Methodology

Duty, levy & VAT rates

Sourced from the Nigeria Customs Service HS-code tariff schedule (ECOWAS CET 2022-2027 (Nigeria National Tariff v3.1)). Every rate carries an effective date and a source link; where a rate is not yet confirmed for a given code, we mark it "unconfirmed" rather than guess — and withhold the total rather than imply a complete figure.

How we calculate VAT

The calculator currently applies the default 7.5% VAT rate to CIF + import duty + levy + surcharge + CISS + ETLS; HS codes recorded as VAT-exempt show 0%. This model follows commonly published clearance formulas, but some levy treatments still require confirmation against primary legislation and completed clearance records. Excise is shown separately unless a confirmed item-specific treatment is available.

Exchange rates

Official, customs-clearance, parallel-market and card-settlement channels are shown separately. Nigeria currently includes CBN plus Nigeria Customs USD and CNY assessment rates. Selected African currencies include UnionPay CNY card-settlement references; they are not central-bank, customs, cash or remittance quotes. Other official, customs and parallel-market numbers remain unavailable until their collectors and quote directions are verified.

Solar sizing

We size daily energy and motor-starting surge separately. Selected African markets use a named NASA POWER representative point with its coordinates and observation period shown. This is not a national average or site survey. Other countries require a user-provided peak-sun-hour value; the calculator never substitutes Nigeria data.

What the import estimate does not include

Port, terminal handling, clearing-agent and inland transport charges are not included. The result is a CIF and import-tax estimate, not a final landed-cost quotation.

Confidence and update schedule

Some calculation rules are corroborated by multiple trade references but still require confirmation against primary legislation and completed clearance records. Where an input is not confirmed, the calculator withholds the affected total rather than assuming zero.

We check for new source data every night. This version was generated on22 August 2026(data version 1.20260822); individual source dates may be older.

How to interpret missing data

Some rate and regulatory-rule fields remain unverified or unavailable. The calculator labels an unconfirmed duty rate and excludes it, plus dependent surcharge and VAT, from its total; it never substitutes a zero. Descriptive catalogue fields are tracked separately from verified tariff coverage.

Import-prohibition, SONCAP and NAFDAC coverage is undergoing a separate source-data audit. Until that is complete, a result with no listed rule means only that no rule is currently mapped to that HS code — it is not a legal-clearance determination.