. Vehicles also need the original title/log book and Bill of Sale. A licensed clearing agent will handle ICUMS submission for you.

With a complete file, accurate values, and a valid CCVR, a typical container clears in 5–10 business days after vessel arrival. Missing documents, valuation disputes, or a labour disruption at the port can push this to weeks. Vehicle clearance is generally faster (3–7 days).

Demurrage is the daily fee charged by the shipping line for keeping their container in port past the free period (usually 7 days). Rent is the equivalent fee charged by GPHA for storage space. Together they can quickly exceed the duty itself. Best practice: have your clearing agent ready before the vessel arrives, pre-pay your duty estimate, and book a haulier for collection day-one.

Self-clearance is technically possible for individuals importing personal effects, but in practice you'll save days and money using a licensed Customs House Agent. They have ICUMS accounts, port passes, and pre-existing relationships with GPHA. See our Resources page for verified agents.

A Customs Classification & Valuation Report. Before clearance, an approved Destination Inspection Company (e.g. WebbFontaine) reviews your documents and issues a CCVR confirming the HS code and CIF value. This is what ICUMS uses to assess duty.

EXW (Ex Works): you pay everything from the seller's door. FOB (Free On Board): seller covers loading at origin port; you pay sea freight + insurance. CFR (Cost and Freight): seller pays freight; you pay insurance. CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight): seller covers everything to Tema. Customs always uses CIF for valuation, so if your invoice is FOB or EXW, freight and insurance are added back in.

Sea freight is 5-10× cheaper but takes 4-8 weeks from Asia/Europe and 3-5 weeks from the US. Air freight arrives in 3-7 days but only makes sense for high-value, low-weight goods (electronics, urgent spare parts) or perishables.

A 20-foot (TEU) container holds ~28 m³ of cargo and a small/medium car. A 40-foot (FEU or HC for High Cube) holds ~67 m³ and can fit two saloons or one larger SUV. Pricing is per-container, not per-cubic-metre — so half-full containers waste money. Consider LCL (Less than Container Load) for small shipments.

Tema handles ~80% of Ghana's imports and has more frequent sailings, but it's also more congested. Takoradi is faster for cargo destined for the western half of the country and avoids Accra traffic. Air cargo lands at Kotoka International (Accra).