On 15 January, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) announced the publication of the prohibited and restricted goods.
What are Prohibited and Restricted goods?
The main difference between prohibitions and restrictions is that:
- prohibited goods are never allowed to enter or exit South Africa under any circumstances; and
- restricted goods are allowed to enter or exit South Africa only in certain circumstances or under certain conditions, for example on production of a permit, certificate or letter of authority from the relevant government department, institution or body.
SARS administers certain prohibitions or restrictions in terms of section 113(8)(a) of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 on behalf of a number of government departments, institutions or bodies, for example the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS), the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), to name a few.
Prohibitions and restrictions are not limited to goods carried by travellers but are applicable on all modalities of transport (road, rail, air, sea, post or other). This means that products subject to any prohibitions or restrictions will be subject to those no matter in what form of package or packaging they are imported or exported.
In addition to the prohibitions and restrictions, the status of the goods must also be declared as follows:
- N for new goods;
- U for used goods; and
- S must be used for second-hand goods.
The prohibitions and restrictions from all different government departments, institutions or bodies are incorporated in the Consolidated List of Prohibited and Restricted Imports and Exports, which is supplied here for ease of reference.
The list is categorised according to the tariff structure of the Harmonised Commodity Coding and Description System – commonly known as the HS Tariff or Tariff Book whereby goods are classified upon importation or exportation.
The Prohibited and Restricted Goods List is accessible at:
https://www.sars.gov.za/ClientSegments/Customs-Excise/Pages/Prohibited-and-Restricted-goods.aspx
Story by: Riaan de Lange
