Control of Goods (Open General Import Licence) (Amendment) Notice, 2024 (No. 15)

The Minister of Industry and Commerce has amended the Open General Import Licence, which is the list of goods that can be imported without a permit or licence. The 2023 amendment notice in S.I. 101 of 2023 is repealed.

Maheu, under tariff code 2202.99.10, is added to the Open General Import Licence. It can now be imported without an import permit or licence.

Finishing ceramics, under tariff code 6907.40.00, is removed from the Open General Import Licence. Importers of finishing ceramics now need an import permit or licence — a meaningful change for tile and sanitaryware suppliers and for builders sourcing finishes.

The cost of licensing rises sharply. The fee in the explanatory note goes from thirty United States dollars (US$30), payable in ZWL at the prevailing interbank rate, to one hundred United States dollars payable in local currency at the prevailing rate of exchange — a more than threefold increase.

Separately, a new application fee of fifty United States dollars (US$50), also payable in local currency at the prevailing rate of exchange, is inserted. Applicants should budget for both: US$50 to apply and US$100 for the licence itself.

One drafting note: the substituted wording in the explanatory note reads "hundred United States dollars" without the word "one", and without a figure in brackets, unlike the other amounts in the notice. The intended figure is plainly US$100 but the printed text is loose.